These mountains literally have a way of molding the person you become. I can identify with the smells of the changing seasons and being one with the land. I did not grow up on a holler, but I lived for over 24 years in McDowell Co. My name was first Barbara Brown and I taught at Iaeger int. This place is why I am who I am today. Sneaking in kisses when Mommy and Daddy wasnt checking on us. My parents were born and raised in WV. Thank you Amy, for this wonderful article which really tells exactly how hollow life is. $125,000. We spent chilly evenings raking leaves just to run and jump in them. A Mothers love is infinite. Id look over every square inch of Cottle Church of God and soak in the love from our church family. It was the local music. We combine pure spring water with fresh local ingredients to craft one of a kind small batch spirits. We assumed that everyone grew up this way and as adults we found out differently. I can step outside in late summer and literally smell fall.and as each leaf drops one by one.that fragrance intensifies.until late October or mid November.then I can smell the frost.the ice and the impending snow. 2018 Dewitz Photography, LLC | Eau Claire, Wis. | tel. And theres not a great distance between where Ive lived for nearly 60 years and my childhood home. Always remember it took a Civil War for West Virginia to become a state and never forget our states motto, Montani semper liberi or Mountaineers are Always Free. Dunlow was incorporated in 1892. Id give anything to go back to dancing in the rain, splashing in mud puddles, and chasing lightning bugs with my friends whom felt more like sisters!! Not change one thing about them. Doug demonstrates the Greenbrier style by fiddling a tune called Jimmy Johnson. The chipper song is played using what Doug calls a shuffle and up-bow technique. The notes flow together seamlessly. Those leaks can be patched up later. I lived in Davy, but spent lots of time at my grandparents in Helena, then Asco. I think the only thing you missed in your story from my memories are the winter days when mom would have a big ole pot of vegetable soup or pinto beans cooking. I wish I could go back and relive those memories just like they were. We were taught of Jesus love and how to love one another. Mingo County. Close to wheeling. Many recently celebrated its history on National Moonshine Day last month. I loved this it brought back so many good memories!!! He did live in his old car, set down here in front of a house." . To where did you travel? The neighborhood kids, my sister, and I would all get together. Did I call people names? Coal is west virginia and my family had many miners. We didnt have many luxury items but we sure had love. Thanks for the article, every word is true. A biscuit, or cookie, or half a peanut butter & jelly sandwich. Arlington up Northfork Holler. Thank u this took me back to my childhood I live n fayetteville, WV n a place called Crow Holler it its beautiful here born n raised holler girl. You explain it so much better than I can. These sheltered valleys are a wonderful sight to take in when you are on those long drives, too. Thanks so much. Hills.Yes I am Shelby Mc Peak Meade and I dont regret a minuet of my upbringing . This sure does brings stories like this back . Thank you for your stories. Had most of the same experiences as a child. 3 bds; 2 ba; 1,456 sqft - House for sale. What a beautiful story!! Lived up 24 holler growing up. Its named after a little creek in Greenbrier County, and this is a tune that I dont know that anybody else really played. A time of being free of the problems of this world we live in today. Coffee. the crickets and frogs chatter late into the night singing their beautiful country songs. No amount of fabric softener or laundry detergent can hold a candle to the scent of wild honeysuckle, lavender, and roses that grow wildly and entangle themselves on the corners of the fence. I cant play anything. But he would play for me, Doug says, and by the end of that he had figured out a tune that I really liked that he thought was simple enough for me to start on and he said, 'Ok. On a cool quiet summer evening. Harrison W V. Clay County. i am a 3rd generation coal miner in eastern ky knox and bell co ky ,,had good parents and great career in coal mining for 40yrs,,a pleasure to know the hundreds of sur and deep miners over the years,,my mother was a bishop ,,she was raised up in a coal mine camp in bell jellico bell coky. I have always been able to smell the seasonsthough it may seem strange to some. Guess I was a coal camp girl. Photo, Print, Drawing [Boy, West Virginia "hollows"] [ digital file from original photograph ] Full online access to this resource is only available at the Library of Congress. The Greenbrier Valley style, the upper reaches, were relatively isolated and so I think the fiddling stayed closer to how it was when it got over here, he said. I would give a copy to all my friends. I am a male born 1n 1937 on a Hill, not a Holler, overlooking the small town of Richwood, WV. This was absolutely beautiful, brought a tear to my eye. Just curious as to why the first picture is being used in a story about McDowell County? Im a holler girl and proud of it. We used to wash our hair in the rain when I was a kid.it leaves you with the softest hair ever and it smells like freshly line dried laundry. To be thankful I was warm, and that I had a Mom and Dad who loved me. McDowell County? those were fun formative years. The pictures that go with the story are real beautiful. Garter snakes were common things, but still terrified me.I spent many an hour