Welcome to the Urban Appalachian Community Coalition Story Gathering Project Interview Video Quilt Page. Our purpose is to engage members of our community in informally gathering and recording interviews with people of Appalachian descent in the greater Cincinnati area, and to collect and share these stories.
The videos you will see and hear on this page are short sections of interviews conducted between friends, colleagues, and family members, and recorded using smartphones and Zoom. Over time we will select sections of additional interviews and “stitch” them into Video Quilts. The first such Quilt is above.
Hear from urban Appalachians about their childhood memories — from forests to concrete playgrounds, a child’s imagination is a spectacular place to explore identity and placekeeping.
Much of Appalachian culture and history has something to do with nature. The breathtaking mountain range hosts a variety of wildlife full of adventure and wonder. Whether one was raised in the mountains or city, nature is an explicit part of rural and urban Appalachian identities.
Hear from urban Appalachians about music – we’re talking old time and bluegrass music! From festivals to family bands, music is paramount to urban and rural Appalachian culture and identity.
This Video Quilt is all about identity – what it means to be urban and Appalachian, distinct cultural signifiers, and certain values, beliefs, and life lessons. We were not able to fit every clip into one video, so this is part one of more to come – stay tuned and enjoy!
This video quilt features clips from our Story Gathering Project series in which members of the urban Appalachian community interview other urban Appalachians. We selected stories and tidbits about people’s favorite (and not-so-favorite) foods. These narratives shed light on deeper themes such as status and identity.
Maybe you grew up on old-time and bluegrass music, or maybe you’ve come to love the music later in life – whatever the case may be, music is a huge part of urban and Appalachian culture. Hear from a few of our interviewees about what music means to them.
