Participation Type
Paper
Session Title
Session 6.06 History
Presentation #1 Title
Cultural and Natural Flows: A History of Water in Ashe and Watauga Counties
Presentation #1 Abstract or Summary
This paper discusses Appalachian history placing equal importance on human actions and the natural environment. Using store records, journals, and oral histories, it focuses on the formative role of life-providing water in Appalachian culture and society. The New River and the Elk Knob communities in Ashe and Watauga counties in Western North Carolina serve as a narrow point of exploration. Elk Knob and its neighboring peak, Snake Mountain, are home to the headwaters of the New River. The springs represent beginnings, nicely paralleling the human pioneering theme of Appalachia. This paper traces the importance of water in the Elk Knob area from the Mississippians to the present day. This paper argues that the headwaters of the New River were an active historical force. They were integral to the formation of the society and culture of the Appalachian people that inhabited Todd, Sutherland, Meat Camp, and Pottertown. It further suggests that the people of these communities were as unique as their natural landscape. The headwaters, and water in general, provided sustenance and livelihood for Indians and white settlers alike. Water played a vital role in Cherokee religion and provided a recreational outlet for families living along the creeks and tributaries of the New River. Floods destroyed crops, homes, and livestock, but they also united the affected communities, strengthening kinship ties and overcoming prejudice among individual towns.
At-A-Glance Bio- Presenter #1
Rachel Lanier Taylor earned her M.A. in History as well as a Graduate Minor in Appalachian Studies at Appalachian State University in 2012. She is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Environmental History at The University of Washington in Seattle.
Cultural and Natural Flows: A History of Water in Ashe and Watauga Counties
Harris Hall 234
This paper discusses Appalachian history placing equal importance on human actions and the natural environment. Using store records, journals, and oral histories, it focuses on the formative role of life-providing water in Appalachian culture and society. The New River and the Elk Knob communities in Ashe and Watauga counties in Western North Carolina serve as a narrow point of exploration. Elk Knob and its neighboring peak, Snake Mountain, are home to the headwaters of the New River. The springs represent beginnings, nicely paralleling the human pioneering theme of Appalachia. This paper traces the importance of water in the Elk Knob area from the Mississippians to the present day. This paper argues that the headwaters of the New River were an active historical force. They were integral to the formation of the society and culture of the Appalachian people that inhabited Todd, Sutherland, Meat Camp, and Pottertown. It further suggests that the people of these communities were as unique as their natural landscape. The headwaters, and water in general, provided sustenance and livelihood for Indians and white settlers alike. Water played a vital role in Cherokee religion and provided a recreational outlet for families living along the creeks and tributaries of the New River. Floods destroyed crops, homes, and livestock, but they also united the affected communities, strengthening kinship ties and overcoming prejudice among individual towns.
