FestivALL

The Humanities Council is pleased to participate in the first-ever FestivALL here in Charleston. FestivALL is a city-wide arts festival on June 24-26 that will feature events, concerts, performances and activities produced by community theater groups, arts centers, galleries and artists in a variety of venues across town.

Council's contribution to FestivALL will be Saturday, June 25 from 1:00 to 5:00 p.m. at MacFarland-Hubbard House with a West Virginia statehood theme. The new traveling exhibit Born of Rebellion-West Virginia Statehood will be on display for public viewing. This exhibit examines the circumstances leading to the birth of our state and the constitutional questions raised as a result. It was made possible with the generous financial support of Columbia Gas Transmissions and the We the People program of the National Endowment for the Humanities.

The exhibit is comprised of three 8'x7' panels that form a triangle and two separate smaller kiosks. It was designed as a spring semester class project by graphic design students of professor Eve Faulks at West Virginia University. This unique collaboration allowed the project to serve an educational purpose from the drawing board to the finished product that will be available for loan to groups around the state. June 25 from 1:00 to 5:00 p.m. will be the first chance for the exhibit to be viewed by the public.

Continuing with our statehood theme for the day Dr. Stuart McGehee will present a talk at 2:00 p.m. entitled "The Strange Career of the 35th Star: West Virginia Statehood Revisited." Dr. McGehee is Professor and Chair of the History Department at West Virginia State University as well as Archivist of the Eastern Regional Coal Archives. He formerly served for a decade as Chairman of the West Virginia Archives and History Commission. He has authored five books, and his writing has appeared in numerous publications including The Journal of Southern History, Civil War History, Hearthstone, Goldenseal, and The Tennessee Historical Quarterly.

The exhibit viewing and Dr. McGehee's talk are open and free to the public.