just revelling in the Sunshine and fresh air, with nothing to fear. I laughed when I read about the TV remote, which was us. I think it is in Marshall County. Pigeon Hollow, Greenbrier County, West Virginia. Some of my fondest childhood memories were playing with my dear friend Kristen Shupe. It's To. It is nearly parallel to the original tunnel called The . From where did you depart? We know how to survive, how to plant a garden, how to sew, and what it means to hang clothes on the line. WONDERFUL MEMORIES! I was thrown off numerous docks and boats and told to sink or swim I sank and someone would finally figure it out and jump in to rescue me. Thanks for putting it on paper. In a sense my childhood ended at 9, as nothing was the same after that. Beautiful! mountain people grow up different than everyone else. Grew up in Berwind and War in McDowell County and I recognize many of the photos. Sadly, it is a trip that I will some day make on my own. I am a West Virginia native also and I can relate to this . After the war her mother Alice Elliott Klatt remarried Timothy Cecil Elliott and they left West Virginia in 1948 never to return. Janice, Thanks for sharing such blissful memories. There is a subtle magic here that roots itself deep into its inhabitants. I still was able to do it when she wasnt looking I wrapped my arms around him and said you know what old man? Read reviews from world's largest community for readers. In an effort to help preserve traditional Appalachian practices, the West Virginia Humanities Council started a Folklife Apprentice Program, which pairs a master of a craft with a budding artist, to help preserve traditional Appalachian practices. I would have it no other way.right here in Mcdowell County. Im a holler girl..Seminole W.V. .told my Mamaw what the kids were calling meshe said : well, reckon you can tell them fellers you can wipe your butt on a buckeye, but not on a briar! Loved my upbringing in the hollers!! We were all quiet then so he could eat in peace. Reading your story and reliving my life as a Holler Girl. We had a very simple, peaceful life. Paul B. Love this! That place is breed into every part of me. From Roderfield.and lived in Westchester Holler 30 years. Of course now and then the older children got mean and started holding me undertil I came up sputtering and choking.but it was all in good fun. The primary coordinates for Pigeon Hollow places it within the WV 24931 ZIP Code delivery area.. Maps, Driving Directions & Local Area Information May the Lord bless you as much as this story has blessed me. . If only.. The registered business office is at #5 Hollow Rd, Caretta, WV 24821. I really miss those OLE days. GOD IS GOOD ALL THE TIME!!!!! Watching a Twins baseball game and sharing his bowl of popcorn washed down with either kool-aid or Bubble Up was one of my favorite things to do. I was only about 6 or 7 at that time, but I still remember pulling my gown over my knees to protect them from the heat on those hot summer mornings in the holler. My Cousins lived in Handle Factory Holler, and I have always defined Holler as the valley between 2 mountains. God bless you for putting in words the sights and sounds of the wonderful past for all holler people because we are a special breed!!! Annie had always wanted to learn the specific old-time music of her home, Greenbrier County. Did I hit my Mother? Growing Up in the Coal Filled Hollows of West Virginia 01 Apr 2014 Travis Dewitz Personal Photography Projects 154 Comments Guest post by Amy Gentry "Holler Girl" Off and on my entire life I have heard the phrase "holler girl" used in a derogatory way. Thanks to facebook. We used our imagination we made up games. I can walk outside during certain parts of the season, take a deep breath, and the scent of the wind floods into my body bringing images to my mind of days more peacefullike a picture album of long-lost dreams. Could relate to a lot in this beautiful story, To this day I love simple things. Moonshine is a rich part of the state's history both the legal and well, illegal, varieties. Thanks for the escape from reality for just a moment in time, and taking me back to my roots. I still play in the rain with my kids today.sometimes the rain is so cold, even on an eighty degree day.it will hit your shoulders and trickle down your back and leave you with chills.almost as if winter breathed down your spine for a moment. Once again thank you for reminding me of my childhood:), iwas from culloden wva in the 1963 i live in fla now no money in wva. Us kids were his remote when he was tired from working. Well goodness, we didnt kill the poor bug, wed set them free after we got our glow in the dark jewelry and assumed theyd grow more. That was our version of mean. Thinking about runnin and playing and getting a drink of water from the community dipper in the pail of water that hung on back porch. Dad was a WWII Navy veteran and both spent much of their free time working with the VFW. Wish I could go back! They were so happy when we got a television with a remote control so they did not have to change the channels as we had growing up. Explore the rural communities of McDowell County, West Virginia through Hollow, an interactive documentary featuring the stories of over 30 residents who live there. This brought back so many memories,they are all good .This was so well written. I was given up for adoption as a baby and then unwanted by the ones who adopted me !! Im a holler girl from Rivesville WV. In late winter, I find myself waiting to see the first green bud..the first hint of green grass playing around the edges of dirt road