Appalachian Folklore: The Legend of Stingy Jack (HIstory of the Jack o' Lantern)

As I was recently reading some Appalachian Folklore, I came across a tale that I had never heard but thought would be good to share now that it's time for Halloween! As you may know, much of Appalachian folklore was brought to the area from wherever the settlers came from and this tale is said to have originated in Ireland. Out of all the versions I read, Dave Tabler's over at Appalachian History is my favorite. Hope y'all enjoy! 

     There's an old Irish myth about a man nicknamed "Stingy Jack." Stingy Jack was a drunken brawler who found great enjoyment from playing tricks on anyone who crossed his path Jack also had the great misfortune of running into the Devil more than once.

     Jack's first encounter with the devil happened at a local Irish pub within the village. Obviously Stingy Jack was called Stingy Jack for a reason, and he wasn't about to change now in the face of the Devil. Jack convinced the Devil to transform into a sixpence piece so that Jack could use him to pay for their drinks. In exchange for this transaction, the Devil would receive Jack's soul. Little did the Devil know, Jack sill had a few tricks up his sleeve. 

After changing into the sixpence piece, Jack quickly tossed the Devil into his pocket next to a silver cross - thus preventing the Devil from returning to his original form. Jack then bargained with the Devil to keep his soul for 10 more years - in return for the Devil's freedom. The Devil reluctantly agrees and Jack frees him. Ten years pass and Jack crosses path with the Devil a second time. With the Devil ready to claim his soul, Jack made a last request: "I'll go, but before I do - will you retrieve and apple from that tree for me? I'm awfully hungry!"

The devil began to climb the tree, and while the Devil was climbing to the top of the tree, Jack carved a large cross into the back of the tree. Again, the Devil had been tricked and could not get down. 

Jack being quite pleased with himself; bargained yet again with the Devil - this time for the promise that the Devil would never, ever try to take his soul again. With no way out of the tree, the Devil agreed. 

Year pass and Jack finally passes away. Unfortunately for Jack, after all of his evil trickery and horrible deeds - God did not allow Jack into Heaven. The Devil, still bitter at Jack and his bag of tricks, kept his word and did not claim his soul. Jack was unable to get into Heaven, and unable to get into Hell. 

"Where shall I go?' Jack asked the Devil, confused and afraid.

"Back to where you came from!" The Devil growled angrily at Jack and sent him on his way back to earth.

Jack's journey back was very dark, and he begged for the Devil to lend him a light to help him lead the way. The devil provided Stingy Jack with a coal from the fires of Hell - which Jack then placed into a turnip he had in his pocket. The carved out turnip lead the way back to earth. Since then; Jack appears every Halloween. doomed to roam the earth in search of eternal rest - leading the way with his turnip lamp.

The Irish people began to refer to the ghostly figure as "Jack of the Lantern, " and soon "Jack O 'Lantern."

Traditionally on All Hallows Eve, many Irishmen make their own versions of Jack's lantern by carving scary faces into turnips or potatoes and placing them near doors and windows to scare away the body-snatching spirits. 

According to Appalachian History, pumpkins weren't actually used until the Irish immigrants brought the tradition of the Jack-o-Lanterns with them to America - only to discover that pumpkins were easier to carve than their traditional turnips and potatoes. 

Have you ever heard this tale? I was very surprised to learn that the tradition all started with a turnip! Dave has all sorts of Appalachian related lore and info over at his website and I encourage you to check it out.

Hope y'all enjoyed the tale and I hope you have a Happy Halloween! 

Signs, Superstitions, and Omens: Week Three

Here is our last week of Signs, Superstitions, and Omens! If you happened to miss the past two installments, you can find them HERE and HERE.

*SIGNS*

A sign is believed to predict the future but unlike the omen, signs do not foretell negative happenings.

• According to Native American superstition, biting your tongue is a sign that you will soon receive either good news or a present.
• A dropped towel is a sign that you will have the arrival of an unwanted visitor. According to Scottish pioneers, you can nullify the sign by stepping backwards over the towel.
• If you dream that your teeth fall out, its a sign that your enemy will soon die. I always heard that it meant you would have sickness approaching.

*SUPERSTITIONS*

A superstition is an irrational belief, usually arising from ignorance or fear, that is believed by a number of people but is without foundation.

• Is there a thief in your community? Have a group of suspects dance around an upturned axe & when if falls over, the shaft will be pointing to the thief.
• If a baby sees it's image in a mirror before the age of six months, it will die before it turns one year old. 
• I remember when my Dude was around 5 months old, I left him sleeping on the couch while I went to make up my bed. I heard a thump and a cry not even 2 minutes after leaving the room. I raced back to the living room and scooped him up and cried right along with him. My Papaw Glenn happened to call about that time and calmed me down. He told me that he had always heard that if a baby didn't roll off of the bed before it was a year old, it would die. I'm not sure if that was really a superstition he had actually heard or if he was just trying to make me feel better...it helped a little.

*OMENS*

Omen- a phenomenon that is believed to tell the future, which also signifies change...usually negative.

• Bad luck will come to a household if someone dreams of an axe.
• Dreaming of a lizard is an omen that you have a secret enemy.
• If a bat comes close to flying into a person, it is an omen that the person will be betrayed by a friend. 
• A cat in a coal mine is an omen and the cat must be killed to avoid a death in the mines.

I hope that y'all have enjoyed this last week of SSOs. I've enjoyed reading the ones some of you have shared in the comments here and over on the Appalachian Mountain Roots Facebook page!

