Below is the original scan of the image: (Click to enlarge.)

Below is a zoomed-in version with enhanced brightness & contrast. In this image, you can more clearly see the photographer’s long-distance device, which allowed him to be a part of the selfie. (Click to enlarge.)

AHGS will have a booth at Brinegar Day September 26. The event, held at Brinegar Cabin, will be from 10am-4pm, on the Blue Ridge Parkway. At our booth, we will share information on regional farming practices from the late 1800s. Friends of the Blue Ridge Parkway plans to have a demonstration on making apple butter. We look forward to seeing you on the 26th of September!

The next exhibit for the Alleghany Historical Museum is called Alleghany Images and was inspired by the upcoming exhibit, Looking at Appalachia at the Blue Ridge Business Development Center. That traveling show will begin at the BDC  September 19 and last through the end of October and it will feature 175 photographs of the Appalachian Mountain region. Get more info here. The BDC is located at 115 Atwood St in Sparta, North Carolina. Contact administrator, Dale Caveny for more information or visit his blog, Absolutely Alleghany.

Looking at Appalachia is the brainchild of Roger May, “an Appalachian American photographer currently living in Raleigh, North Carolina. He was born in the Tug River Valley, located on the West Virginia and Kentucky state line…” It promises to be an interesting look at the region, “… fifty years after the declaration of the War on Poverty. Drawing from a diverse population of photographers within the region, this new crowdsourced image archive will serve as a reference that is defined by its people as opposed to political legislation.”

Our own exhibit will feature historic photos from Alleghany that represent our roots, here in the Blue Ridge. Some familiar and some never before published, the images include a look at religion, schools, families and work on the farm. The exhibit is sponsored by the Historical Society, NAPCO and Imaging Specialists.

Alleghany Images will begin September 1 and will be on display through the end of 2015. The Alleghany Historical Museum is open Thursday though Saturday from 10am to 5pm and admission is free. Donations to maintain the museum are, however, appreciated.

The current exhibit at the Alleghany Historical Museum is Grandma’s Hands – a showcase of quilts from members of our community. Read the poem that inspired the name.

David Andrew Sturgill’s essay on the Ride of Martin Gambill, featured in the current AHGS newsletter, was originally part of the 1984 New River Symposium. Read his entire essay on the National Park Service’s website, and see the rest of the articles that were part of the 1984 Symposium.