Tags
Appalachia, Guyandotte River, Logan, Logan County, poems, poetry, T.C. Whited, West Virginia, writers, writing
Just Wondering: A Poem (1927)
30 Friday Apr 2021
Posted in Guyandotte River, Logan, Poetry
Tag Archives: writers
The Hopemont Blues: A Poem (1922)
11 Thursday Mar 2021
Posted in Logan, Poetry, Women's History
Tags
Appalachia, Hopemont, Logan, Logan Banner, poems, poetry, Sally Godbey, Terra Alta, tuberculosis, West Virginia, writers, writing
The following poem appeared in the Logan Banner of Logan, WV, on July 7, 1922. The author was Sally Godbey, who gave her address as the “State T.B. Sanitarium, Hopemont, Terra Alta, W.Va.”
THE HOPEMONT BLUES
When the golden sun is sinking
Behind the hills of old Hopemont,
When of home and friends I’m thinking
That “what-might-have-been” is not.
When the night birds’ soft notes falling,
Melodies sweet float on the air,
Then my thoughts go back to Logan,
And the friends that I left there.
When the sighing night-winds moaning,
Groaning through the old oak trees
and the strain of “Home Sweet Home”
Carry softly on the breeze,
Then is when my thoughts go roaming,
Filled with memories old and new
Days of gladness, days of sadness,
Nights so happy, nights so blue.
Though there’s many miles between us,
Little town I love you yet,
And I long to hurry back,
For I’m homesick and regret
That I ever left you Logan,
But I had to, so they say.
I’m lonesome for the old home town,
And I’m coming back some day,
They say that you are a dull little town,
They spell it with a capital D.
They wish that they could get away,
But you are all the world to me,
And though the world is a very big place
My home has always been with you.
And I find you quite a nice little town,
With friends both kind and true.
The Banner prefaced the poem with this: “The Logan Banner is the recipient of a constant chain of poems which would fill our columns if we even dared to publish them. People will never learn that poets are born, not made. However, we have just received one which is from a former Logan girl and now a patient at Hopemont. we are pleased to give this publicity and for genuine beauty of expression and sentiment it far excels many of those we see in the public print today. The author is Miss Sally Godbey and she calls the poem “The Hopemont Blues.” We will refrain from further comments but pass the beatufiul lines on to our readers with the request that they write Miss Godbey, care of State T.B. Sanitarium, at Hopemont, W.Va. and tell her what they think of her literary ability.”
Dug and Dad: A Poem (1928)
09 Wednesday Dec 2020
Tags
Appalachia, Dug and Dad, justice of the peace, Logan, Logan Banner, Logan County, poetry, poets, Thomas C. Whited, West Virginia, writers
From the Logan Banner of Logan, WV, comes this poem by T.C. Whited titled “Dug and Dad”, written on May 30, 1928, and published on June 5, 1928:
DUG AND DAD
The voting now is over,
And I am rather glad
As we will have for J’s and P’s
Our good old “Dug and Dad.”
The other boys were good old “scouts”
Not one of them is bad,
But did not have the pull it seems
Like “Uncles Dug and Dad.”
If we don’t be more careful
Our days will be long and sad
As we pull the time and pay the fine
As fixed by “Dug and Dad.”
The Wanderer: A Poem (1928)
16 Friday Oct 2020
Tags
Appalachia, Harry Durham, Logan, Logan Banner, Logan County, poems, poet, poetry, Taplin, West Virginia, writers, writing
From the Logan Banner of Logan, WV, comes this poem written by Harry Durham of Taplin titled “The Wanderer,” published November 20, 1928:
THE WANDERER
I have been in sunny Italy.
I have been in flowery France.
I have seen the silvery moonbeams
On the Alpine mountains dance.
I have been in quaint old China.
I have trod Great Britain’s land.
I have seen the heat elfs dancing
On Sahara’s burning sand.
I have rode the rattling rikas
Thru far Yokohama’s street.
I’ve eaten in snow-clad Igloos
Strips of frozen walrus meat.
I have sailed the broad Atlantic.
I have whaled in Arctic ice.
Steered a bastard thru Magellan.
