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This newspaper page contains 7 articles. Subscribers can read the full text of each article.
Newspaper
Bluefield Daily Telegraph
Location
Bluefield, West Virginia, United States of America
Date
Aug 06, 1990
Page
6
Samantha Myers explores how old sayings originate and persist, from devil and wife imagery to centipede teeth lore, suggesting they arise from imagination and communal storytelling. She notes these folk beliefs endure through generations as a cultural thread in Appalachia.
Kathy Johnson reports on Appalachian folk beliefs about planting by moon phases and zodiac signs. Trula Jones of the Crab Orchard Museum cites light and dark moon periods guiding root and above ground crops, with sayings like May cucumber day and Good Friday potato planting, alongside katydid signals for seasonal timing.
The book Superstitious Here’s Why explains how ancient observations of lightning fires shooting stars and lunar activity fostered beliefs in spirits. Charm making and counter magic arose as early humans tried to master unseen forces.
Vencill describes a tradition where a mountain man comes down from the hills to tell tales of grizzlies witches and haints in exchange for a plate of food. He says he plays that mountain man when sharing his stories.
Jerry Vencll, dressed in traditional Mountain man garb, tells tales to school children and groups. He performs ballads and Haint tales drawn from local elders and extensive research into old legends and superstitions. He notes diverse origins from African, Hungarian, and other immigrant influences shaping regional folklore.
Three rabbits Foot Footfoot and Footfootfoot live by a hill. Foot ages and dies after a visit to the foot doctor. Footfoot and Footfootfoot bury him in a one foot coffin beside the footpath. Footfootfoot seeks the doctor to save Footfoot who has one foot in the grave already.
The list records various superstitions such as a ghost not crossing a running stream bad luck from a black cat and signs of death or rain tied to animals sounds and natural phenomena. It includes beliefs about dogs howling rooster crowing owls haunting birds sneezes buckeyes and weather signs with specific folkloric cues.
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