A Bird On Water Street (22 page)

Authors: Elizabeth O. Dulemba

BOOK: A Bird On Water Street

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Unions didn't come easily to the mining industry, but they did come. The unions helped improve health and safety standards for the workers, but cancer was still rampant. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) put limits on the amount of toxins a person could legally be exposed to while on a job, but some exposure was legally okay. The unions were constantly complaining that the regulations were not being followed, howeverâI was told about three men from the same mining crew who all died from pancreatic cancer in the same year. While the connection between mining and poor health was never technically proven, the coincidences seemed obvious.

Other than making arguments through the union, there wasn't much the miners could do about it. The entire town's economy relied upon the Companyâfrom the housing, to the grocery store, to the schools. Even so, mining was considered good work with high pay and benefits. A salary-paid miner led an enviable life, relatively speaking, though hourly-paid miners often felt stuckâespecially during hard times, layoffs, or strikes.

While the closing of the Company occurs quickly in
A Bird on Water Street
, in real life it happened much more slowly. In 1985 the Company announced copper mining would be phased out and thousands of men were laid off over the following years. The underground tunnels were allowed to flood with water to prevent collapses when mining operations halted completely in 1987, although sulfuric acid production continued well into the 1990s. Laid-off workers ended up striking for a very long time, some for as many as ten years.

Eventually, the sulfuric acid plant was sold to a company in Brazil. Out-of-town contractors were brought in to start tearing the plant down just before my husband and I moved away in 2005. It seemed to be yet another slight against the local people who could have used the work.

But not all the news was bad.

In
A Bird on Water Street
, the land is still devoid of life in 1986, while in actuality efforts to re-vegetate the 32,000-acre area began as early as the 1930s. Tree-planting efforts continued through President Franklin D. Roosevelt's Civilian Conservation Corps (the CCC) in the 1940s, and aerial seeding in the 1980s. The damage was so severe, however, that change happened slowly. Even with all the environmental efforts, the region didn't start making a comeback until the early 1990s.

Copperhill experienced a small boon during the 1996 Summer Olympics when the white-water competitions were held downstream on the Ocoee (Tohachee) River. It was a shining moment for the residents and changed the focus of the town, which now relies on tourist dollars to survive. Visitors enjoy the scenic railway, the vacation log cabins, and what is now a beautiful vista.

By the time my husband and I moved to the region in 2001, most of the area had been reforested, although signs of the previous damage were still visible in some places, especially around the tailings ponds. Much of the local history is preserved at the Ducktown Basin Museum, where visitors can see truly shocking photos of the once-denuded landscape and schedule tours of the tailings ponds to observe reclamation efforts firsthand. Ironically, much of the region is now wetlands. Reeds and grasses act as nature's filtration process and now cover the once-polluted area. Wildlife is slowly returning, even frogs.

Along with having a complicated history, the Appalachian Mountains are home to a fascinating culture. Because of their inaccessibility, mountain communities evolved independent from outside influences, becoming living examples of their Europeanâmost notably Celticâancestry. It influenced their stories and especially their music, which was the foundation for today's bluegrass. The thick Elizabethan dialects, long lost to the rest of the world, could make a voice sound like a bagpipe with a long continuous drawl. And whereas most Southerners say “y'all,” in the mountains they say “yu'uns.”

“The Jack Tales” are an important part of Jack Hicks' story as well as mine. Rooted in European fairy tales like “Jack and the Beanstalk,” the stories changed and adapted in the Appalachian Mountains and became tales wholly original to America. The epicenter of “The Jack Tales” was on Beech Mountain in North Carolina.

While living in the mountains of northern Georgia, my husband and I had the privilege to meet some true mountain folks, great-great-grandsons and great-great-granddaughters of the miners who had such an impact on the history there. We were at first a bit wary of the somewhat closed community, but were quickly touched by the loyalty and openness we found once we'd been accepted as friends. We were graced with their hospitality, their stories, and especially their music.