Rounded bleak Cape Horn twice.
And the wanderlust keepings calling,
Mocking, just around the bend,
Leering me by empty promise
To a homeless, friendless end.
But its call is fainter growing
And its beck no longer thrills
For I’ve found a golden milestone
In the West Virginia hills.
For no matter where I’ve wandered
On a vain and empty quest,
I have left my heart behind me
In the land I love the best.
And when I sign articles
On that last and endless trip,
Let me sail thru-out the ages
On this rugged square rigged ship.
For I ask no sweeter nectar
Than to quaff its crystal rills.
For I’ve known a golden milestone
In the West Virginia hills.
Faithful Rover: A Poem (1915)
09 Friday Oct 2020
Tags
Appalachia, hunting, Logan, Logan Democrat, poet, poetry, poets, West Virginia, writers, writing
From the Logan Democrat of Logan, WV, comes this poem written by J. Rush Cook titled “Faithful Rover,” published January 21, 1915:
FAITHFUL ROVER
Old Rover was a faithful dog,
He stuck through thick and thin;
With me he crossed a thousand logs,
We’ve waded a hundred bogs
With the mud up to his chin.
We’ve hunted together, day and night,
He’s treed ten thousand mice;
He never retreated in a fight
Whether in darkness or in light,
And never barked but thrice.
One on the scent, one at the tree–
His gait was swift and strong;
Third, a long–that was for me,
Where e’er I might be,
To hustle and hurry along.
And when I’d reach the long sought spot,
Always on top of the hill,
A lookin’ wise there Rover sot,
Jump up and round he’d hop–
Could never keep him still.
And then, of course, the tree I’d cut
Old Rover sitting night;
Perhaps three, four feet at the butt
Pretty hard to crack such a nut!
But I did it without a sigh.
Down in the top old Rover would go,
To catch the game, you see;
But always in the tree below,
Old Rover would try to show,
Was the game for him and me.
With this repeated till at the foot,
He’d start up t’other side,
And then to me it began to look
As plain as an open book,
That Rover had surely lied.
I don’t think he meant to lie,
His guilt I could not own;
But in his eagerness to try
He always looked too high,
As others I have known.
Old Rover was built for strength,
Was deep across the chest–
His hips didn’t lack for breadth,
Neither his legs for length–
‘Tis needless to tell the rest.
He had a curl in his tail
As nearly all dogs do,
But he straightened it out on the trail–
It might hook on a briar or rail
And get to bleeding, too.
The scent of the game be lost–
The smell of blood is strong,
This he knew at any cost,
If this trail he happened to cross
The game would surely be gone.
Old Rover has passed away
To the happy hunting ground;
And there I hope he’ll stay
And tree his game each day,
And do his own cutting down.
Perception: A Poem (1915)
03 Friday Apr 2020
Tags
Appalachia, J. Rush Cook, Logan, Logan Democrat, poems, poetry, poets, West Virginia, writers
From the Logan Democrat of Logan, WV, comes this poem written by J. Rush Cook titled “Perception,” published January 7, 1915:
PERCEPTION
I have seen the rosebuds blowing
In the springtime’s early morn;
The shining dewdrops showing
On the petals newly born.
I have heard the happy bird’s song,
Wafted from the leafy bowers;
I have felt the heart beat strong
As I gazed at bird and flower.
I have seen a grander vision
Than dewdrops on the flowers;
A sweeter song to me is given
Than was wafted from the bowers.
‘Tis a vision of the feature,
When right o’er wrong prevails;
When man, the noblest creature,
No longer each assail.
‘Tis a song of love and duty,
‘Neath a bright or frowning sky;
Like the rainbow in its beauty
And its promise, by and by!
Logan: A Poem (1923)
08 Sunday Mar 2020
Posted in Coal, Guyandotte River, Logan, Poetry
Tags
Appalachia, Don Chafin, Logan, Logan Banner, Logan Wildcats, Mine Wars, New York City, O. Benton, poems, poetry, West Virginia, writers, writing
This poem was written by O. Benton and dedicated to Don Chafin, “a true son of Logan.” The poem relates to the Mine Wars, or as it was called by the Logan Banner, the “armed march.”
