Scope:
African Americans first arrived in Appalachia in the mid 1500s as slaves to Spanish and French explorers; centuries later many would return to the area as slaves once again. However, with their return, African Americans would play an influential role in Appalachian culture and society, contributing to regional music, oral history and folk art. As outsiders became more and more intrigued with Appalachia and associations of homogeneity were developed, minorities such as African Americans and their existence in the region were sorely overlooked. Yet, as Appalachian Studies have emerged and scholarship on the region has progressed, more attention has been paid to African Americans or, “Affrilachians,” as they are often referred to, and the roles they have played in Appalachian culture. All of the following resources relevant to this group are available in the W.L. Eury Special Collection in the Carol Grontes Belk Library and Information Commons located at Appalachian State University.
Introductory Text:
A basic definition of “Affrilachian” appears in:
“Affrilachian.” New Oxford American Dictionary, 3rd ed. Eds. Angus Stevenson and Christine A. Lindberg. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2010: 27. ASU PE1628.N429
An appropriate and useful introduction to understanding African Americans in Appalachia appears in:
Turner, William H. and Edward J. Cabbell (eds.). Blacks in Appalachia. Lexington, KY: The University Press of Kentucky, 1985. APP COLL E185.912.B53
Library of Congress Subject Headings:
highly relevant:
African Americans – Appalachian Region
African Americans – Appalachian Region – History
Appalachian Region – Race Relations
Slavery – United States
Slavery – United States – African American Slavery
Slavery – United States – African American Slaves
Slaves – Emancipation – United States
more relevant:
African American Coal Miners
African American Folk Art
African American Mennonites
African American Pacifists
African American Oral tradition
African American Railroad Employees
African American Schools
Appalachian Region – History
Clipping Files Subject Headings – W. L. Eury Appalachian Collection:
Blacks – Appalachia
Library of Congress Call Numbers:
E185
E442 – E445
HD8039
BX8116
Books:
Davis, Lenwood. The Black Heritage of Western North Carolina. Asheville, NC: University Graphics, UNCA, 1980. APP COLL E185.93 .N6 D378
Dunaway, Wilma A. Slavery in the American Mountain South. New York, NY: Cambridge University Press, 2003. APP COLL E443 .D87
Inscoe, John C. Appalachians and Race: The Mountain South from Slavery to Segregation. Lexington, KY: University Press of Kentucky, 2001. APP COLL E185.912 A67
Inscoe, John C. Mountain Masters, Slavery and the Sectional Crisis in Western North Carolina. Knoxville, TN: University of Tennessee Press, 1989. APP COLL E445 .N8 I57
Turner, William H. and Edward J. Cabbell. Blacks in Appalachia. Lexington, KY: The University Press of Kentucky, 1985. APP COLL E185.912.B53
Guides, Encyclopedias, and Dictionaries:
Newberry, Elizabeth R. “Affrilachians.” in Rudy Abramson and Jean Haskell (eds.). Encyclopedia of Appalachia. Knoxville, TN: University of Tennessee Press, 2006. APP COLL F106 .E53
Turner, William H. “Appalachians, Black.” Encyclopedia of Southern Culture. Eds. Charles Reagan Wilson and William Ferris. Chapel Hill: The University of North Carolina Press, 1989: 139-141. APP COLL F209.E53
Bibliographies:
Cabbell, Edward J. Like a Weaving: References and Resources on Black Appalachians. Princeton, WV: John Henry Memorial Foundation, 1984. APP COLL Z1361 .N39 C14
The Case for Black Appalachian Studies: A Bibliography. Boone, NC: Appalachian State University, 1980. APP COLL Z1361 .N39 C27
Freed, Mark. “Preliminary Bibliography of Best-Known Black Appalachian Musicians.” Black Music Research Journal 24.1, 2004: 91-168. ASU BOUND MUSIC JOURNAL
Abstracts and Indices:
America: History and Life
Sociological Abstracts
Social Sciences Citation Index
Ethnic News Watch
Journals:
Appalachian Heritage. Hindman, KY: Appalachian Heritage, Inc., 1973-Present. APP COLL F106.A137 A6
Appalachian Journal Boone, NC: Appalachian State University, 1972-Present. APP COLL F216.2 .A66
Black Diamonds. Princeton, WVA: John Henry Memorial Foundation, 1978. APP COLL E185.93.W5 B57, vol. 1, 1978
Mountain Life & Work. Berea, KY: Berea College, 1925- Present. APP COLL GR103 .M5
Pluck!: The Journal of Affrilachian Arts & Culture. Cincinnati, OH: Duncan Hill Press, LLC, 2007-Present. APP COLL F217.A65 P58
Southern Exposure. Durham, NC: Institute for Southern Studies, 1973-Present. APP COLL F206 .S68
Websites:
“Affrilachian Artist Project.” http://www.affrilachianartistproject.com (Accessed 23 Sept. 2012)
Hoffman, Carl. “The Appalachian African-American Cultural Center: Building on the Past.” Appalachia Magazine. Appalachian Regional Commission online. http://www.arc.gov/magazine/articles.asp?ARTICLE_ID=159 (Accessed 23 Sept. 2012)
“pluck! Journal of Affrilachian Arts and Culture.” http://pluckjournal.com (Accessed 26 Sept. 2012)
Other Sources:
Theses with helpful information include:
Jamison, Phillip A. The Southern Appalachian Square Dance: African-American Influence on European-American Dance in Appalachia. MA thesis, Boone, NC: Appalachian State University, 2007. ASU SPEC UARCHIVES PUBLICATIONS LD175.A40k Th 1725
Staley, Kathryn. Between Two Worlds: African Americans in Antebellum Wilkes County. MA thesis, Boone, NC: Appalachian State University, 1999. ASU SPEC UARCHIVES PUBLICATIONS LD175.40k Th 1723
Interviews and other oral histories include:
Horton, Rhonda. Interviewed by Cheryl Claassen. August 14, 1984. Boone, NC. Transcript in APP COLL ARCHIVES Collection 225, Box 1, Folder 8
Montell, William Lynwood. The Saga of Coe Ridge: A Study in Oral History. Knoxville: The University of Tennessee Press, 1970. APP COLL E185.93 .K3 M6
Mullen, Patrick B. Listening to Old Voices: Folklore, Life Stories and the Elderly. Chicago: University of Illinois Press, 1992. APP COLL GR108 .M85
Compiled by:
Ashley C. Brewer
December 1, 2009
Updated by:
Rachel E. Simon
October 15, 2012
Subject: