Participation Type
Paper
Session Title
Session 9.02 Urban Appalachians
Presentation #1 Title
Martin Music: Keeping Rural Traditions Alive in Urban Centers
Presentation #1 Abstract or Summary
How, in the midst of the Great Depression, when many Appalachians were losing their hard won factory jobs and heading back to the farm, was Marcus Lafayette Martin able to move his family east to Swannanoa, North Carolina, just five miles outside of Asheville, and find work in one of the nation’s largest blanket mills, Beacon Manufacturing? According to local legend, Beacon’s owner, Charles D. Owen was fervently against unions, had even moved his entire company brick by brick south from Massachusetts to avoid them, and he figured the best way to stop his workers from trying unionize was to make sure they were happy. In a time before television, where few workers could afford to own a radio or go to the movies, live music was a major form of entertainment. So when Mr. Owen heard Marcus’ masterful fiddling, he offered him a job on the spot. Owen, may have originally seen Marcus Martin as a tool that could save him time and money by keeping the mill’s workers content, but by hiring Martin and other musicians, Owen also brought the music of rural western North Carolina to a broader audience. Factory jobs not only brought together people who would hear and remember the tunes, but also allowed the tradition bearers the free time necessary to develop and promote their art forms. By doing so, these urban areas became key in preserving the rural traditions of transplanted workers even as these same workers abandoned their rural lifestyle.
At-A-Glance Bio- Presenter #1
Anne Chesky Smith received her MA in Appalachian Studies and Sustainable Development from Appalachian State University in 2010. She is currently pursuing her PhD in Integrative Conservation and Anthropology at the University of Georgia.
Martin Music: Keeping Rural Traditions Alive in Urban Centers
How, in the midst of the Great Depression, when many Appalachians were losing their hard won factory jobs and heading back to the farm, was Marcus Lafayette Martin able to move his family east to Swannanoa, North Carolina, just five miles outside of Asheville, and find work in one of the nation’s largest blanket mills, Beacon Manufacturing? According to local legend, Beacon’s owner, Charles D. Owen was fervently against unions, had even moved his entire company brick by brick south from Massachusetts to avoid them, and he figured the best way to stop his workers from trying unionize was to make sure they were happy. In a time before television, where few workers could afford to own a radio or go to the movies, live music was a major form of entertainment. So when Mr. Owen heard Marcus’ masterful fiddling, he offered him a job on the spot. Owen, may have originally seen Marcus Martin as a tool that could save him time and money by keeping the mill’s workers content, but by hiring Martin and other musicians, Owen also brought the music of rural western North Carolina to a broader audience. Factory jobs not only brought together people who would hear and remember the tunes, but also allowed the tradition bearers the free time necessary to develop and promote their art forms. By doing so, these urban areas became key in preserving the rural traditions of transplanted workers even as these same workers abandoned their rural lifestyle.
