Reformers to Radicals: The Appalachian Volunteers and the War on Poverty (None)

322 Pages·2008·1.81 MB·English

by  Thomas Kiffmeyer PhD

Reformers to Radicals

Reformers to Radicals
The Appalachian Volunteers
and the War on Poverty
T K
homas iffmeyer
T U P K
he niversiTy ress of enTUcKy
Copyright © 2008 by The University Press of Kentucky
Scholarly publisher for the Commonwealth,
serving Bellarmine University, Berea College, Centre
College of Kentucky, Eastern Kentucky University,
The Filson Historical Society, Georgetown College,
Kentucky Historical Society, Kentucky State University,
Morehead State University, Murray State University,
Northern Kentucky University, Transylvania University,
University of Kentucky, University of Louisville,
and Western Kentucky University.
All rights reserved.
Editorial and Sales Offices: The University Press of Kentucky
663 South Limestone Street, Lexington, Kentucky 40508-4008
www.kentuckypress.com
12 11 10 09 08 5 4 3 2 1
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Kiffmeyer, Thomas, 1963-
Reformers to radicals : the Appalachian Volunteers and the war on poverty /
Thomas Kiffmeyer.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-8131-2509-1 (hardcover : alk. paper)
1. Appalachian Region—Social conditions. 2. Appalachian Region—
Economic conditions. 3. Social reformers—Appalachian Region. I. Title.
HN79.A127K45 2008
306.0975—dc22 2008028014
This book is printed on acid-free recycled paper meeting
the requirements of the American National Standard
for Permanence in Paper for Printed Library Materials.
Manufactured in the United States of America.
Member of the Association of
American University Presses
To Laura and Theresa
angels always

Contents
Acknowledgments ix
Introduction
A Time for Change 1
1. On the Brink of War
The Council of the Southern Mountains and the Origins
of the War on Poverty in Appalachia 17
2. The Shot Heard Round the World
The Battle for Mill Creek, Kentucky, and the Culture
of Poverty 45
3. A Splendid Little War
Helping People Help Themselves, 1964 69
4. The War to End All Wars
A National Quest to End Appalachian Poverty, 1965–1966 93
5. The New Model Army
The Appalachian Volunteers Splits from the Council of the
Southern Mountains 123
6. Operation Rolling Thunder
The Political Education of Mountaineers and Appalachian
Volunteers 147
7. Peace without Victory
Three Strikes and a Red Scare in the Mountains 179
Conclusion
Live to Fight Another Day 207
Notes 217
Bibliography 259
Index 273
Illustrations follow page 156

Acknowledgments
During the “long strange trip” that led to this book, I accumulated many,
many debts. Though this brief statement will not come close to repaying
those intellectual, financial, and emotional obligations, it brings me great
pleasure to acknowledge those generous individuals who were instrumental
in bringing this project to completion.
Quite a few years ago, Nancy Forderhase of Eastern Kentucky Univer-
sity related to me, a young graduate student, that Berea College housed a
virtually untouched collection of papers generated by a certain organiza-
tion—the Appalachian Volunteers—that operated out of Berea in the 1960s.
This collection, she rightly contended, would make the basis for a wonder-
ful study. Thus it was Nancy who started me on this strange trip. Despite
our frequent debates on the merits, or lack thereof, of the Volunteers, her
guidance was, without a doubt, critical to my development as a historian. I
do hope that I have lived up to the faith in me that she demonstrated. Oth-
ers at EKU, especially Bill Ellis, David Sefton, Gene Forderhase, and Walter
Odum, also contributed as both advisers and friends.
The second stop along the road was Berea College. Though I do not re-
member the exact day I first walked into the special collections department
in Berea’s Hutchins Library, which was then crammed into a tiny space on
the second floor, I do remember the two men, Gerald Roberts and Shan-
non Wilson, that I met. Shannon, the college archivist at Berea, has been a
part of this project since the beginning (Gerald retired some years ago). I
have known Shannon for more than twenty years now, and it is impossible
to overstate how important and how special he is to me as a colleague and
friend. I know he realizes that, given the complexity of the War on Poverty,
the Appalachian Volunteers, the Council of the Southern Mountains, and
the Appalachian region itself, I will be in “my chair” in the reading room for
years and years to come. I also want to thank Steve Gowler, who took over as
head of the Hutchins Library’s special collections after Gerald’s retirement.
Also a special thanks to the staff, especially Jim Pritchard, at the Kentucky
Department of Libraries and Archives.
As the journey continued, I incurred more debts at the University of
Kentucky. Ron Eller, Theda Perdue (now at the University of North Caro-