My Account Log in

1 option

Gullies of my people : an excavation of landscape and family / John Lane.

Van Pelt Library F275.42.L36 A3 2023
Loading location information...

Available This item is available for access.

Log in to request item
Format:
Book
Author/Creator:
Lane, John, 1954- author.
Language:
English
Subjects (All):
Lane, John, 1954---Childhood and youth.
Lane, John.
Lane, John, 1954---Family.
Lane, John, 1954-.
Piedmont (S.C.)--Rural conditions.
Piedmont (S.C.).
Piedmont (S.C.)--Social life and customs.
Piedmont (S.C.)--History.
Environmentalists--South Carolina--Biography.
Environmentalists.
Childhood and youth of a person.
Families.
Manners and customs.
Rural conditions.
South Carolina--Piedmont.
Genre:
History
Physical Description:
202 pages : illustrations, maps, genealogical table, photographs ; 22 cm
Place of Publication:
Athens, Georgia : University of Georgia Press, [2023]
Summary:
While scouting sites for geology field trips, poet and naturalist John Lane encountered deep gullies created between the Civil War and the 1930s contributed to by his mother's tenant farming family and their rural neighbors in Piedmont South Carolina. This brush with the poor farming practices of the past leads Lane into an exploration of his own family's complicated history and of the larger environmental forces that have shaped the region where he chooses to live. With his sister as guide, Lane descends into the gully of his own childhood to uncover memories of a loving but alcoholic mother and a suicidal father. Back and forth, the narrative progresses from depictions of the land--particularly the overgrown and neglected places that hold stories and mysteries of the region--to Lane's ever-deepening search.He wonders how he, a college professor and husband settled into middle-class life, has emerged from the chaos of his family's past. Along the way, we meet heroic Depression-era geologists, fascinating colleagues, and troubled ancestors. Lane's extraordinary ability to weave personal history together with explorations of the natural world will remind readers of the works of Loren Eiseley and Terry Tempest Williams.
Contents:
Big lots gully
Deep family history
Marshall Tucker Gully
Chinquapins
Restoration
Cox Gully
Beauty queen
Legacy
Irwin Avenue
Rediscovering the Bradleys
Sandy ground
Slump
Downtown gullies
Enoree Flume
Briarcliff Road
Alverson Gully
This book belongs to Mary Lane
Airport Gully
Furrows in mama's backyard
A genealogy: mama's side.
Notes:
Includes bibliographical references.
Other Format:
ebook version :
ISBN:
9780820365442
0820365440
OCLC:
1389606003

The Penn Libraries is committed to describing library materials using current, accurate, and responsible language. If you discover outdated or inaccurate language, please fill out this feedback form to report it and suggest alternative language.

My Account

Shelf Request an item Bookmarks Fines and fees Settings

Guides

Using the Library Catalog Using Articles+ Library Account