Virtual First Friday - Ginseng Diggers: A History of Root and Herb Gathering in Appalachia, with Dr. Luke Manget

In the mid to late 19th century, southern Appalachia emerged as the United States’ leading producer of wild ginseng and other medicinal plants, connecting the region to worldwide markets. In high demand for use in popular new patent medicines, gathering wild roots and herbs from common forest land provided an essential source of income for the region’s landless families and small farmers. Join us as Dr. Luke Manget explores this early pharmaceutical boom and how it impacted class relations, gender roles, forest use, and outside perceptions of Appalachia. 

Dr. Luke Manget grew up in Georgia and played football for Georgia Tech before moving to North Carolina, where he worked as a journalist and a high school history educator. He earned his M.A. in history at Western Carolina University and Ph.D. at the University of Georgia. He has taught at the University of Tennessee-Chattanooga and at Dalton State College.

*TECHNOLOGY: This virtual event will take place via Zoom, an online meeting platform. For optimal experience, guests should connect using a device with a screen, a speaker, and a keyboard. (A web-enabled camera is also nice, but necessary.) To accommodate guests who may not have access to this technology, a phone number will be provided at registration to dial into the event and listen to the presentation from any landline or mobile phone. Need help using Zoom? Check out this short video. You can also contact us at KHSeducation@ky.gov or call 502-782-8112.

Cost: $5.00 non-members/ FREE for KHS members

Registration: Please register below, and you will receive information on how to connect. The registration deadline is 10 am on the day of the event.