There’s a land of “Love thy brother”
By the sky-blue Guyandotte
Where the folks love one another,
And I know God loves the spot.
For he built those mighty mountains
And he touched their tops with blue,
From their sides gush crystal fountains,
Just to quench the thirst of you.
Oaks and poplars, pines and hemlocks,
On the mountainsides they grew.
There’ll be no coal beneath the mountains
For a million years or two.
In this glorious land of blessings
Long before the railroad came
Lived the honest, fighting people
Who have brought the country fame.
Now there’s mines beneath those mountains
And there’s towns most everywhere,
But with all the wealth and greatness
Freedom reigns and all is fair.
Some may say, “You think there’s freedom,”
But I’m saying what I know.
I have crossed the rushing rivers,
I have tramped the mountain snow.
I have sweated ‘neath those mountains
Where the motors screech and hum.
I have worked upon the tipple
Worked with pick and shovel some.
And I swear by all above me
That a man may have his say.
He may tell of any grievance
Unmolested, go his way.
For there is no lack of freedom
When the Court-House clock looks down
On the men who love their neighbors
In the busy coal-gorged town.
When the men from New York City
Told us that they were not free,
It was something quite unheard of,
Something free men cannot see.
If our misinformed brothers
Wish to DO, and not to mock,
Let them stay within the cities
Where there’s Hell in every block.
Let them stay away from Logan,
Where a man can be a man.
Take your creeds and go to New York
Where their brothers understand.
For the famous “Logan Wildcats”
And the lads who fought the Hun,
They are tired of soap-box teachings
And have said there shall be none.
Source: Logan (WV) Banner, 29 June 1923
Home: A Poem (1915)
11 Tuesday Feb 2020
Posted in Poetry, Wyoming County
Tags
Appalachia, J. Rush Cook, Logan, Logan Democrat, poems, poetry, West Virginia, writers, writing
From the Logan Democrat of Logan, WV, comes this poem written by J. Rush Cook titled “Home,” published January 14, 1915:
HOME
Endearing words to us are given,
Endearing thoughts for us they hold.
All for which the heart has striven,
But none so dear to us as home.
When wearied with the cares of life,
With toil and labor, sorrows borne,
There comes a joy amidst the strife,
When e’re we think of home, sweet home.
Home replete with all its pleasure,
Be it a cot or palace grand;
Be it poor or rich in treasure,
‘Tis always home in every land.
If peace and love therein abide,
Reign supremely every hour.
In each heart in faith confides
Like a sweet, unfolding flower.
‘Tis the thought of home we cherish,
As we roam some distant land.
All else for us may perish,
But sweet home in childhood land.
Where dear mother led us gently
O’er the hills, through vale and field;
Where she sang to us so sweetly,
And in prayer so oft did kneel.
Where the songbirds ever singing,
‘Neath a blue sky with music ringing,
Where the hills with music ringing,
And the zephyrs blow at night.
This is home to us forever,
Home, with mother at our side.
Perhaps in thought when ties we sever,
And have crossed beyond the tide.
