Barbara Wright oral histories of Virginia and West Virginia folkways

The collection is comprised of sound recordings, transcripts, photographs, and research notes related to folkways of people living in the mountains near the Shenandoah Valley, and the history of the CCC in Augusta County. Most of the interviewees are people born between 1910-1925, who lived in or near the Blue Ridge and Alleghany Mountain ranges in eastern Virginia and West Virginia. Interviewees recall childhood stories, and memories of livestock, churches, moonshine, and the CCC. One interview includes a tour of a gravesite now located within the Shenandoah National Park boundaries. Wright also records her own responses to the interviews, and recalls stories not captured on tape. The collection includes Wright’s research materials related to the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) in Augusta County. This includes “George Washington National Forest: a History,” written by Jean L. Sattherwaite of the Forest Service Southern Region in 1991, photocopies of camp inspection reports from the 1930s, and other papers. The collection also includes Wright’s research notes, newspaper clippings, and notes on the history of the town of Stokesville, Virginia, particularly related to the family of Ambrose Cramer.

The photographs depict old home sites on or near Shenandoah National Park land, including Vastine Fisher’s paternal grandparents’ home; cemeteries on private land above Shenandoah National Park land; photographs of the CCC camp sites at Mt. Solon and Grottoes, and other photographs that relate to interviews conducted by Wright.