History Speaks, a series of author talks exploring America’s history and fight for nationhood, continues on Sunday, May 17, at 2:00PM with Gerald Milnes, author of The American Log Cabin: Folk Architecture and Lore On the Old Frontier of West Virginia. The free event, sponsored by Visit Hardy and WordPlay bookstore, will take place in the Family Life Center at Duffey Memorial Methodist Church, 100 N. Elm Street, in Moorefield.
Milnes, a resident of Elkins, West Virginia, was recently named a 2026 National Endowment for the Arts’ National Heritage Fellow, the country’s highest honor in the folk and traditional arts. A West Virginia folklorist, author, filmmaker, musician, and educator, Milnes received the award in recognition of his lifelong documentation of traditional Appalachian culture. He is only the seventh West Virginian to receive this prestigious honor.
Milnes’ book, The American Log Cabin, traces the very beginnings of log cabin architecture on the shores of America in 1638 to the journey made by the first settlers down the Great Wagon Road to the Old Frontier of today’s West Virginia. The book includes images from Milnes’ 50 years of photographically documenting early frontier architecture and its evolution in the region.
Numerous snippets of historic information, ethnic attributes, folklore, and anecdotes gleaned from older folks are documented for the record. Beginning with forts erected for protection, the book illustrates the constant need for shelter that served people, animals, and the material culture so important to early rural life in the Appalachian Mountains.
In addition to his ongoing projects throughout West Virginia, Milnes was the consultant for the exhibit on the history of log cabins in the historic Robert Higgins House Museum, which will be open for touring after the May 17 event.
Copies of The American Log Cabin can be purchased in advance at WordPlay, 50 West Main Street, in Wardensville. Books will also be available for purchase and signing at the May 17 event. For more information, email info@wordplaywv.com.
