Participation Type
Paper
Session Title
Session 5.02 Architecture and Visual Arts
Presentation #1 Title
The Appalachian Built Environment A Neglected Historical Text: The Case of the Appalachian Settlement School
Presentation #1 Abstract or Summary
In the past, historians have relied primarily on the written word. Many groups of Appalachians, however—women, the poor, minorities, and the under-educated—left few written records commemorating their historical experiences. As a result, their voices have often been underrepresented in historical scholarship. There is, however, an often-neglected source, the Appalachian built environment, that when combined with the written record and spoken word can reveal important clues about the experiences of underrepresented groups. This paper will demonstrate why scholars should think about the Appalachian built environment as an historical text, just as important as the written word.
Most Appalachians had no hand in the official design or construction of the region’s built environment. In fact, most used or inhabited spaces, such as schools, churches, coal and lumber towns, courthouses, and jails, built for their consumption by others, many of whom were from outside the region. Most of the patrons of these buildings and landscapes—reformers; educators; industrialists; religious denominations; local, state and federal governments—believed they could impart lessons for the mountain community in the spaces they constructed. Despite this belief, no building or landscape is instilled with one meaning. Those who use or inhabit the built environment imbue their own meaning in spaces based on their life experiences. Using the Appalachian Settlement School as a case study, this paper will demonstrate how studies designed to uncover the clues embedded in the Appalachian built environment by those who designed or commissioned them, as well as the mountain communities who inhabited and used them, will answer a broad array of questions, seldom even asked by past scholarship. .
At-A-Glance Bio- Presenter #1
Karen Hudson is a Visiting Scholar at the University of Kentucky Appalachian Center. She is preparing a book manuscript on gender, class, space and the Appalachian settlement school (forthcoming University Press of Kentucky). She holds a Ph.D. in Folklore and Folklife from the University of Pennsylvania and a Master of Historic Preservation from the University of Georgia. She has over 25 years of experience identifying, documenting, and preserving Appalachian buildings and cultural landscapes.
The Appalachian Built Environment A Neglected Historical Text: The Case of the Appalachian Settlement School
Corbly Hall 244
In the past, historians have relied primarily on the written word. Many groups of Appalachians, however—women, the poor, minorities, and the under-educated—left few written records commemorating their historical experiences. As a result, their voices have often been underrepresented in historical scholarship. There is, however, an often-neglected source, the Appalachian built environment, that when combined with the written record and spoken word can reveal important clues about the experiences of underrepresented groups. This paper will demonstrate why scholars should think about the Appalachian built environment as an historical text, just as important as the written word.
Most Appalachians had no hand in the official design or construction of the region’s built environment. In fact, most used or inhabited spaces, such as schools, churches, coal and lumber towns, courthouses, and jails, built for their consumption by others, many of whom were from outside the region. Most of the patrons of these buildings and landscapes—reformers; educators; industrialists; religious denominations; local, state and federal governments—believed they could impart lessons for the mountain community in the spaces they constructed. Despite this belief, no building or landscape is instilled with one meaning. Those who use or inhabit the built environment imbue their own meaning in spaces based on their life experiences. Using the Appalachian Settlement School as a case study, this paper will demonstrate how studies designed to uncover the clues embedded in the Appalachian built environment by those who designed or commissioned them, as well as the mountain communities who inhabited and used them, will answer a broad array of questions, seldom even asked by past scholarship. .
