Reclaiming the Commons

Sharpe

04/04/2017

Reclaiming the Commons:

This week for class, we had to read two separate chapters about the central Appalachian mountains, one by Mary Hufford, and one from Steven Stephenson. For the first two quotes that I will discuss here comes from Stephenson. The first interesting fact that I learned was "wells in the area (central Appalachian) in 1859 yielded appreciable amount of oil and marked the beginning of what became known the Burning Springs oil field, one of only two oil fields in the entire United States before the Civil War" (pg. 221-222). To me, it is surprising to find out that oil from the ground was used so early. You would expect that it would have been used later in the 1800s or in the early 1900s. When you expect that oil was used during this time period, you would think of oil produced from whale blubber, or simply whale oil.

Bottle of Whale Oil

(Author: Unknown)

Photo Location: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Natural_whale_oil_bottle.jpg

Another thing that I was shocked about was the careless disposal of waste from mining, especially coal mining. Stephenson states that "the ultimate product of the oxidation of sulfur is sulfuric acid" (pg.228). These mines within the Appalachian mountains was claimed to release sulfur within the surrounding area. And once it is converted to sulfuric acid, it is detrimental to the surrounding area. Especially when it is reached to a body of water. Ultimately killing everything in the water.

Sulfuric Acid in bottle (96% concentration)

(Author: W. Oelen)

Photo Location: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sulphuric_acid_96_percent_extra_pure.jpg

Now the next quote comes from Mary Hufford's reading. She states that by looking at "a detailed map of almost any portion of the region, and ginseng is registered somewhere, often associated with the deeper, moister places: Seng Branch, Sang Camp Creek, Ginseng, Seng Creek, and Three-Prong Holler" (pg. 104). The region that Mary Hufford is discussing about is within the Appalachian mountains area of the United States, mostly within West Virginia. This illustrates how ginseng is such a huge part in the daily lives of the people within the region. Possibly brining in money for the locals family to be able to live another day.

American Ginseng

(Author: John Carl Jacobs)

Photo Location: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:American_Ginseng_3.jpg

Citations:

Hufford, M. (2002). Reclaiming the Commons: Narratives of Progress, Preservation, and Ginseng. In Howell, B. J. (Ed.), Culture, Environment, and Conservation in the Appalachian South (pp. 100-120). Champaign, IL: University of Illinois Press.

Stephenson, S. L. (2013). A Natural History of the Central Appalachians. Morgantown, WV: West Virginia University Press.