Currently on the processing table this week are the Appalachian Cultural Museum Records (AC.500), an unprocessed collection of materials from the files of Appalachian State University's now defunct museum which focused on the mountains of western North Carolina. Until the museum's close in 2006, tourists, school groups, and locals experienced the history of mountain life through exhibits concerned with all things Appalachian- from the tools of early pioneer life to Civil War artifacts to Junior Johnson's NASCAR stock car to items from Beech Mountain's Land of Oz tourist attraction. The museum also hosted programs, rotating exhibits, and special events highlighting the arts, environment, and heritage of Appalachia, including workshops by area artisans, musical performances, lectures by regional authors, a festival of regional toymakers, and the University's holiday celebration, An Appalachian Christmas. The papers now housed within the Appalachian Collection provide information about the museum's daily operation, events planning, public image, and include a trove of audiovisual materials. Updates on the collection will be posted here regularly.
Photograph: George SerVance Jr., limberjack maker. Image from the Appalachian Cultural Museum Records. For more information about George SerVance Jr. visit the North Carolina Arts Council website: http://www.ncarts.org/artistpage.cfm?ser=30353&num=29853(link is external)
George SerVance in a red suit with his limberjacks