Signs, Superstitions, and Omens: Week Two

It's time for our next installment of signs, superstitions and omens! If you missed last week's you can  CLICK HERE to catch up.

*SIGNS*
A sign is believed to predict the future but unlike the omen,

signs do not foretell negative happenings.

• Two blackbirds flying together is a sign of good fortune.
• If a person's medicine has been spilled accidentally, it is a sign that he will soon recover. 
• A bee that flies into the house is a sign that a stranger is coming. 
• If a chair falls over as a person rises from the table, it is a sign that the person is a liar. 
• It's a sign of good luck when your right eye itches.

*SUPERSTITIONS*

A superstition is an irrational belief, usually arising from ignorance or fear, that is believed by a number of people but is without foundation.

• If you walk barefoot in the first snow of winter you will not catch cold all year. -submitted by Mary Blevins
• If you leave a piece of tin on top of an ant's nest during the full moon it will turn to silver.
• Placing a knife on the doorstep of the house where a birth had taken place will prevent witches from entering and harming the baby. (Scottish)
• You should not was a baby's right hand for its first three days or life or you will wash all of it's luck away.
• If a coal miner washes his back right before going to work, the mine roof will collapse on him. 

*OMENS*

Omen- a phenomenon that is believed to tell the future, which also signifies change...usually negative.  

• If a picture falls off a wall for no apparent reason, it is an omen of a coming catastrophe. 
• It is an omen of an extremely hard winter ahead if several plants come into bloom out of season. 
• See a butterfly at night? It is an omen of unexpected death. 
• A candle that has been put out but continues to glow is an omen of misfortune. 
• If a rooster crows as you leave to go on a trip, it is an omen of trouble. 

I loved reading some of these that you shared with me here and over on Facebook. I would love to hear any more that you happen to thing of! *This post was originally published here on 9/27/16*

Signs, Superstitions, and Omens: Week One

As the diversely ethnic settlers came into the Appalachian region, a detailed system of folklore was developed by combining signs, superstitions, omens, music, stories and beliefs. This system was passed down orally through the years and practiced as a way of keeping the folklore alive. I've heard many of these stories and beliefs while growing up and while I would not consider myself a superstitious person, the possible outcomes of not abiding by these rituals will inevitably worm its way into my mind. Better safe than sorry, right?

Over the next few weeks, I plan on sharing some of these signs, superstitions, and omens and hope that you will be willing to share any that have been passed on in your families and communities. 

*SIGNS*

A sign is believed to predict the future but unlike the omen, signs do not foretell negative happenings. 

• A chin dimple is a sign of bad character. Dimples on the chin are said to be made by the devil's shoe. (Why not start off with one the applies to me, huh? I have a chin dimple and like to think that I'm not known for my bad character!)
• Tingling or itching ears are a sign that someone is talking about you. If it is the left ear, you're being gossiped about. If the right, good things are being said.
• Sole of your foot itching? This is a sign that you are about to embark on a long journey.
• If you have a candle that is hard to light, it is a sign that rain is on the way.
• Dreaming of bees is a sign of good fortune.

*SUPERSTITIONS*

A superstition is an irrational belief, usually arising from ignorance or fear, that is believed by a number of people but is without foundation. 

• An acorn placed on a window will will protect the house from lightning strikes.
• Treading on an ant nest will cause rain that day.
• A man who wipes his hands on a girl's apron is sure to fall in love with her. (German)
• Spitting on a new baby will bring the child good luck. (Irish)
• Never leave a baby's washed diapers on the clothesline during a full moon because they will attract evil forces.

*OMENS*

Omen- a phenomenon that is believed to tell the future, which also signifies change...usually negative

• A chicken laying an uneven number of eggs is an omen of danger.
• If a rabbit crosses your path before sunrise, unhappiness will cloud your day.
• If the dough for baking bread cracks while being shaped, a funeral will occur soon.
• If a broom falls over for no reason when someone walks past, it is an omen of bad fortune.
• Calling out the name of a deceased person while dreaming is an omen of a death.

I would love to hear any of the signs, superstitions, and omens that are a part of your families or communities. Feel free to share in the comments section below or you can send me a message on the Appalachian Mountain Roots Facebook page. 

*This post was originally published here on Appalachian Mountain Roots on 9/20/16.*

Appalachian Spring Tonics

My mood always seems to perk up when the flowers start springing up and green begins to replace all of the dreary browns brought on by fall and winter. I enjoy all of the seasons but dislike when any of them extend their stay. It makes me want to say, "Winter, you are like a guest that has overstayed your welcome. Pack it up and move it out!" 

I've been reading about spring in Appalachia and how the mountain people would improve their health after a long winter. "Spring was the time to refresh the spirit and tone up the system with a tonic." (The Foxfire Book of Appalachian Cookery)  

 Spring Tonic, 1936 - Norman Rockwell

  

Many Southern Appalachian folks believed that blood rises and falls along with the seasons, like the sap in a tree. Blood volume was said to be low in the winter and high in the summer. It was thought that blood lost its vitality due to a winter diet that was lower in vitamins and minerals.  

