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Hidden History of Coeburn, Virginia, Volume 1

Help me save the hidden history of Coeburn, Virginia, my fascinating Appalachian hometown.

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Hidden History of Coeburn, Virginia, Volume 1

Hidden History of Coeburn, Virginia, Volume 1

Hidden History of Coeburn, Virginia, Volume 1

Hidden History of Coeburn, Virginia, Volume 1

Hidden History of Coeburn, Virginia, Volume 1

Help me save the hidden history of Coeburn, Virginia, my fascinating Appalachian hometown.

Help me save the hidden history of Coeburn, Virginia, my fascinating Appalachian hometown.

Help me save the hidden history of Coeburn, Virginia, my fascinating Appalachian hometown.

Help me save the hidden history of Coeburn, Virginia, my fascinating Appalachian hometown.

Wade Kenady
Wade Kenady
Wade Kenady
Wade Kenady
3 Campaigns |
Coeburn, United States
$6,563 USD by 197 backers
$3,435 USD by 95 backers on Mar 10, 2020
Highlights
Mountain Filled 3 Projects Mountain Filled 3 Projects

Short Summary

     This funding campaign is for the first of three books I want to create to preserve the hidden history of my hometown of Coeburn, Virginia. This tiny corner of the Appalachian Mountains has, at various times, been the center of geologic violence, a hunter's paradise, a farmer's haven, and a wild-west boomtown. The sum of the drama that has occurred in this one little spot on the globe is nearly unimaginable. 

     For the past nine years I have sought out every story and fact I could possibly find about the history of Coeburn and surrounding communities. I've scoured online archives, traveled to libraries and courthouses in multiple states, and conducted personal interviews with people in-the-know. Some of my findings, in short form, have already been shared on Coeburn Reflector. But many others have not, especially the longer stories. So I think now is the perfect time to put them to paper and ink, so that others can enjoy them too. 

     This campaign is designed to raise money to complete my research and publish the first of the three volume work. The information for the first volume has been gathered from numerous places over a period of years, and some of it was very difficult to find. Certain info is not available unless you dig through obscure records in courthouses and university archives. And a few of the things learned from interviews and correspondence are totally unique, and unavailable anywhere else. I believe this info should be gathered and put into print form, so that everyone who reads the book will get a better understanding of what life in Coeburn was really like for our ancestors. 

     Your support for this project will help create a special history book that both you and future generations will be able to enjoy. I really hope to see these books being read in local schools, libraries, and many homes. And you get to help make that happen. 


About The Author: 

     I grew up on Caney Ridge, just inside Dickenson County, but attended elementary and high schools in Coeburn. I also lived in Coeburn when I first got married and started a family. So even though I have not resided there for decades, I do still have kinfolk there, and Coeburn will always be my hometown. 

    Almost all my professional experience has been in the engineering and entertainment fields, so I am sure there are others who are more qualified to write a history book. My writing has thus far been limited to a few songs, essays, and short film scripts, and my publishing experience can be summarized as the editing and layout of a single biography and its two subsequent revisions.

     I am also not a trained historian, but local history has been my serious hobby for about thirty years. So a great deal of my free time has gone into digging out tiny nuggets of the past, anywhere I could find them. Now and then, the tedium made it feel a bit like wasting time, but sooner or later I would run across some marvelous story that had been forgotten for ages, and I felt instantly captivated again. 

     "So who were these people that came before us?"  

     "Well, they were exactly like us. Except, different." 

     For me, history seems like a mysterious, fuzzy window into the past, that somehow doubles as a shaky crystal ball into the future. And I love to peek through both. 


What We Need: 

     To make this project work, we will need the support of many others who also feel a connection to Coeburn, Virginia. We need not only your financial support, but also your participation and encouragement. 

     And we certainly need your best gossip. We want you to tell anyone who will listen, "Those people over there are up to something, and you need to see what it is!" 


What You Get: 

     The dollar goal for this campaign is $2,500, which is the minimum I believe it will take to produce and ship the book that I have envisioned. If the campaign should not reach the full dollar amount but does hit the $1,500 mark, then I will still create a book for those who have donated, but will not make any subsequent volumes. And if the campaign should not reach $1,500, then I will either return the funds or extend the campaign deadline. 

