Inbred Family of Appalachia: The Truth About Inbreeding

What's the truth about inbreeding in Appalachia in places like West Virginia, Kentucky, and Tennessee? Join me for a hard hitting look at this grotesque stereotype of inbreeding and inbred families as popularized by Hollywood in movies like Wrong Turn and on YouTube by channels like Soft White Underbelly.

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#appalachia # #appalachian #inbreeding

[gregdelaney]

It's telling how willingly and skillfully those with power and influence can literally fabricate stereotypes to further their own interests by preying on the human tendency to judge and condemn others. Creating deliberate falsehoods and presenting thinly veiled allegations and insinuations to pit groups against one another isn't new at all. These videos have helped me to better understand the region and its people in many diverse ways.

[ncrpvxl]

I was a Middle School Principal of a beautiful, modern, school in Appalachia when a professor, and a couple of university students stopped by our school. They asked to speak with me in my office, and I was totally surprised to hear that they were doing research on the extreme poverty in Appalachia, and wanted me to recommend places they should visit in our district in order to get some pictures of dilapidated houses in remote areas that they could photograph. At that time the coal industry was booming in Appalachia, and money was abundant. I politely informed them that if they were looking for pictures of extreme poverty they would have more luck going to the slum neighborhoods in any relatively large city. Most large cities have more poverty, more crime, and more problems in general than what was present in Appalachia at that time.

[mmart]

Leave it to the government to destroy perfectly good places

[lisaobrien]

Proof that it can happen anywhere: My husband's family is from the mid-western states. But when my husband's parents first got the internet in the mid 1990s, my mother-in-law got heavily into genealogy. At one point, she was stunned to find out that she and her husband were distant cousins. They had no idea! The entire family got a huge laugh out of that! We never thought of it as necessarily a bad thing. It was just an interesting thing, and amusing. So yeah, my husband's parents were related and had 6 children together and a wonderful, long marriage. ♥ We sure miss them. We lost her in 2006, then lost him in 2012. They really were the glue that held our huge family together. Many of us scattered in the winds after they were gone.

[gailweikelcorrea]

West Virginians are the friendliest ppl you'll ever run across....just don't call us stupid ☺😍

[meglange]

Josh, this is a topic that needed to be flushed out and presented. You've done a very fine job of it. Those so called "ignorant hillbillies" have made giant contributions to society. Look at the music industry alone. Such beauty is not generated by stupidity and ignorance. They were extremely talented, innovative and hardworking people. A heritage to be proud of and esteemed, not ridiculed and shamed.
Well done. Keep shedding light and truth on these subjects. You're doing it proud. 🥰

[timothylocklear]

Thank you for this. Most of my kin come from southern and western North Carolina, as well as southwestern Virginia, and southern West Virginia. I’ve heard this ridiculous stereotype perpetuated in all three states, and it’s sad that the vast majority of people who seem to believe it have never been south of New York…

[rosiemcnaughton]

There was a time not too far back (in my lifetime) when lots of people married 1st cousins. It wasn't realized that negative health conditions could result. It wasn't considered incest "back when". Now we know better. Inbreeding certainly isn't confined to one group of people. You've handled this problem very sensitively and well. These misconceptions need to be cleared up. Good video.

[lesterwatson]

The coal field regions of Appalachia are very diversified, if you recall coal companies imported people from Italy, Germany, Hungary, Africa, Scotland Wales just to mention a few. Initially theses people were separated by community but as the language barrier broke down they intermarried, so if you think about it based on the sparsity of the overall population as compared to NY Chicago and other metropolitan areas there is probably much more genetic diversity in the Appalachian area than in those areas as a whole.

[demoisellesdoggroomingparl]

Such a misunderstood area. Glad someone out here is FINALLY shedding more positive and accurate light on it! ♥️

[jessicabaker]

Thank you sir, my family's from eastern Kentucky, and we hear that kissin cousins garbage all the time. What a kind way to shed light on this dark subject. God bless you. ❤🙏

[connie]

I find this fascinating because West Virginia is a state that requires blood test and a waiting period of three days before marriage. Born there but haven’t lived there in 35 years. I think people just want to continue an old myth.

[teokastelan]

People of Appalachia are the most resilient people in the US.

[MountainRoots]

Thanks for watching! Let me know where I should explore next!!

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[kendeel]

Glad to listen to your thoughts on a topic often ignored or disparagingly and unfairly applied to folks of Appalachia. Good to see your “ unedited” version for full perspective! 😉

[michaelhale]

WV is my home state. I've never know an inbred family. I agree with your point at the end simply tracing your family trees back 40 generations (about 1000) years, would mean everyone had over 1 trillion ancestors alive 40 generations ago. I have thought about this. It has to be the case that there had to be inbreeding throughout the centuries.

[CJP]

When I did my DNA a while back to find my bio parents, I discovered that 25% of my ancestry comes out of the White Sulphur Springs area. I also discovered that a lot of first cousins married each other…especially in one family line. So much so, that as each generation kept marrying first cousins, the shared DNA was much greater than what normal first cousins would have and that got passed down. And good to see I’m not the only one following Nathaniel Jeanson. If you’ve never done a DNA test, you should. Do it through Ancestry first because they have the biggest database and easiest way to discover your family tree. Just be prepared, you may find a surprise!

[sandydeel]

So happy to see your videos are about researching and sharing the truths about the wonderful people of Appalachia. Great job. Keep them coming!

[wg]

I haven’t been able to watch much lately. But first off - Thank you. Thank you for saying what needed to be said. I hate those stereotypes of Southern Appalachian people and particularly Southern West Virginians - the whole region. As always great job!

[patriciag]

Looking forward to watching you as you travel across the area!!!