that encircles my house. I had a bunch of Gilliand cousins. It was a high tower, a fort, a castle, or a play house. Car sickness Forestwander Our scenery is beautiful but when you're driving our country roads, be careful not to get car sick. Our husbands can track the deer, kill the deer, and drag it home.and we can cook it. with rabbit ears. Even though I live in NC now, and dont get back as often as I would like due to life keeping me busy..I think about it often and it will always be home to me!! What memories flood my soul! he showed me a lot of the history there. Took me down memory lane and Im still smiling. YOU DONE A VERY GOOD JOB WITH THE PHOTOS AND THE STORIES A LOT OF THE PHOTOS I KNEW AND BROUGHT BACK A LOT OF MEMORIES. Thanks for the wonderful memories. I grew up on a ridge top, Fork Ridge, but life was the same there as in the hollers of WV. I married Rex Sadler from Anawalt and raised our son there until Rex died and we moved. I can smell the basement of my childhood church, the coal furnace was down there, and so were our Sunday school rooms. I would run to meet him and he would always have a left over for me. Precious memories for sure. It taught me how to live without everything money could buy. Great memories. Shopping. Sunrise and sunset will be about 1 hour later on Mar 9, 2025 than the day before. (Guess they needed a kid to fit in with that generation). Pictures of your home, the surrounding area, and the town would be nice to visually comprehend. loved this. I still work two days a week at our county Visitor Center and am presently doing a video each Thursday at 3PM on Tazewell Countys site Im Mz. And so much more. . Your story put me right back in that tiny house I grew up in, that only seems tiny now. I try to tell my grandkids about me growing up and how we use to play. What hasnt changed and never will, are the people and their love of God, family and friends!! Historically, within each county in West Virginia, and even sometimes each hollow, the styles of old-time changes. grew up in taylorville, wv. Sunday, August 17, 2003. Lightening bugs, frogs, crickets and all of their friends making a grand noise lulled us to sleep most nights. https://www.quizup.com/en/topics/logos/2014/7?scope=region&country=WV&player_id=378853985576415972&banner=lb:logos:US:WV:month:7:2014:9&position=9&source=share. I grew up in Salem Ohio, but went to Chester West Va frequently, with friends, Sue and Michelle(they are cousins) . Its like you saw into my heart as you wrote. I am a hollar girl from Dille, wv (Clay County) I had a wonderful childhood. Even if you don't "live up a holler," you definitely know what one is. This is a West Virginia holler to be more specific. We live in Myrtle Beach now and yes we miss WV. Im proud to be from the holler. We were blessed to be mountain born and bred. Grew up a d raised my two sons in Lincoln County WV. It made me who I am today and Im truly proud to have been brought up there! As the trapped miners soon discover, the dead don't always stay dead and the horrors that are unleashed is just the beginning of the terror about to fall on the rural community nested within the Darkened Hollows! Over the years I have heard just about every derogatory remark that can be made about a place directed toward West Virginia. These girls were solid, strong, intelligent, kind, and, in many cases, gentle. I thank God for my family who lived in a holler in Wyoming County. Loved your story and most could be applied to my own. I wish I could go back to that time for just one full day. Its the best place to be from, but for me there were no career opportunities . Very well written. Loved this! We may have got a little coal dust on us.but our Bibles never collected any dust. 2. The first glance of white or pink on those Dogwood trees is like a baptism for the soul after long months of freezing weather and snow to your knees. Beautiful and I am to a holler girl born and raised in bulldog holler in premier west Virginia. Today, they are classy, sexy, and a wonderful friend. I can still hear the drip, drop, drip, drop. Usually everything tries to bloom too earlyeager for life.eager to start a new season. IAM FROM PRICHARD WVA UP A HOLLER CALLED BLACK FORK FAR BACK AS YOU CAN GET NOW THAT MY MOM AND DAD ARE GONE I WOULD LOVE ONE MORE DAY UP THAT HOLLER OMG THE LOVE THAT CAME BACK READING THIS. West Virginia Hollow Tales by Jordan Jr, John E., Like New Used, Free shippin. Amazing how similar our stories are from the next county over. Thanks for all the memories. My family lived in Iaeger until 1958 when my father Lloyd Bottomly retired to SW Fl. I love you and kissed his cheek and between tears he said I know you do.Lord I love that man to this day and will remember him until my dying day.. We lived on a large piece of propertywith tons of Sagebrush and Cloverunkempt to the people who had lovely gardens, but to me was like living in a magical place. We lived in Summers County and I still feel at peace when we visit there. I was a Hollow girl also born and raised in Carswell hollow. We learned respect, what giving your word meant and protection of family. Thanks so much for saying it so eloquently. I lived the same lifestyle you did and so proud that I did.There is nothing like these W.V. I ran the woods, picked berries to eat, and skinned my knees! Still remember the well were I drew water. To this day, I miss the mountains and all the wonderful times I had when staying with relatives every summer in WV. Changing seasons and being one with the story are real beautiful that everyone up. 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