"In the spring the blood's invigorating properties were restored by taking a tonic, variously called a "blood builder," "blood restorer," "blood toner," or "spring tonic." The most popular tonic in Southern Appalachia was sulfur and molasses, which some thought was also good for cleaning the blood. Eating a "mess of poke" (poke plant leaves) and other wild greens (such as branch lettuce and watercress) in the spring was also practiced for blood restoration. Homemade tonics were displaced in some homes by commercial products like Scout's Indian Tonic, Hadacol, and Geritol. Cooking in iron utensils added iron to the diet. Another way of adding iron was to drink water that had been boiled in an iron pot or skillet, or a glass of water in which nails had been soaked." (Folk Medicine In Southern Appalachia) 

 Mountain people have used teas as a remedy for fatigue for many, many years. "They would gather the roots or barks in the proper season and dry them, and then they would store them for use as the need arose. ..Spicewood, sweet birch, and sassafras were common spring tonics. The spicy, distinct flavor of sassafras made it a particularly popular tea served hot or cold." (The Foxfire Book of Appalachian Cookery)

I found a list of spring tonic/tea recipes in The Foxfire Book of Appalachian Cookery. Do not gather and use ANY plants unless you are 100% certain that you can identify them. Choosing and ingesting the wrong plant can be deadly. It is best that an experienced person helps you identify them in person or you can purchase them from a trusted source. 

• Sassafras Tea: In the spring, gather roots and tender twigs of sassafras. Pound the roots to a pulp if they are very big and wash them with the twigs. Boil them, strain and sweeten. (Spring tonic.)  
• Spicewood Tea: The spice bush (Lindera benzoin) grows along branch banks. It is best to gather the twigs in early spring when the bark "slips," or peels off easily. Break the twigs, place them in a pot, cover with water, and boil until the water is dark. Strain and serve hot. Sweeten if desired, with honey or molasses. (Spring tonic.)
• Mint or White Horsemint Tea: Gather mint leaves in the summer when the plant is young, just before or just after blooming. Boil the leaves in water, strain, and sweeten with honey. (Used both for enjoyment and as a spring cold remedy.) 

 Have any of you used these or other spring tonics? If you know of any others please leave me a comment. I would love to add to my list! 

*I'm having a giveaway sponsored by Foxfire over on the Appalachian Mountain Roots Facebook page to celebrate reaching 10,000 likes. You can scroll through the posts and follow the directions for your chance to win a 45th Anniversary book and CD!*


 

Mountain Remedies Part 2

Last week I shared part one of my Mountain Remedies posts. (You can click HERE if you missed it.) I mentioned that my husband's Aunt Carol had sent me an exert from Smoky Mountain Remedies circa 1920. It has a lengthy list and I have decided to break it up into at least two parts. I've also found some interesting remedies in one of the Foxfire books that may end up becoming part four! Whew, I had no idea that I'd have so much information to share but I've loved reading about what my people had to do to survive and am glad that I can share them with y'all. Some of these are pretty hard to believe and I don't recommend anyone trying them.

Before I share this information, I must first post a legal disclaimer:
This is a website/blog. The opinions expressed are my own and are shared as a source of information and entertainment. I am not a medical professional and do not recommend using any of these remedies without first consulting with your physician.  

Mountain Remedies 

The hardy mountain people relied upon their own resources for many things. Home remedies were included in this resourcefulness. First of all, because of geographical lay of the land, it was not always an easy task to get to town, nor was transportation as modern and convenient as we now have. Herbs and plants were used for many things and frequently with much success. 

There were individuals who spent a lifetime searching for the natural treatment and cure for various ailments. These folks were called "Yarb Doctors." The "Yarb Doctors" would search for sheep sorrel, or Indian turnips, ginseng, sassafras and many other plants that had medicinal properties. 

Some of these remedies were:

Catnip Tea: Brew a weak catnip tea and five to newborn babies to bring out the hives.

Catnip Poultices: Used on nursing mothers whose breast became caked with milk. 

White Oak Bark Tea: Boil the white oak bark, making tea, used as a gargle for tonsillitis. 

Other home remedies utilized items that were hardy and that most families had readily available. 

Wasp Stings: Treat by daubing the insect bite with a dip of wet snuff.

Fever: Make onion poultices, place on the body, then cover the sick person with many quilts or feather beds. This would cause sweating which would make the fever break.

Bad Cuts: Keep saturated with coal-oil (kerosene).

Toothache: Hold vanilla flavoring in the mouth. 

After Giving Birth: The mother was instructed to remain in bed at least nine days, although may people felt that twenty-one days was better. 

Bad Cut or Cut Off Finger: Put back in place and tie good with a rag, soak every day in kerosene. 

To Prevent Contagious Disease: Put asafetida in rag, tie around neck, chew on it several times a day, wear all winter. 

Cough: Use whiskey, honey, and lemon juice. 

Nail In Foot Or Puncture Wound: Poultice of scraped potato or salty meat skin. 

Chest Cold: Use a poultice of fried onions in a wool rag. 

Ear Ache: Blow tobacco smoke in ear or put a few drops of warm urine in the ear.

Bad Sore: Let dog lick it.

Strained Muscle: Use a poultice of red oak ooze.

Croup: Take a mixture of molasses and soda.

Worms: Turpentine and sugar. 

That's all for now! I have at least this many more to share next week and I hope that y'all will come back to check them out. Please leave in tried and true remedies that you know of in the comments section below.

 

Mountain Remedies Part 1

I've wanted to write a post about "mountain backwood remedies" for quite a while now but I always seem to get distracted by another subject. Today, as I was pondering on some blog post topics, my husband's Aunt Carol sent me an exert from a book that she was thumbing through that was titled "Mountain Remedies." Great timing, huh? Because this is a lengthy topic, I've decided to make this a two part post (maybe 3) and will share the complete exert next week. 

