Joe Tennis’ book about Southwestern Virginia hits close to home for me — quite literally.
I paddled about in the same creeks and riverbeds Tennis talks about in his coffee-table-style book, never knowing about the more than 40 waterfalls and, to my surprise, sandy lakeside beaches described in his book.
An award-winning journalist, whose articles have appeared in several Virginia newspapers including the Bristol Herald Courier, the Roanoke Times and The Virginian Pilot, Tennis artfully writes about Bristol, Va., as the birthplace of country music. He chronicles Rural Retreat, Va.’s, claim that their town is the final resting place for Dr. Charles Taylor Pepper, the man for whom the soft drink was named. His style is easy-going and informative, a combination sure to please either the everyday fact-seeker or a leisurely reader.
It’s fascinating, too, that Tennis’ writing shows his love and energy for the area. He says he wrote the book to give Southwest Virginia more exposure — he felt it was often overshadowed by the more easterly tourist attractions such as Richmond or Williamsburg — and he thought he was the one to give the area its due. He did just that in the almanac-style book by doing his homework and logging many hours pounding the pavement to get the story.
He says he spent more than 10 years researching the book and included historical names and facts, places to visit and even interviews from some of the folks who live there. He saved many oral traditions and histories that I think may have been otherwise lost.
I learned that my home county — Tazewell County — is part of an area now referred to as Clinch Mountain Country. Tennis warns that some localities he mentioned might not be on any modern map — a fact I know well from the long trips on big yellow school buses as a high school volleyball player. I remember seeing hand scrawled signs for places like Tip Top, Steelesburg and Red Ash as we traveled to Grundy or Bristol for matches.
Again, Tennis knows his stuff. He points out that some towns or communities were often named for the way a river drained, for example, or the presence of an imposing mountain. Many communities I knew of as a kid were named after coalmines — many of those have closed or quit production and the residents have moved away. The towns, too, subsequently died.
The same can be said for some lost communities that faded away when a post office closed or entire families, sometimes five generations, packed up together and moved away. Despite the failure of those towns, Tennis dug for the stories and recounts many of their ghost-town fables in the book. It’s good stuff.
I applaud Tennis’ effort for getting to the heart of many of the narratives often heard at church picnics or family reunions. He deserves a huge pat on the back for sorting through and listening to the special people who call the area home.
I particularly enjoyed Tennis’ writings about the historic Grist Mill in Cedar Bluff, Va., one of my favorite places in the world, and his explanation of the origins of my birthplace, Richlands, Va. Tennis says there were similarities to the origins of Southern Pines and Richlands as both were once billed as places to “enjoy a healthy climate.” Perhaps that explains why I feel so at home here.
Too, again, Tennis pulls out his thinking cap showing off his research by pinpointing where to find waterfalls and interesting hiking vantages. I hope to explore a few of those spots the next time I head home for a summertime visit.
The book itself is little more than a heavy-bound magazine, which seems a little disappointing considering the $30 price. A hardcover color format would have better showcased all of Tennis’ hard work. Overall, though, the work is informative and entertaining. I’ve not seen the likes of Tennis’ combination of history, wit and travel tips before. Travelers who love Southern or Mountain culture should pick it up.
Melissa Breedlove is special projects editor of The Pilot. She may be reached at (910) 693-2476 or by e-mail at mbreedlove@thepilot.com