     Funds raised will go toward research and travel expenses, publishing costs, shipping supplies, and postage to get the perks to you. Due to the initial expense of purchasing ISBN numbers in small quantities, plus the crowdfunding fees, each copy of this first volume will cost about $5.00 more than I wish it did. But the second volume will be less, since the ISBN number and some of the shipping supplies will already have been purchased. 

     In addition to the book, there are some unique Coeburn perks available for the smaller contributions. I have tried to make the perks unique and available over a wide range of contribution levels. There is a Coeburn bookmark and four different styles of Coeburn posters that are perks for smaller contributions. And on the other end of the scale, there is a lunch-with-the-author package. But the perk that excites me most is the Library Patron package, which lets you get two books, one for yourself and one to be donated to a library in your name. 


Book Design: 

     Instead of making one large, pricey hard-cover book of about 500 pages, I intend to make three smaller soft-cover volumes containing the same material. This will make each volume more economical to produce, quicker to deliver, and more fulfilling to create. Plus, the fans of Coeburn, Virginia will have the option to support either one, two, or all three book projects. 

          This particular funding campaign is ONLY for the first volume, but below are the descriptions for all three book projects: 
 

* Hidden History of Coeburn, Virginia, Volume 1 *

     I have already done most of the research for the first volume, and expect it to be completed within six months. If the project is fully funded, I will travel to the state library in Richmond to gather some specific materials about early Coeburn which have probably not been viewed for a century. Plus, there are a few libraries and courthouses on this end of the state that I want to visit for specific information. 

     The first volume will be a 6" x 9" soft-cover of about 120 pages, with about 20-30% of the pages having images (i.e. photos, drawings, maps, etc.). This should leave room for a text of about 21,000 words. The book will have self-contained articles of varying lengths, so you will not need to read it from cover-to-cover to enjoy it. 
 

* Hidden History of Coeburn, Virginia, Volume 2*

     The second volume will be a continuation of the first, with a similar book design, and should be completed about four months after the first. 

     There will be a separate funding campaign for the second volume. 
 

* Hidden History of Coeburn, Virginia, Volume 3 *

     The third volume has a different design, still a soft-cover 6" x 9", but having approximately 200-400 pages. It will be a collection of biographical sketches, family stories, and family photos of the people who live, or have lived, in Coeburn communities. Materials for this book will be provided by the families who choose to participate. I will provide guidance about the materials, editing of the photos and text for publication, and putting the book together for publication. 

     There will be a separate funding campaign for the third volume. 


Risks & Challenges 

     One challenge in publishing a book is to make sure all images used are cleared for copyright purposes. I expect it will be quite a logistical challenge to get permission for all the images, maps, etc. that I want to use in the book. Fortunately, my engineering background provided me with skills to keep track of a large amount of detailed data.  

     But the trickiest thing might actually be delivering all the perks to the backers. There are potentially hundreds of items to be mailed to hundreds of addresses, which leaves plenty of opportunity for a mistake. But we do promise to be very careful, and to promptly fix anything that should go awry. 


Other Ways You Can Help

     People who can't contribute to the fundraiser can still help with this project: 

     Please share this campaign on Facebook with your family members, friends, co-workers, and anyone else who might be interested in a book about Coeburn. You can easily do this by clicking on the Facebook icon at the top of the page.

Thank y'all so very much for your encouragement and support!

Wade & Dee Kenady

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Choose your Perk

22 SPECIAL - Coeburn, Volume 1
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22 SPECIAL - Coeburn, Volume 1

$22 USD $30 USD (26% off)
Includes one softcover print copy of "Hidden Appalachia: Coeburn, Virginia, Volume 1", plus shipping to your U.S.A. address.
Included Items
  • Coeburn Book Softcover Vol 1
Estimated Shipping
May 2021
8 out of 20 of claimed
Ships to United States of America
Coeburn Bookmark - 2pk

Coeburn Bookmark - 2pk

$5 USD $6 USD (16% off)
A twin-pack of Coeburn Bookmarks to match your books, delivered to a single U.S. address.
Included Items
  • Coeburn Bookmark 2pk
Estimated Shipping
Original: August 2020
Current: December 2021
5 claimed
Ships to United States of America

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