Google Image

Before I share some of my findings, I must first post a legal disclaimer:
 This is a website/blog. The opinions expressed are my own and are shared as a source of information and entertainment. I am not a medical professional and do not recommend using any of these remedies without first consulting with your physician.

The exert is from "Smoky Mtn. Heritage circa 1920" and as I was doing a little more research on the subject, I came across Dave Tabler's website, Appalachian History:
"Big Pharma had not yet perfected the widespread manufacture of synthetic drugs in 1932. Instead, the industry relied on “western North Carolina, southwestern Virginia, eastern Kentucky, and eastern Tennessee [to] furnish 75% of the crude botanical drugs which the continent of North America supplies to the drug markets of the world,” according to an article in Economic Geography that summer."

So only 12 years after the information I'm going to share with you (next week) was published, the world still obtained the majority of their botanical drugs from Southern Appalachia. That's pretty incredible!

Interestingly enough, according to Folk Medicine In Southern Appalachia by Anthony Cavender, "by the 1920s commercial medicines had displaced much of the folk materia medica in most households." Here are some examples from the same book:

• Burns: Traditional Medicines (TM)- potato slice/scrapings. Commercial Medicine (CM): Cloverine Salve
• Constipation: TM - Mayapple, Epsom salts. CM - Black Draught
• Cough: TM - Cherry bark, mullein. CM - Troutman's Cough Syrup
• Diarrhea: TM - blackberry. CM - Pepto Bismol
• Heat Rash: TM - parched flour, cornstarch. CM - Gold Bond Powder
• Kidney Disorders: TM - corn silk, dandelion. CM - Doan's Pills
• Liver Disorders: TM - ratsbane. CM - Carter's Little Liver Pills
• Low Blood: TM - sulfur and molasses. CM - Geritol, Hadacol.
• Muscle Ache: TM - turpentine and hog fat. CM - Watkins Red Liniment, Sloan's Liniment 
• Upset Stomach: TM - goldenseal, calamus, peppermint. CM - Pepto Bismol, Rolaids. 
• Worms: TM - pumpkin seed. CM - Fry's Worm Medicine

 A couple of years ago, I got to thinking about the fact that if my family's health and well-being were left solely up to me, the gravedigger could just go ahead and dig our spots. That's a very scary thought. 

Since then, I've read up on many different natural remedies. I make and can my own elderberry syrup which just so happens to be something that the people of Appalachia have used to boost the immune system and ward of things like the flu for many, many years. I love honey and happen to have family members who are beekeepers. Honey is good for everything! I've researched the different uses of oils and extracts and the benefits of them. I make, use, and sell organic insect repellent, lotions, and salves. I recently read about the benefits of turmeric and ginger and luckily found a local farm that grows both and now make a paste with both. I'm also hoping to grow some of my own now that I know it can be grown in this region. What I would love to learn more about it how to identify plants and how to use them. Luckily, I live in botanical heaven! 

As promised, I will share the complete list of "Mountain Remedies" (circa 1920s) next week. Hope y'all will come back to read it. Some of them are quite unusual! Until then, how about sharing some of your tried and true home remedies in the comment section below. I'd love to compile a list from all of my Appalachian Mountain Roots readers!   

A Candle In The Window

 This was originally published here at AMR on 12/22/16.

The tradition of placing burning candles in the windows during Christmas has its roots in Irish culture. Many people, including myself, still practice this custom and the history behind it is very interesting.

During the British persecution, religion was suppressed throughout Ireland and the people had no churches. Priests were known to hide in forests and caves and they would secretly visit homes to say Mass during the night. 

Every Irish Catholic family hoped to have a priest come to their home so they could receive sacraments and offer hospitality. When Christmas came around, the Irish families would leave their doors unlocked and would place a lit candle in the window. This was a sort of signal to let any priests who happened to be in the area know they were welcome and to let the candles guide them to the homes during the dark night.

The priest would enter silently through the unlocked door and was welcomed by those who were grateful that their home would be used to worship and celebrate Jesus' birth. 

Over time, the British persecutors became suspicious and asked what the lit candles were all about. The faithful Irish explained that they burn the candles and keep the door unlocked so that Mary and Joseph, who searched for a place to stay, could find their way to our homes and be welcomed with open doors and open hearts. The British soldiers thought that it was a harmless superstition and didn't bother suppressing it.

I didn't know the history behind the candle until recently. I just thought that the battery operated candles looked pretty in my windows. Now, they mean much more. I want them to represent John 8:12 - "Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world; he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life."

Do you leave a burning candle in your window during Christmas? 

Appalachian Apple Stack Cake

 "Who was that let you off at the gate," asked Olivia. 
"It was Miss Emma and Miss Etta," said Clay-boy, holding out a Mason jar of the Recipe. "They sent this. Said it was Christmas cheer."
"It's bootleg whiskey is what it is," observed Olivia.
"What do you want me to do with it, Mama?"
"I'll take it," said Olivia..."I can use some..for my applesauce cakes."
-Earl Hammer Jr., The Homecoming

When fall rolls around, most people jump on the pumpkin spice bandwagon. You can't throw a rock without hitting a product that has this flavor; pumpkin spice doughnuts, pumpkin spice pancakes, pumpkin spice coffee, pumpkin spice chocolate covered pretzels...you get the picture. I like pumpkin flavored items just as much as the next girl, but is that the first fall flavor that comes to mind when I think of fall cooking? No, says I. I'm all about the apples! Now I like apples year round but I want to make more apple recipes in the fall and winter months.

