Appalachian History

Sometimes the official stories that make it into museum collections just don’t shed enough light on the complete context of an event. Take this photo, titled “Picnic in a Coal Mine, Mount Savage, 1889, 
Photographed by Edgar S. Thompson.” The caption provided by the Maryland Historical Society gives scant background on this picture, and in [...]

“[After the end of the Spanish American War] Mt. Savage resumed its gay pleasures, which led to many courtships. There was nothing better to further this cause than a long bicycle ride. “The Sunday afternoon ride up to Allegany, pushing up Moss Cottage Hill; stopping at Paul’s Store to buy peppermints and licorice candy; resting [...]