This Week in the American Department: Coal Mining! Finally!

When a developing American coal industry set its gaze on the Appalachian backwoods of Kentucky and West Virginia in the early twentieth century, it forged a direct economic relationship with a local population that was rooted in tradition, proud and individualistic, and armed to the teeth. The result was a legacy of hardship, conflict, and brutality that has left a deep impact on Appalachian folk culture. Join us at 10 AM on Sunday, April 7th, as the Moonshine Show examines the influence of miners, unions, strikebreakers and coal barons on the lexicon of bluegrass and old-time folk music. We'll be playing songs both new and old--sad, lonesome, hopeful, patriotic, and downright revolutionary--as we relive some of America's greatest economic triumphs and bloodiest internal battles since the Civil War. Which side are you on?