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Mapping and Interconnection of Spaces

• Interconnectedness: Mapping occurs at various scales, showing how different places are interrelated.

  • Cattle in Arizona connected to cow towns in Kansas, which links to meat packing in Chicago and meat consumption in New York.

  • Wheat production is similarly interconnected across regions.

• Local versus Grand Scale: While geography has a grand scale, it is also experienced locally.

  • The south side of Chicago is fragmented into small neighborhoods shaped by social understandings from different communities.

  • Understanding of places like the south side and Appalachia involves both real geography and imaginative interpretations.

Understanding Regions and Mapping Spaces

• Importance of Rethinking Spaces: The concept of regions, such as "the West" or "Appalachia," needs to be analyzed beyond their surface definitions.

• Imaginative Process: Often the imaginative interpretations of these regions counter their geographical realities.

The Eastern U.S. Geography

• Topography: The Mississippi River, Ohio River, and Appalachian Mountains play vital roles in defining geographical transport.

  • 19th-century transport relied heavily on rivers for connection.

• Appalachian Mountains: They limited westward expansion historically and shaped ideas around frontier versus civilization.

  • Important gaps, such as the Cumberland Gap, provided passage through rugged terrains.

Industrial Expansion Post-War

• Expansion of Industry: The war spurred rapid industrial growth in steel, meat, grain, textiles, and oil.

• Railroads' Influence: Railroads connected large cities, facilitating the move westward and reshaping regions.

  • The Pacific Railways Act and Homestead Act encouraged westward expansion.

• Corruption and Power of Railroads: Railroads exerted unchecked power and experienced significant corruption.

  • Issues such as monopolistic control led to public discontent, exemplified by Jesse James' notoriety against railroad injustices.

Labor Dynamics and Strikes in Coal Mining Towns

• Railroads and Labor Struggles: The Reading Railroad monopoly over mining and railroad services impacted labor conditions.

• Molly Maguires: A labor organization comprised primarily of Irish miners. They were unjustly depicted as violent criminals during labor unrest.

  • Prosecutors often connected violent acts to the Irish ethnicity rather than the oppressive labor conditions.

• Convict Leasing System: Virginia exploited convict labor to bypass labor shortages in railroad building.

Creation of Appalachia as a Region

• Invented Concept: The term "Appalachia" emerged in the 1870s and 1880s to describe the unique social and economic conditions of the region, reflecting a disconnect between its reality and perceptions.

  • The imagery constructed around Appalachia was of it being a rural and poor area, separate from northern and southern influences.

• Diverse Population: Overlaying narratives often ignored the rich diversity within this mining region, simplistically labeling it as white and violent.

• Mapping and Social Perception: Changes in how Appalachia was defined corresponded with economic or social agendas, often missing key geographic areas for political expediency.

Economic Power and Discontent in Mining Communities

• Company Towns: Railroads and mining companies created company towns, controlling housing and supplies through company stores and scripts.

• Discontent: Such systems led to social unrest, with laborers often in violent confrontation against oppressive practices.

Literary Constructs Around Appalachia

• Maps and Imaginations: Literature helped shape the perception of Appalachia as a unique, backward region, legitimizing the power of coal companies and railroads.

• Cultural Narratives: As narratives solidified, they served to disconnect the realities of the coal-mining industries from public sympathy or responsibility for their conditions.