While there are many apple desserts that are common place in my part of Appalachia, none can be more rooted in our mountain culture than the Appalachian apple stack cake. Sometimes called by other names such as Confederate old-fashioned cake, Kentucky pioneer washday cake, and applesauce cake, it is traditionally made up of layers of pancake thin cake and filled with stewed dried apple filling. It is then refrigerated for at least a day or two to allow for the apple filling to saturate the cake. Doesn't that sound heavenly? I knew that this had to be on my family's Thanksgiving menu this year. Before I get into how I made my cake, I want to share some of the resourcefulness and a little history behind this regional delicacy.

As I've mentioned before, Appalachian women were very resourceful. They had to be! I think this dessert is a perfect example of that resourcefulness. Apples were plentiful throughout the mountains in Appalachia. A great way to preserve those apples was to dry them. I could write a whole blog post on dried apples, and probably will at some point, but won't get into that right now. Plain applesauce (or apple butter) can be used as a filing but dried apples offer a much richer flavor and was the choice of most mountain cooks. 

Most old recipes that I researched also call for sorghum molasses or honey. This was also a resourceful sugar alternative that was available in the area. The rest of the main ingredients (flour, salt, shortening/lard, eggs, milk/buttermilk, baking powder/soda) were also economical staples that most women had on hand. Unlike Mrs. Olivia, I didn't find any recipes that called for any "Recipe" but that isn't to say that some didn't use it. 

From what I've read, the history of this cake is debatable. Some credit James Harrod, an early pioneer of Kentucky and founder of Harrodsburg, as the one who introduced this recipe to Appalachia. Some try to give all of the credit to Tennessee. Regardless of how it got to Appalachia, it's origin is probably based on Eastern European tortes.  

According to the Encyclopedia of Appalachia, "The dried apple stack cake was a favorite pioneer wedding cake. Weddings were celebrated with "in-fares," where people gathered to party, dance, and eat potluck food. Because wedding cakes were expensive, neighbor cooks brought cake layers to donate to the bride's family, who cooked the dried apple filling. The bride's popularity was often gauged by the number of layers, but the average was seven or eight. Stack cakes were also at family reunions, church supper, Christmas dinners, and other large gatherings." The wedding history is my favorite idea associated with this cake. If I could go back and do my wedding over again, I'd choose this for my wedding cake. 

I've had the opportunity to sample different versions of this dessert at reunions, church potlucks, and other gatherings but this was my very first attempt at making one. Why? Anyone who knows anything about baking could look at it and tell that there's going to be quite a bit of time invested. A labor of love, if you will. 

I'm going to be honest. As I was rushing around to make other things on our menu I didn't devote as much time to making it as I should've. I did use the traditional dried apples and cooked them a long time to get them just right. The cake layers is where I slacked. Instead of getting my layers as thin as I should have, I decided to try to rush the process and only do six thicker layers instead of the 7-8 that I had enough dough to do. Don't be like me. Take the time to make the layers as thin as possible. The dried apple mixture can soak into thin layers MUCH better than thicker ones which makes it SO MUCH better. 

I'm also wanting to use a cast iron skillet instead of cake pans next time to see if it really makes a difference. I guess I could try cast iron cake pans if I had them but I don't. Almost everyone has a cast iron skillet or two and if you don't, why the heck not?! What do you make your cornbread in?! And don't you dare tell me that you don't eat cornbread. I don't need that kind of negativity in my life. Cast iron cooking will change your life. Okay, that may be a little dramatic...no it isn't. Life. Changing. 

As for recipes, I used one that I found online and there's no source to credit it to. Thank you, whoever you are! Just click right on the picture if you need to enlarge it.

And now you can see a few pics I took while making the cake:

Tips: You'll need to add water as they cook down. Keep adding and cooking until you get a applesauce consistency. I left mine a little chunky but not as chunky as they are in this picture. See that little chopper in the pic? That thing is super handy in helping the apples fall apart. This recipe says to roll out your dough and you can even see my roller (that my dear husband made me) in the pic. This is unnecessary if you're using cake pans or a cast iron skillet. Just flour your hands, pinch off some dough, and spread it into your flour and greased pan. Just use enough dough to make a thin layer over the bottom of the pan. You're going to think, this isn't enough, but you're wrong. Pat it as thin as possible or you'll end up with thicker layers like the ones in my picture with the canning ring. It looks pretty thin and they are thinner than the ring, but trust me, it should be thinner. There will be some rising so make it THIN and then the apple filling can saturate the layers better. If you decide to roll it, go for no more than 1/4" thickness. This recipe says to let stand at least 12 hours. I really don't think that is long enough. Store it in a tight container and put it in the refrigerator for at least a day or two. Trust me...and another benefit of that is, you can make it ahead of time! 

The finished product.  I'm still kicking myself over the layers 

not being thin enough but it was still delicious!

Have you ever had an apple stack cake? What do you call them in your neck of the woods? Leave me a comment and let me know. I loving hearing from y'all! 

Rock City Barns

I live in an area that's commonly referred to as "Two Hours From Anywhere". We're approximately two hours from Chattanooga, Atlanta, and Asheville. Far enough away from all of the hustle and bustle but close enough if you were to need to see a specialist or be in need of an airport. We frequently visit Tennessee and Georgia and can make it to each state line in around 30-40 minutes. Last weekend we decided to head toward Cleveland, TN which usually takes us about an hour. We pass this barn each time we go.

