Erich Nunn (Leesville, Louisiana)

Erich Nunn teaches courses at Auburn University on the literature and culture of the American South. His Berea Fellowship work is in furtherance of a book project on race and American roots music. He will focus particularly on materials in the Bradley Kincaid and D.K. Wilgus collections and the archive's commercial country music recordings from the 1920s, 30s, and 40s.

Tammy Clemons and Timi Reedy are homesteaders living in Rockcastle County, Kentucky. Their Fellowship work will focus on documenting the musical careers of Timi's grandparents, John and Frances Reedy from Harlan County, Kentucky. The Reedys were early bluegrass musicians who, during the late 1940's through early 1960's, did factory work in Dayton, Ohio where they also became a part of that city's roots music scene that included Appalachian Rock-a-Billy and independent Bluegrass record labels. They will do contextual research in collections such as those of John Lair and Rueben Powell, organize and preserve the extensive Reedy Family audio and print material, and record interviews with Reedy family associates and others toward the end of documenting the musical and other cultural exchanges the Reedys' and their contemporaries were part of in Dayton. Timi and Tammy's blog entitled Remembering the Reedys: Appalachian Music, Migration, & Memory relates the progress of their archival work. (Link will open in a new window).

Meredith Doster is a student in the master's degree program in Appalachian studies at Appalachian State University. Her Berea Fellowship study will be in furtherance of her master's thesis on the study of music in two Independent Baptist Churches in Watauga County, North Carolina. Meredith is focusing particularly on the conflicts between the four- and seven-shape note traditions of the 19th century as one example of the tension created when traditions and their rituals change. Her study also analyzes the deep-seated ties between land, culture and religion in small, rural communities and the collective impact of those Appalachian qualities on worship practices. Meredith's Fellowship Activity Report includes full color images and a vivid description of the singing traditions and churches explored in her research. (Document will open in a new window.)

Jason Howard is an editor and writer living in Berea. His last book, Something’s Rising: Appalachians Fighting Mountaintop Removal, co-written with Silas House, has become one of the University Press of Kentucky’s bestselling titles. His Fellowship work is related to his book in process, One of Us: Kentucky Musicians and Sense of Place. It will be multi-genre and multi-regional, representing various forms of contemporary roots music throughout the state. Confirmed participants for the book include both established musicians and emerging voices. Among these are Naomi Judd, Dwight Yoakam, Patty Loveless, Ben Sollee, Loretta Lynn, Dale Ann Bradley, and the Reel World String Band. Jason is drawing upon archival audio, manuscript, and print resources to develop the book’s introductory chapter which will be an expansive, historical account of roots music in Kentucky. This account will link the book’s contemporary subjects to their spiritual forebears—Lily May Ledford, Red Foley, the A.L. Phipps Family, anonymous church singers and musicians, and countless others.

Ben is a student majoring in politics and modern history at Oxford University's Harris Manchester College which accepts only students aged 21 and over. His research interests lie in the examination of social, cultural and political history of the United States. He is particularly interested in the experiences of musicians, singers and songwriters from the reconstruction period of the late 1800s to the civil rights movement of the mid 1900s.
His Fellowship work at Berea was directed at analyzing how a variety of vernacular musical forms can be used to understand the attitudes and dispositions of Americans who lived through the dramatic societal changes resulting from the Brown vs. the Board of Education Supreme Court decision in 1954.

He drew on traditional music and other audio material, manuscript collections such as the Southern Regional Council Appalachian Desegregation Survey, news papers, and other published print sources. His Fellowship supported research formed the basis for his undergraduate dissertation for which he was awarded high distinction by Oxford University. His Berea research is also serving as a starting point from which to launch doctoral research which will focus on white nationalism and music from the 19th century. A copy of his undergraduate dissertation will soon be available in Berea's Department of Special Collections and Archives.

Peter Winne is a musician and performer living in Charlottesville, Virginia. He began playing old-time bluegrass and country blues during college and spent two years playing with the Vermont-based string band, the Powder Kegs. He performs with various groups in the Charlottesville area has been involved in the business side of traditional music, handling radio promotions for Rebel and County Records.

His Berea Fellowship work is focusing on Appalachian sacred music including old Regular Baptist, amateur gospel groups, and African American shape note singing traditions. He is using the archive's audio recordings primarily for learning repertoire and singing styles, part of which includes transcribing vocal parts from eight to twelve recordings. Research outcomes will be largely in the form of musical performance, initially with students and others in Berea and Charlottesville, and eventually, a full length CD.

Mary Hamilton has been a professional storyteller since 1983. Her work has been recognized with numerous awards including the Jesse Stuart Award presented by the Kentucky School Media Association for her body of work telling stories in Kentucky schools.

Her Fellowship research will make use of the sound recordings in Berea’s Leonard Roberts Collection of Kentucky folklore, many of which date from the 1950s and 1960s. She will be comparing and contrasting different versions of the same folktale collected from a variety of children and adults in southeastern Kentucky. Hearing how the stories were told will provide insight into them that is not possible from reading printed text alone.

The primary outcome of her research will be identification of stories for presentations in Kentucky schools, libraries, and museums. Also anticipated are professional conference presentations, Kentucky Arts Council residencies, and a book of Kentucky folktales retold.