Wilderness Road & Appalachia into the 20th Century

An American people, after a victory in Yorktown, colonists now turned their eyes towards the western edge of our colonies. What lied beyond? For thousands of colonists and pioneers, the answer was plain and already answered: opportunity. Already having strongholds in what was perceived as “no man’s land” and “indian territory,” the Scots-Irish ventured west along the Wilderness Road which Daniel Boone helped explore and plan for others ahead towards the hope of a bright future and a growing belief in what will eventually be coined “manifest destiny.”

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As this third venture into Appalachia’s history unfolds, we will look at the events surrounding westward expansion through Appalachia ~ the doorway to the West, along with the many lives started, forfeited, and upended for the sake of spreading America’s wings.

Teaching in a rural, former coal-mining and tobacco growing region, Long is both a History/Government/Appalachian History & folklore instructor, as well as an English literature instructor in Virginia and East Tennessee; in high school, and at two local universities. For the past twelve years, he has brought both high school and university students out of their shells to share their stories and understand our local histories and culture; all to better inform those around them and around the world. Additionally, he has been a guest lecturer for Eighteenth Century British Drama and Fiction at Oxford University for three years, as well as a lecturer in Scots-Irish/Appalachian folklore at the University of Edinburgh. All these experiences combined have led him to working with the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation and the Birthplace of Country Music Museum-Bristol to help visitors, students, and educators dig deeper into the rich and diverse culture they have in Appalachia. He is furthering his research into his area, along with the rest of Virginia, to continue sharing the importance Virginia still is in the history of our nation; along with the vitality of the Appalachian region in the early history and growth of the state and nation. This is in conjunction with sharing the “true” story of Appalachia as not a region of disparity, but of history which changed the world, rich storytelling, an Indigenous and European melting pot, and the agricultural lifeblood for our early nation through the recent 21st century.