Appalachian Trail

Uneven Ground: Appalachia Since 1945, by Ronald Eller explores the devastation of traditional culture and land use in the Appalachian region at the hands of the coal industry and local, state, and federal leaders and policy makers. His perspective comes from one that separates growth from development and is highly critical of efforts to force Appalachia into a national economic model that is not aligned with the regions unique historical situations. After briefly setting the stage in the Civil…

stereotypes, such as drug use, the lack of education, and poverty, that are often brought onto the region and Trampoline solidifies these stereotypes throughout the entire book, it adds onto the assumptions people have about those that live in the Appalachian. But I do believe the speakers are showing an act of good citizenship that the novel does not provide, by discussing the laws and rights citizens have fought for to improve there communities.…

Did changes in the young nation open the door to opportunity for all Americans? I say yes. The three major changes in the young nation are geographic, political, and economic. These three changes all opened the door to opportunity because there were so many choices to choose from and there were no set rules with education for jobs. The first change in the young nation is geographic changes. Land purchases had a huge impact on the developing country. The Louisiana Purchase sparked the idea to…

the informative documentary Overburden, directed by Chad A. Stevens. A film that highlights the greed of a company and industry and the struggle and division of a community, Overburden tells the emotional story of how mountaintop removal of the Appalachian area, (particularly in Raleigh County, WV) does more than simply damage the physical environment. The majors themes presented in the film challenge one to think about the coal and mountaintop mining debate in a deeper perspective. The lack of…

Denise Giardina creates a different view of Appalachian natives in Storming Heaven. Giardina breaks the stereotypes that are typically placed on people form the Appalachian area and sheds some light in the truth of the situation during the mine unionization. The author also demonstrates the difference in her portrayal of Appalachia simple by the way she writes about class, politics, and industrial views. All in all Storming Heaven breaks the typical Appalachian stereotypes. Denise Giardinia has…

The expansion to America across the Atlantic Ocean was a significant historical breakthrough at the time. Even though, half millennium before Christopher Columbus accidentally discovered America in 1492, Vikings where the first to set foot on the North American loam by their leader Leif Eriksson. The discovery of the new world was viewed by many world power country leaders as not only a financial opportunity but also control the flow of precious materials and trade goods coming out of the…

Ruettiger explains how you should never give up on your dream. Shawn Grim and Rudy Ruettiger both know this too well. Rudy Ruettiger was a kid who had a dream to play football for Notre Dame, At the same time. Grim lives in a small town in the Appalachian Mountains and his dream was to go to college and graduate. Struggling with money was a big deal for Ruettiger and Grim. Rudy worked for a minimum wage job, helping clean up and stuff around the football field so he was a janitor. He was very…

people to apply for statehood! The idea of “the West” constantly changed as Americans pushed the farther and farther away from what had been the original 13 colonies. In the early 1800’s the "West" was generally considered to be the area west of the Appalachian Mountains to the territories and states in the Mississippi River Valley. Some people moved west because the eastern states were getting too crowded. Most people who lived in the west lived on small farms or had farm-related occupations.…

I really enjoyed the interview of Adaline Bloom. Her father came to the United States in order to escape the Russian army draft. Adaline talks about the effects of the Great Depression and World War II on her family. For example, she speaks about gas rationing for her family’s car. In an attempt to save gas for the United States military, limited supplies of gas were sold to the public. Therefore, Adaline’s family did not use the car for almost two years. It was difficult to find steady work…

The Great Smoky Mountains is where Thomas Wolfe’s play The Mountains takes place. Although Wolfe doesn’t delve deep into the environment of the mountains themselves one can feel the mountains surrounding the play itself. The Great Smoky Mountains is a place full of plant life and animals. Surrounding all this plant life and animals are the mountains themselves and the history they tell. The Great Smoky Mountains at its highest areas is roughly about 6000 feet above sea level (Hadley 1). These…