For more information:
• Mill Springs Park, (606) 679-6337

Producer: Charlee Heaton

The Daily Grind

Mill Springs

In Wayne County, on the shore of Lake Cumberland, sits a remnant of bygone days: Mill Springs, an old mill with one of the largest wheels in the world. But even though it’s on the National Register of Historic Places, this is no museum piece: Visitors can still see regular demonstrations of water-powered corn grinding. Our 1999 visit features miller Bill Brown and his son.

The wheel, turned by water diverted from 13 springs clustered in the area, measures more than 40 feet in diameter and is thought to be one of the 10 largest in the world.

To get to the mill, take US 27 south from Somerset. Turn onto Highway 90, then take Route 1275 to Mill Springs. The park, operated by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, also preserves a Civil War battlefield, which Kentucky Life toured in Program 516.

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For more information:
• Berea College Country Dancers, CPO 2159, Berea, KY 40404, (859) 985-3142

Producer: Ernie Lee Martin

Country Dance School

Berea College Country Dancers

No, we don’t mean the Boot Scoot or the Tush Push. This is dancing from the Old Country.

Many forms of traditional music and dance came to Appalachia with British, Scottish, and Irish immigrants, and some of them lived on here even after they had died out at home. In Berea, a small town in Madison County which bills itself as the gateway to Appalachia, the Berea College Country Dancers pass these traditions along through workshops for anyone who wants to learn, either just for fun or to teach the dances to others. The group also travels around the world giving demonstrations.

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Producer, videographer: Gale Worth

Feeling Sheepish

Spinner and weaver Mae Whittington

Emily Hayden raises sheep in Daviess County. Her neighbor, Mae Whittington, spins the wool they provide by hand and then weaves the fibers into a wide variety of finished products.

Weaving is a tradition in Whittington’s family, and she is passing it along by instructing her grandson in the art. As the owner of Wooly Lamb Crafts, she also demonstrates and teaches the craft to others.

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