Acknowledgments

Most of Jack's experiences have a thread of truth running through them; they were gathered through interviews spanning nearly a decade.

For helping me gather history, stories, and flavor as well as offering their friendship, I'd especially like to thank: sisters Grace Postelle and Doris Abernathy, without whom I could not have written this book; Howard Slaughter; John Quinn; Leland Rymer; Mathew Maloof (he and his friends used to jump off trestle bridges when the trains came); Greg Barker (his father, Gene Barker, was one of the last three menâalong with Danny “Red” Dilbeck and Eugene Trammellâout of the copper mines when they closed before the tunnels were flooded to prevent future collapses); Toni and Walter Bahn; Lynne and Jim Jones; Lisa and Brad Waggoner; Debbie and J. Hammock; John Thomas; Dick and Judy Spencer; Kay Kendall; the Three Wise Men (the inspiration for Coote); Richard McCay Wagner; and finally, Mrs. Helen McCay Wagner (1912â1996), who originally saw that bird on Main Street in 1924.

For helping me with accuracy and information while writing
A Bird on Water Street
, I'd like to thank: Ken Rush, the Director of the Ducktown Basin Museum; Dawna Standridge, Shelby Standridge Sisson, and Joyce Allen, also of the Museum; Nick Wimberley, former Secretary/Treasurer and Negotiator for the International Brotherhood of Boilermakers; Alan Gratz for baseball specifics; Mia Meneklfsky for genre guidance; Rod Walton, Lisa Ganser, and Fred Ming for information about frogs; Lou Laux and Tom Striker for information on birds; and former Fannin County Sheriff George Ensley for research about marijuana-growing in the Appalachians. The sparrow song description was found in
American Birds in Color
, written by Hal. H. Harrison (Wm. H. Wise & Co., Inc., New York, 1948).

Any mistakes made in this book are wholly my own in my attempt to relay the feeling of the place, time, and events rather than exact facts. As they say, “Never let the truth get in the way of a good story.”

I'd like to thank my writerly friendsâthose subjected to early drafts or who helped with sound writing advice: Vicky Alvear Shecter; Karin Slaughter; Jen Weiss Handler; Jessica Handler; Courtney Miller Callihan; Lisa Jacobi; Kirby Larson; Jennifer Jabaley; and Liz Conrad.

I'd also like to thank the folks at Little Pickle Press, my fellow pickles. Dani Greer was the first to review my story, and I'm so glad she spotted its potential. Rana DiOrio created the environmentally responsible publishing houseâa Certified B Corporationâthat is the perfect home for such an environmental tale. I couldn't have asked for stronger support from her, and her daughter (my first young reader). Tanya Egan Gibson was a true gift. I was lucky to have her as my talented editor. She made
A Bird on Water Street
shine. Molly Glover was my grammar queen and Julie Romeis Sanders was the last reader before it went to print. Leslie Iorillo designed the gorgeous cover. Cameron Crane and Kelly Wickham helped get the word out to far corners my book never would have reached otherwise. Truly, it takes a village to raise a child, and it takes a barrel of pickles to create a successful book. I am forever grateful to you all.

And last of all, but certainly not least, I'd like to thank Stan. I am lucky to have a husband who believes in me, my craft, and my crazy ideas. Without his support (and his idea-shooting and editing) I would not be the creator I am. Love you, sweetie.

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Author's Bio

Elizabeth O. Dulemba is an award-winning author/illustrator of two dozen children's picture books. She is Illustrator Coordinator for the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI) Southern Breeze region, a board member of the Georgia Center for the Book, and Visiting Associate Professor at Hollins University in the MFA program in Children's Book Writing and Illustrating. She lives in Atlanta with her husband, Bernie the dog, and Bootsie the catâthe boss of them all. A Bird on Water Street is her first novel. Visit her at
http://dulemba.com
.

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