Although the Mississippian culture area has been studied for decades, the frontier of the Mississippian region is less understood. Various Mississippian frontiers appear to have been important for the obtainment of trade goods which were important symbols of chiefly power. Studying these frontiers will allow archaeologists to better understand the emergence and maintenance of power within Southeastern chiefdoms. This dissertation explores one frontier site, Carter Robinson (44LE10) in southwestern Virginia, and its role in Southern Appalachian chiefdom power through its control of trade at the border. This research identifies ceramic and non-utilitarian markers of trade and identifies changes at the frontier site over time, an accumulation of power that occurred through control of trade.

The Right Reverend William Henry Marmion was consecrated as bishop of the Diocese of Southwestern Virginia on May 13, 1954, days prior to the Brown v. Board of Education decision and just over a decade after the Episcopal Church's General Convention formally opposed racial discrimination. A diocesan conference center in Hungry Mother State Park, purchased soon after his consecration, sparked a controversy that was to smolder and flame for the first decade of Marmion's 25 years as bishop. Marmion led the move to desegregate the diocesan conference center, Hemlock Haven, in 1958 and subsequently effected integration by closing three of the four black churches in the diocese and inviting members to choose a neighboring church to join. The initial integration of the diocese was a turbulent process that centered around Hemlock Haven. The diocese moved with some difficulty towards racial integration in a microcosm of what was happening in the wider Church and in the United States. Historical documents, secondary sources, interviews, and theoretical understanding of minority responses to oppression help me to describe this time of racial desegregation of the Diocese of Southwestern Virginia and its implications. Critical theory gleaned from W. E. B. Du Bois and from Homi Bhabha informs my understanding of some of the implications as well as many of the actions and outcomes. Du Bois's notion of double consciousness and Bhbaba's similar term hybridity, both of which acknowledge a dual locus of identity and of power, are relevant to understanding some of the interactions revealed by primary source correspondence. I will focus on Hemlock Haven as the entry point into desegregation and on the black churches in the diocese, both before and after that critical point, adding the witness of black voices to the white narrative of this history. A historical look at the trajectory of race and race relations in the Episcopal Church informs the moment of the caesura--an interruption--the desegregation of Hemlock Haven, and the fate of the four black churches in the diocese. From the point of the rupture comes identification, the emergence of a new space, a cultural reboot. / Ph. D.

A series of anthropogenic disturbance conditions have altered the vegetation of the southern Appalachians during the past 200-years. The objective of this research was to identify the nature and timing of these vegetation changes in order to better understand the underlying causes. A total of 304 land surveys were collected for a small agricultural watershed from early settlement in 1787 through to the present day. Witness corners recorded tree species, shrubs, stumps, snags and non vegetative markers. Types of witness corners were tallied and tested for shifts in frequency across time periods. Tree species were also classified by silvical characteristics including sprouting capability, shade tolerance, and seed type and these groupings were tested for shifts in frequency across time periods. Landform bias of the witness corners was tested using references contained in the surveys. Results showed significant shifts in white oak (Quercus alba L.), chestnut (Castanea dentate Marsh. Borkh.), chestnut oak (Quercus prinus Wild.), black oak (Quercus velutina Lam.), red oak(Quercus rubra L.), black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia L.), yellow poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera L.), and scarlet oak (Quercus coccinea Muenchh.). The central change was a steady decline in white oak, probably due to the absence of fire and changes in soil properties. Chestnut replaced white oak as the dominant species, but was removed by chestnut blight in the 1930's. Sprouting capability appeared to be the most important silvical characteristic across all species. / Master of Science

During the United States Civil War, southwestern Virginia was mired in a bloody guerrilla conflict that involved Confederate irregular combatants defending the region from invading or raiding Union Army forces. Simmering for the entirety of the war, this conflict revolved around the Virginia and Tennessee Railroad (VandT), a critical railway that ran through southwestern Virginia and connected the southwestern Confederacy with Richmond and the rest of Virginia. As the war progressed, this railway moved increasingly large amounts of foodstuffs and minerals vital to the Confederate war effort, and by the later stages of the war it was the most important railway in the South. Union Army commanders in West Virginia recognized the incredible importance of the VandT to the Confederacy, and launched a multitude of major and minor invasions and raids into southwestern Virginia with the intent of crippling the railroad. Confederate partisan rangers, bushwhackers, and home guards played separate roles in weakening, distracting, and hampering Union Army operations in southwestern Virginia, thereby helping to defend the VandT from attacks. Their actions played a crucial role in ensuring the survival of the railroad until nearly the end of the war, and thus Confederate guerrillas had a strategic effect on the course of the war in southwestern Virginia. / Master of Arts

The concept of place is extremely important within today's contemporary society. As a result of hyper mobility, many people do not take the time to notice and understand the spaces surrounding them. A sense of place is subtle and fragile, yet can exist in the most humble of environments. In Appalachian, there are countless structures that dot the mountainous landscape symbolizing the sense of place in southwestern Virginia. The Virginia pole barn is important for the sense of place because of its direct tie to the land. Many of these structures were built from the indigenous American chestnut tree and crafted using traditional building techniques. These structures are an important contribution to the vernacular of the Appalachian region, and much of this is due to the material presence of these structures as they give balance and counterpoint to the ridges and valleys. Secondary research focused on theories about the creation of place, the spirit or character of a specific place, the role of symbols in these creations, and the importance of the American chestnut as a material. Primary research concentrated on the people who interact with these pole barns on a regular basis, the structures themselves, and the prevailing landscapes. / Master of Science