Located in Cherokee County, NC

I've always admired the "See Rock City" barns but took for granted that not everyone grows up getting to see advertisements painted on their local barn roofs. I knew a little bit of the history behind them but decided to do a little more digging so I could share it with y'all!

According to the Rock City website, "Since 1935, Rock City barns have stood as genuine highway Americana, their bold white-on-black signs compelling both snowbirds and Sunday drivers to a spot near Chattanooga, Tennesseee, where they could "See Rock City."

A man named Clark Byers painted the barns for three decades, from 1935 until his retirement in 1969. Over his career, he painted around 900 barns in 19 states. As compensation for the barn owner allowing the use of their barns for advertisements, they would receive free passes to the attraction and an armload of promotional merchandise. The barn owners who didn't need tickets or memorabilia were paid a whopping $3.

During Lyndon Johnson's presidency (1963-69), billboard-banning legislation known as the "Ladybird Act" was passed. This meant that many of the of the Rock City messages had to be painted over. After a near electrocution during a thunderstorm while doing a painting "cover-up", Byers decided to retire.

Barns are still being painted today. Tennessee has the most Rock City barns and they have all been named historic landmarks. I wish that every state would do this. Click here if you'd like to see a map of where all of these famous barns are located.

Of all the years that I've called western NC home and have driven past some of these barns, I have never made it to Lookout Mountain to actually SEE Rock City. I'm hoping to change that soon. Good Lord willing and the creek don't rise!

Do you happen to have any Rock City barns where you live? 

Old Sayings: Superstitions & Such

Today's guest post is by Mrs. Shirley Wood. Shirley was born and raised in West Virginia up until the age of 12 when she and her family moved to Ohio. She is a published author of stories from her childhood. She now lives on a small hobby farm in northeast Ohio. I hope you enjoy her story as much as I did! 

Old Sayings

Parents love to quote old sayings, and like all children, we questioned whether or not they were true. I’m not talking about the usual “Don’t run with scissors” or “You’ll put your eye out with that stick”, I surely wanted to keep both of my eyes. But there were a lot of others that made no sense to me then, and some of them even less now. You’ll see what I mean.

There were a lot of sayings about food, such as “Don’t ever eat fish and drink milk at the same meal”. Maybe someone died once before refrigerators were invented, after eating those two items, one or both of which may have been spoiled. Or it could have been something he ate the day before that killed him, or an infection or appendicitis. Maybe he drank all the darn milk and his survivors blamed it on the milk he drank with the fish, silently glad he didn’t leave any for them. Mama also warned us not to follow each bite of food with a drink of water during meals. Otherwise, we would end up with a swallowing disorder, for which the treatment was to swallow a string that reached all the way down to our stomachs. At first I was afraid to try it, but after that first time, I felt compelled to take a drink of water after each and every bite of food for years afterward.

There was an interesting challenge that involved boiling an egg, cutting it in half, removing the yellow, and filling the holes with salt. If you ate the egg with the salt before going to bed, you were supposed to dream of the one you would eventually marry. My sister Eva tried this, and nearly choked to death. She does not remember who she dreamed of that night, but accused Daddy of trying to kill her.

Probably everyone has heard the old one about putting someone’s fingers in a bowl of warm water while they are sleeping, and making them pee the bed. That one didn’t get too much play at our house, because all three of us girls slept in the same bed. As the littlest, I always got stuck in the middle, and would have gotten it from either side.

Snakes and cucumbers were the subjects of quite a few stories. When planting or tending cucumbers in our garden, if a woman was in her monthly cycle, she was not permitted in the cucumber patch because it was said that the blooms would all fall off. We never knew for sure, and would not have wanted to find out. Another story that I’ve heard many times is that just before a rattlesnake strikes, you smell a strong odor of cucumbers. I don’t know anyone who can verify that story, and don’t want to test it for myself. One story about snakes, with which I do have some experience, is that no matter what time or how they are killed, snakes do not die until sundown. Having witnessed the death of many snakes, and taken part in several, I can assure you that no matter how many pieces a snake is cut into, each of those pieces keeps on wiggling for hours afterward. Is the snake alive or is it only nerves reacting? I don’t know, but it certainly is creepy.

When we were growing up, if any barbering was done in our home, whether on an adult or child, the hair had to be disposed of by burying, and a rock placed atop the buried hair. It could not be burnt or otherwise left in a place where birds or other varmints could make off with it, otherwise the unfortunate individual to whom the hair belonged would suffer from a headache that would last the rest of his or her life. I guess people took it pretty seriously, because I never met an individual that complained of headache every day. However, there might be a few husbands that disagree.

There were some predictors of weather that we were all familiar with, such as a ring around the moon foretelling rain. My husband had a good laugh at my expense the first few times I predicted rain because all the leaves in our neighborhood were turning up, but has since accepted that it is at least as accurate as the weather forecast on TV. We don’t live around too many cows, but sometimes on an outing when I see cows lying down I remember that is also a pretty reliable sign of rain. In a herd of five cows with two of them are lying down, I will drill it down even further and say there’s a 40% chance of rain – again, at least as accurate as the TV weatherman.

There were a lot of old sayings that seemed to be based in religion. You could wear red anytime and anywhere, but only women of loose morals wore red shoes, or wore red to church. Neither of my older sisters has ever owned a pair of red shoes. I did and wore them completely out.

