At the time it was first published in 1962, it framed such an urgent appeal to the American conscience that it actually prompted the creation of the Appalachian Regional Commission, an agency that has pumped millions of dollars into Appalachia. Caudill’s study begins in the violence of the Indian wars and ends in the economic despair of the 1950s and 1960s. Two hundred years ago, the Cumberland Plateau was a land of great promise. Its deep, twisting valleys conta… More >>
Night Comes to the Cumberlands: A Biography of a Depressed Area
I found the book to be a bit long-winded and belaboring certain points. The author was passionate about his subject – helping the people in the area – but just wrote in a manner that got tiring. He went into details on the mining operations that we really don’t need to know about.
Nevertheless, it was a book worth reading, I am just glad I have finished it!
Rating: 4 / 5
Night Comes to the Cumberlands is a well intentioned but one sided book that paints, at best, only a partially correct picture of the people of Appalachia. While negative aspects of the society and economy of the region are described in great detail, and with some truth, any positive developments are mentioned in passing, if at all. The result is a work that could have added greatly to the debate on the future of the region, but is instead largely a lament with few positve things to add to the topic. That said, the book is worth reading, but only with the knowledge that it is a very narrow view of a very complicated topic. Much of what the author describes is, in the opinion of many of the citizens of the region, incorrect. Indeed, some natives of the area even feel that the book has had the effect of continuing many of the worst stereotypes of the region, with the result that further growth has been negatively impacted.
Rating: 2 / 5
Night Comes to the Cumberlands opened America’s eyes to the desperate conditions of the people of Appalachia. Amazingly, many of the same problems exist today, almost 50 years later. It is well written and interesting to read. When I mention this book to others in conversation, I am amazed at the number of people who have read it. It is a enduring classic.
Rating: 5 / 5
I was on vacation spending the week at our family’s river cottage and this book, dusty and long-forgotten, set upon the shelf. After spending an idle week reading this book, I feel like I have a better understanding of the history and human forces that shaped this region of the United States. This book is a rare treasure that offers an eye-opening historical perspective which is easily accessible and well-written. While the publication date is over 40 years ago, if you are at all interested in the story of the Cumberland area, about the path towards industrialization brought about by coal, and the tragedy that befell a once proudly individualist and free people, you should read this book. You won’t be disappointed. Be warned though, it’s not a book for historical revisionists and it uses language in use during the time it was published, so check any political correctness before you open it.
Rating: 5 / 5
Harry Caudill’s “Night Comes to the Cumberlands” was written in the early 1960’s. Over his life, Harry Caudill wrote many books, both fiction and non-fiction but this is his masterpiece. This enduring historical work on southern Appalachia still sells well and is the work for which he is best known.
With the benefit of 45 years of hindsight, “Night Comes to the Cumberlands” was prescient in its vision. Harry Caudill was a man of this land and knew its history, its people, its economy, its culture and its spirit. Writing for a 300-year span of time, he does not spare the rough, the crude, the greedy and the mean. He uses an historical approach combining the historical with the economic, the politicial, the sociological, the psychological and the anthropological. There is much anecdotal information that only a native like Caudill himself could have gathered from family, friends and the hills themselves.
A fine lawyer by profession, he was even better as a storyteller. If instead, he were a doctor, he would have been exceptional at diagnosis. Where some fault can be found with “Night Comes to the Cumberland” is in the prescriptive. Caudill knew as much about the problems of this part of Appalachia as anyone and could accurately describe its symptoms. However, in terms of corrective measures, his prescriptions for cure fall largely off the mark.
Solutions to the chronic, severe and long-standing problems in this region of the country are not easy and not fast. The coal counties in southern Appalachians are still losing population. Mountain top removal and valley fills, a type of coal mining just starting when Caudill completed his book are destroying tens of thousands of acres of southern hardwood forest. The landscape is permanently altered and will never recover after this type of mining has taken place.
Caudill is sometimes faulted by some critics for a reliance on certain stereotypes. However, the gentle reader of the 21st century should recall that Caudill was writing almost 50 years ago. His use of sterotypes was typical of the time. However, there is little evidence to suggest that Caudill was a prejudicical man. Instead, he had considerable evidence and experience that supported his characterization of mountain people and aspects of mountain culture that today come across as heavy-handed.
“Night Comes to the Cumberlands” is a great and enduring work. It is a touchstone work for any serious student or historian interested in this region of the country.
Rating: 5 / 5