Communities throughout the Allegheny region of Maryland, the Greenbrier Valley and Monroe County of West Virginia still prepare their food from local farms. You can visit Reed’s Mill, which still stone grinds heirloom cornmeal and buckwheat, buy local farm products at local stores like Campbell’s Market in Beverly, Bella’s in Lewisburg and Cheese n’ More in Gap Mills.
Last weekend the isolated Randolph county town of Pickens drew a couple thousand visitors to eat at the annual Maple Syrup Festival. About 45 gallons of fresh West Virginia Maple Syrup were consumed in two days at the Pickens pancake breakfasts. After I grabbed a plate of buckwheat pancakes and sausage, I met up with […]
This past weekend the little town of Helvetia tried its best to frighten away Old Man Winter at its Fasnacht festival. Hundreds of people thronged the streets of the remote Swiss community, many of them squeezing into the community hall for the square dance. People this year had large, papier-mâché masks that resembled long nosed-monsters, […]
The Peoples Store and Supply (Brill’s) was owned by Ira Brill and was located along 219 at the Greenbrier River bridge in Marlinton. No longer standing today. A book about Brill’s store is available through the Pocahontas Times’ store: The Store: Memories of the Peoples Store and Supply, by James Samuel Brill.
Joe Riley grew up in a farming family in Stomping Creek, West Virginia. After graduating from West Virginia University, Joe became an Agriculture teacher and taught for 17 years before becoming principal of Marlinton Middle School. Joe runs his family farm with his wife and children, working long hours before and after his school job. […]
Joel Callison, of Pocahontas County, has farming in his blood. His ancestors have been farming in the county for generations. Just in his lifetime Joel’s witnessed rapid changes to agricultural practices and technology that have revolutionized the lives of farmers and changed rural communities everywhere. In 1935, the total number of farms in West Virginia […]
Moffett McNeel tells the story of his life as one of three generations of McNeel men currently living on the McNeel family farm in Hillsboro, West Virginia. By Sara Wise and Preston Hartman for West Virginia Uncovered 03/16/2012 The McNeel family farm in Hillsboro, West Virginia, has been home to four generations of McNeels since 1908. […]
“This is our Bloody Butcher Corn, it’s all different colors, see? It’s red, yellow and purple.”
Reed’s Mill has been grinding an heirloom variety of corn called Bloody Butcher, grown locally and from the same seeds that have been ground at the mill for generations. Possibly, all the way back to when the mill first opened around 1791.
Click here to have a listen….
Buttercups and buttered-bread mark the town of Frankford. Founded in 1769, Frankford was the first settlement west of the Allegheny Mountains. The town was once a trading center; now it is well known for a bakery, offering an old-time treat: breads baked according to traditional recipes of the region.
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Click the map to download a high-resolution copy of the Traveling 219 map, or pick up a hard copy at one of many locations along U.S. Route 219. You may also view our interactive map of Traveling 219 stories [HERE].
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