Women who were expecting when we were growing up were constantly warned not to look upon anything unusual, scary or horrible because they would “mark” the baby, and this never made any sense to me at the time. Whether or not it is true, there is some biblical background in Genesis 30, when Jacob “marked” cattle at conception.
We were all familiar with the old saying “A whistling woman and a crowing hen are neither good for God nor men”, and in our family that meant when a hen started to crow, she ended up in the pot with dumplings pretty quickly. Thankfully, the whistling part was pretty much ignored, because I have always loved to whistle, and anyone who ever heard me sing is pretty glad of that.

For some reason women were never supposed to sew on Sunday. My mother loved to sew, and made beautiful quilts almost until the day she died a couple of years ago. Sometimes when she was caught up in a beautiful quilt, she would sew on Sunday, but I could tell she felt guilty about it. There are some who say it is work, and therefore should not be done on Sunday, but for Mama it was pleasure to sew, and it kept her active mentally as well as physically. And those same individuals who might have criticized her would not have blinked if, on Sunday morning, the old hen started crowing and had to be killed, plucked, and cooked!

There was one saying of my dad’s that we heard pretty often, and found out that he was never wrong. Like most children who are close in age, we sometimes picked on one another. We would start out tickling, pinching and laughing, and we could get pretty loud, especially if we were inside the house. When the noise began to get out of hand, we would hear Daddy say “That laughing is going to turn to crying in about five minutes”. Sure enough, if we continued on in the same course of action, we could count on it.

Shirley Wood
Copyright 2010

Deep Roots: An Unexpected Journey

If you've followed me for any length of time, or even if this is your first time here, my love for Appalachia is obvious. I mean, it's right there in the name of the blog: Appalachian Mountain Roots. I do have other interests but they usually end up taking a backseat to family, homeschooling my son, and finding and writing about Appalachian related things that I find interesting. Luckily for me, I can incorporate this "hobby" into other aspects of my life. 

My husband likes history, so we can enjoy talking about the things I discover...either that or he's good at faking it. Bless him. I can incorporate the local history and traditions into our homeschool day. My son is learning more about the area that he calls home as I research different subjects. Win-win, right? I love to read and I have always been drawn to books that are centered around Appalachia. Another score! I also love learning as much I can about my family and the people who have helped make me who I am. That interest in genealogy led me on a 5 hour online journey last week that left me excited, proud, and a little cross-eyed. Five hours is a long time to stare at nothing but a computer screen, folks.

So, the journey began when I pulled up my online family tree, that I've been working on for what seems like forever, to find a name. While there, I noticed that I didn't have as much information as I thought I did on my mom's paternal side and apparently that's all it took for me to fall down the rabbit hole. 

Five hours later, I discovered that a man and woman, whom I knew a little about, were not my great (x 5) aunt and uncle but my  great (x 5) grandparents. One mistaken middle initial can throw a whole branch of your family tree off! I also learned a lot more about them. 

Abraham (Abram) and Mary Polly Stewart Collett were the first white settlers of Old Valleytown (1830), a section of what is now Andrews in Cherokee County, NC. These two people were my great (x 5) grandparents. They are buried in a small family cemetery that I have visited and is just a short distance from where my great grandparents (Hub and Hazel Collett) lived. As a kid, I didn't think anything about the history that was all around me. Now, it means a lot. 

It took me nearly 38 years to discover that I'm the 8th generation (on that side)  to live in Cherokee County, NC and my son is the 9th. That's an incredible length of time for a family to be in the same county. We've been in the Appalachian region of NC for even longer than that. I had no idea of just how deep my roots were. What an excellent, unexpected discovery. 

Cades Cove Methodist Church

We visited Cades Cove during the first of this month & witnessed some folks having a funeral at this church. We've walked through most of the cemeteries in the Cove & seeing the hearse in front of the church got me to thinking about the old days. I thought about the lives that were changed after hearing the sermons there. I thought about the couples who started their journey by being married there. I also thought about all of the families who have had to say goodbye or as I like to say, "see you on the other side" there. The stories those walls could tell! All of this thinking got me to wondering about the history of the church.

"One of the more treasured Cades Cove images is that of the Methodist Church as captured from the Rich Mountain Road. Cove churches were forces for integration of the community's religious, social, and communications needs. The penetration of the Methodists into the Cove may have preceded that of the Baptists as Methodist circuit riders ministered to many isolated mountain communities in the early 19th century, Dr. Abraham Jobe's childhood memories included Rev. George Eakin preaching as early as 1823.

Sparse record exist for the events and circumstances of the early Methodist Church. The Cades Cove Church, is included among those of the Holston Conference's Little River Circuit in 1830. A Methodist church house was not erected until after 1840 when James F. Deaver deeded three acres of land for $25 to the Methodist Episcopal Church Trustees. Religion was a "shared" community experience with the church house often used by several congregational affiliations for individual and joint services such as revivals. Initial church houses were of log construction and typically functioned as schools also. The Feezell family, led by George W. Feezell and son William A. "Billie" Feezell, were prominent supporters of the Methodist Church. Billie deeded land in 1874 which provided the site for at least two church houses and a cemetery. The present church house was built by Rev.John E. McCampbell in 115 days for $115! It featured two doors and a physical divider to segregate males and females for the minimization of spiritual interruption with more earthly issues. The adjacent cemetery contains at least 100 graves and is the second oldest church cemetery in the Cove. During the Civil War, the political environment resulted in a "split" of the Methodists and the subsequent provision for a Methodist Episcopal Church North, initially using a log house and ultimately the Hopewell Church House on a knoll donated by Dan Lawson just east of his former home site. Although the building is gone, the Lawson Cemetery remains as a reminder of this church. The Methodists, never as dominant as the Baptists in the Cove, served the community well and provided value which certainly exceeded that of the images which are now so popularly represented." (via Cades Cove Preservation Association.)

