100 Days in Appalachia

100 Days in Appalachia

“Music kind of creates a community, and it’s an exalted position to be up on a stage and to be part of the thing that brings people together,” O’Brien said. “This story was originally published by ...
100 Days in Appalachia

W.Va. Opioid Settlement Funds are Supposed to Reverse Years of Crisis. In Several Counties, They’re Being Used to Pay Regional Jail Bills.

In rural Wyoming County, West Virginia, Ann Reed is the sheriff’s department’s only social worker. Funded through a temporary grant from a local mental health center, Reed provides resources and care ...
100 Days in Appalachia

Across Appalachia, Photo ID Requirements Complicate Voting

When Amanda Saint went to vote in the 2020 election, she didn’t anticipate having any problems. For years, the 36-year-old nurse had been living and voting just outside of Huntsville, Alabama. But ...
100 Days in Appalachia

‘We Know What It’s Like To Be Exploited’: Tucker County, W.Va., Grapples With Future-Defining AI-Infrastructure Proposal

To fully appreciate the beauty of Tucker County, you must visit. Nestled at 3,500 feet in the gorgeous Allegheny Mountains along the Blackwater River, the town of Davis is at the highest elevation of ...
100 Days in Appalachia

Five Years After It Became a National Park, There’s a Growing Divide In West Virginia’s New River Gorge

The New River Gorge is a jagged area in the middle of Southern West Virginia’s coalfields. Shaped by one of the oldest rivers in the world, whitewater rapids roll under its high petrified sandstone ...
100 Days in Appalachia

Big Tech Comes to Tucker County, WV

Pamela Moe was reading the paper in late March when she spotted a public notice from a company she’d never heard of. Fundamental Data, a Virginia-based company, had applied for a permit from West ...
100 Days in Appalachia

From Flooding to Fires: Appalachia’s Recreation Industry Faces Climate Change Challenges

The impacts of climate change are steadily and exponentially being felt here in Appalachia just as they have across the globe, and environmental activists, scientists and outdoor enthusiasts alike ...
100 Days in Appalachia

For These Drag Queens, Their Queerness and Appalachian Identity Go Hand-in-Hand

Under fluorescent stage lights at a bar outside of Louisville, Baby St. Jane strips off her burgundy gown to reveal a black lingerie bodice. The room shakes with hoots and hollers from the audience as ...
100 Days in Appalachia

What is the New Apostolic Reformation? How a Religio-Political Movement is Affecting U.S. and Appalachian Politics

Apostles and prophets. Spiritual warfare. Dominionism and the New Apostolic Reformation. You might come across these terms if you follow politics these days. Here’s some context and clarity about the ...
100 Days in Appalachia

‘Hell or High Water’: Southern W.Va. Three Weeks After the Flood

On February 15, 2025, a catastrophic flood ravaged McDowell County, West Virginia, and much of the state’s southern coalfields. At least three people were reported dead due to the flash flooding, with ...
100 Days in Appalachia

Young Appalachians Want Better Intergenerational Political Conversations

Many young Appalachians, regardless of later political affiliation, can recall the childhood moments they learned how free they were to voice their own thoughts about contentious topics with family ...
100 Days in Appalachia

Meet a Doctor Inside a W.Va. Crisis Support Center Who Relies on Hope in Recovery

Recovery from addiction is possible. For help, please call the free and confidential treatment referral hotline (1-800-662-HELP) or visit findtreatment.gov. At the West Virginia University Crisis ...