Just Over the Hill

Black Appalachians in Jackson County, Western North Carolina

By Victoria A. Casey McDonald

Just Over the Hill View Inside

196 pp., 6 x 9, 12 images

  • Paperback ISBN: 978-1-4696-7203-8
    Published: April 2022
  • E-book EPUB ISBN: 978-1-4696-7204-5
    Published: April 2022
  • E-book PDF ISBN: 979-8-8908-6313-3
    Published: April 2022

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Distributed for Western Carolina University, Hunter Library

Long before the term “Affrilachia” became popular, Victoria A. Casey McDonald spent decades gathering the stories of her family and neighbors in North Carolina’s Jackson County. Her book, Just Over the Hill: Black Appalachians in Jackson County, Western North Carolina, presents a collection of narratives that illuminate the lives of African Americans in the region. These stories include her grandmother’s, Amanda Thomas, who was born into bondage. The biographies and histories continue through the twentieth century and feature educators, soldiers, factory workers, ministers, athletes, and other community members. Originally published in 2012, this edition of Just Over the Hill with an afterword Marie T. Cochran continues to speak for these resilient individuals to generations to come.

About the Author

Victoria A. Casey McDonald (1943-2014) was a teacher, preacher, local historian, storyteller, and daughter of Appalachia. She was the author of three other books, African Americans of Jackson County: From Slavery to Integration, A Pictorial History, and the novels Living in the Shadow of Slavery and Under the Light of Darkness: Love and Marriage in the Antebellum South for Slaves.
For more information about Victoria A. Casey McDonald, visit the Author Page.

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Related Subjects

Appalachian Studies

African American Studies

North Carolina

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