If you'd like to know more about the life of the early circuit riders, you can read an earlier post of mine here.

 I have always loved to learn about the history of places that I visit and I hope that you've enjoyed learning a little more about on of my favorite places. My husband proposed to me at the Elijah Oliver Cabin so I may have to dig up the history behind it to share with you in the future. Have you ever gotten to visit Cades Cove? What is your favorite part about it? 

Appalachia:The Land of Self-Sufficiency

"Use it up, wear it out, make do, or do without." - Medal Bryson

This quote is from a friend of mine's Granny. What a perfect way to describe how the people of Appalachia have lived for hundreds of years. Mountain folk have done what needed to be done to survive long before "green" living and self-sufficiency were trendy. 

The isolation that comes with mountain living didn't give residents any choice. It was do or die. The only way people got around in early Appalachia was by foot or horse and wagon. The roads were steep and narrow but even if they could have gotten to town easily and often, there was little money to be spent for the things they needed. When a family did have money, it was spent on necessities that they couldn't find or make such as coffee, sugar, lamp oil, and shoes. 

The mountain people depended on what could be found in nature and hard work to get what they needed. In the book Dorie: Woman of the Mountains by Florence Cope Bush, Florence tells the story of what rural mountain life was like for her mother (Dorie) and her family. She gives great examples of how they provided for many of their needs, one being clothing. 

Dorie mentions that early settlers had brought flax seed from Scotland and Ireland when they came to America. They used the stalks to make clothes. "Ma was an expert at spinning, weaving, and dying material for our clothing. The stalks were spread out on the ground where rain and dew would cause the outer skin to rot, separating the fibers from the woody portions outside. The long, straight fibers were twisted together to make thread, which was wound on spindles and later woven into material for dresses, underwear, and linens for the house. It became the "linsey" part of the linsey-woolsey - so well known from the Western frontier days." 

Her family also raised sheep for wool. "In the late spring or early summer, Pa, Uncle Julius and Uncle Aden sheared the sheep. They had to wait until the weather was warm because the fleece is cut close to the skin, leaving the sheep almost bare. If they sheared the sheep before Dogwood winter (usually in May), it was likely some of the sheep would die from exposure. Wool from the shoulders of the sheep is better than that taken from other parts. Ma used the shoulder wool for dresses. The stiffer wool made heavy coats that were rainproof. Ma would card the wool- straightening our the curly-kinky hair so that it could be spun into thread. A small loom stood by the corner window for the needed sunlight. Ma would weave the yarn into cloth." 

Dorie went on to explain that they would make their dresses in dark colors because they usually only had a couple of dresses and darker colors were less likely to show dirt by the end of the week. They would use things such as onion skins, hickory bark, and dandelion flowers to dye the yarn into pretty colors. 

Making clothes wasn't the only way they provided for themselves. They built their own homes and furniture.They grew, raised, and foraged for their own food. Doctors were few and far between so the mountain folk relied on plants to cure their ailments. 

These families didn't let things go to waste either. A family could re-purpose just about anything. Empty jars and cans became a place to store seeds and sewing notions. Newspapers were used to paper the walls to help keep out the cold. Clothes that were outgrown were passed down to the next sibling until it couldn't be repaired any longer but the mountain people wouldn't just throw out the rags. They would turn the scraps of material into beautiful quilts, rugs, and baskets. 

Mountain people developed a strong craft tradition based on need. My friend, Stephanie, picked up some of these traditions from her grandmother (the lady I quoted at the beginning of this post) and mother. She owns a shop, Burnt Branch Creations in Andrews, NC where she teaches, makes, and sells some of the things that can be made from repurposed materials and much more. Here is some of her work & you can click here if you would like to purchase some for your home.

 

 I'm thankful that these skills have been passed down in Appalachia and I think it is something that we must encourage the younger generations to keep up. You never know when the day may come when we'll need these skills to survive. 

Do you know and use any of these mountain skills? If the need arose, do you think you have the "know how" to survive like the mountain folk of early Appalachia? 

A Step Back In Time: Unusual Names

My Dad recently shared some old family pictures with me. I love genealogy, old pictures, and stories so I was tickled pink! I decided to do a "Great Great Grandparent Collage" and it got me thinking about unusual names. 

The majority of the people in these pictures have common names such as John, Martha, Warren, etc. but the mother in the top picture is my great great grandmother, Narcissus Whilhemina Bonnine Norvell. Now ain't that a mouthful? Of course I never had the chance to meet most of the people in this collage but I did get to meet the little girl that is to the right of Narcissus. She was my great grandma, Alice Annalou Norvell Roberts. She and my great grandpa, Fred, lived on the reservation in Cherokee, N.C. until they died.

I didn't get to meet my grandmother, Alice and Fred's daughter, but my mom did give me something of hers...my middle name, Loadeema. I didn't really like the name when I was younger but grew to appreciate always having a link to the grandmother I never knew and our Cherokee heritage.

Do you happen to have an unusual name or know of one in your family? I would love to hear them! Please share them in the comment section below.