Appalachian Heritage Day in Logan, WV (2019)
04 Tuesday Feb 2020
Posted in Civil War, Coal, Logan, Music, Native American History
Tags
Albert Gallatin Jenkins Camp, Appalachia, Appalachian Heritage Day, archaeology, bluegrass, Buddy Griffin, Chuck Keeney, civil war, Craig Ferrell, fiddlers, fiddling, flintknapping, Glenville State College, Hatfield-McCoy CVB, history, Logan, Logan County, Logan County Commission, Mine Wars Museum, Native American History, photos, Sons of Confederate Veterans, Southern Coalition for the Arts, Southern West Virginia Community and Technical College, Vinny Mendez, West Virginia, West Virginia Archaeological Society, writers, writing
Appalachian Heritage Day occurred on August 25, 2019 in Logan, WV. The event featured authors, scholars, guest speakers, information tables, a genealogy workshop, a writers’ workshop, numerous old-time and bluegrass music workshops, and an all-day concert. Special thanks to the Logan County Commission, Southern West Virginia Community and Technical College, the Hatfield-McCoy CVB, and the Southern Coalition for the Arts for sponsoring the event. For more information, follow this link to the event website: https://appalachianheritageday.weebly.com/
Buddy Griffith, who helped develop the world’s first bluegrass music degree program at Glenville State College, hosted a bluegrass fiddle workshop. For more about this amazing artist, go here: http://www.wvculture.org/vandalia/award/2011Griffin.html
Sons of Confederate Veterans, Albert G. Jenkins Camp, were on hand to educate attendants about Southern history. For more about this group and its activities, go here: https://www.herald-dispatch.com/features_entertainment/memorial-service-held-in-milton-for-confederate-soldier-lt-james/article_44e81ab0-c7a0-550d-af96-c972bf27ca9d.html
The West Virginia Mine Wars Museum provided information about regional labor history. Dr. Charles Keeney (shown above), a history professor at Southern WV CTC, presented a lecture about heritage tourism. For more about the Mine Wars Museum, go here: https://www.wvminewars.com/
Craig Ferrell, past president of the Kanawha Chapter of the West Virginia Archaeological Society, demonstrates flintknapping for Vinny Mendez, a local relic hunter who showcased his collection of Civil War artifacts. Craig presented a lecture titled “The Art of Flintknapping and Stone Tool Replication.”
Veola Ann Runyon: Authoress-Poet of Logan County (1922)
08 Tuesday Oct 2019
Posted in Ashland, Coal, Guyandotte River, Man, Poetry
Tags
Appalachia, Ashland, author, authors, coal, Guyandotte Valley, history, Kentucky, Logan Banner, Logan County, physician, poems, poetry, Thomas Dunn English, Three Forks, Viola Ann Runyon, West Virginia, writers, writing
From the Logan Banner of Logan, WV, comes this bit of history about Veola Ann Runyon, authoress-poet of Logan County. The story is dated January 13, 1922:
LOGAN COUNTY HAS AN AUTHORESS-POET
Mrs. Veola Ann Runyon, of Three Forks, Has Had Much of Her Work Published.
We never know in what nook or corner we may find unknown talent or beneath what bushel measure we may and a shining light unless, perchance, we may trip across a clue that may lead us to a welcome discovery. Such was the case with a representative of The Banner on a recent trip to Three Forks, when he fortunately learned of the presence there of Mrs. Veola Anne Runyon, a poet and talented writer of fact and fiction.
Mrs. Runyon was born in Ashland, Ky. Her grandfather was a French physician and author. From him she derived the gifted talent at at the early age of sixteen she began writing stories and for the past ten years she has been a regular contributor to several of the largest magazines of our country. She has in preparation at the present time a romance which will be happily connected with the coal mining industry, while she has in the hands of her publisher two other books, one dealing with scientifical and botanical work and the other on entomological facts.
The story now in preparation will be eagerly sought by all readers in Logan County, due to the fact that part of the plot will be based upon knowledge gained within this county. Mrs. Runyon was requested by her publishers to write a story closely connected with the mining industry and so not knowing the details connected with the industry she came to Three Forks, and while stopping at the Club House there she is gathering facts that will prove invaluable in her latest work.
Mrs. Runyon is a gifted writer and is filled with the love of the work. She is also deeply interested in botanical work and the study of nature. Through persuasion we were able to secure some of her poems for publication in The Banner, and we are pleased to announce that arrangements have been made with her for regular contributions to the columns of this paper.
Her presence here will recall to mind another author who came to Logan County in years gone by. Dr. Thos. Dunn English recognized the beauty of these mountains and the nearness of true nature and came here during the period between 1850 and 1860. Some of his poems deal with life in the Guyan Valley.
With her ability and fluency of language, Mrs. Runyon should find in these grand majestic mountains and wonderful natural beauty an invaluable aid to inspiration that will enable her to complete a wonderful story that should attract the favorable attention of the most critical.
Note: I cannot locate any biographical information for this writer. Three Forks, according to one source, is also known as Saunders (Buffalo Creek).
Brandon Ray Kirk 