Georgia Backroads: “A Man of Most Simple and Attractive Manners”

Georgia Backroads, Autumn 2017
Georgia Backroads, Autumn 2017

I’m delighted to announce my latest essay, “A Man of Most Simple and Attractive Manners.” It’s out now in the Autumn 2017 issue of Georgia Backroads. This piece, my fifth for the magazine, has been a long time in the making. I started the research while writing the Jordan’s Journey book. It was a challenging article about a person in my family history with no family memory. John Dawson Pope is a unique figure in my family. You might find his role in the history of Georgia, and even the history of California, quite interesting! I do hope you will check it out.

Since this article required so much research and I scoured the country for information to help me put it together, even traveling to Los Angeles, I’ll share my list of sources with you here since the works cited are not printed in the magazine. So, this serves as an extra supplement. Also, hopefully, it means people doing other research related to these sources might stumble across my post here and lead them to my article.

In other news, I am happy to inform you that Jordan’s Journey will finally become available in a paperback edition. I don’t have an exact date yet, but hopefully very soon.

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Georgia Backroads: “The Language of History”

Georgia Backroads, Summer 2014

I have a new article in the current issue (Summer 2014) of Georgia Backroads. Titled “The Language of History,” it is an expanded and slightly reworked version of the post “The Language of Genealogy” that previously appeared here on Jordan’s Journey. I really like the new version of this article, and I think you will too. You can order a copy online, or if you’re in an area that stocks Georgia Backroads, you can check your local newsstands.

This is my third article for Georgia Backroads. My other articles with the magazine are “The Scoggins Family and Subligna Go Way Back” (Winter 2012) and “We Are One People” (Autumn 2013). I have also published “We Are One People” as a limited edition artist multiple under my art name luke kurtis. The We Are One People multiple was part of the INTERSECTION exhibition at Massillon Museum and is available to purchase in the bd Shop.

Georgia Backroads: “We Are One People”

Georgia Backroads, Autumn 2013

I am delighted to announce the publication of my latest article in the current (Autumn 2013) issue of Georgia Backroads. “We Are One People” explores my ancestral ties to slavery, focusing specifically on the Armuchee Valley and Dirt Town Valley regions. My original photography, as well as antique images I curated, illustrate the piece. So much research and thought went into this article, and I feel this is one of my best pieces ever. Georgia Backroads has done a fantastic job putting together the issue with excellent writing, photography, and design. You can pick up a copy at newsstands or order the issue online.

If you haven’t seen my previous work for Georgia Backroads, check out the Winter 2012 issue as well!

For the other researchers out there, I thought I would share my bibliography for the “We Are One People” article (the sources are not printed in the magazine itself). Enjoy!

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Georgia Backroads: “The Scoggins Family and Subligna Go Way Back”

Georgia Backroads, Winter 2012

My latest publication, titled “The Scoggins Family and Subligna Go Way Back,” appears in the current Winter 2012 edition of Georgia Backroads. Georgia Backroads is a wonderful journal that features interesting writing and photos about Georgia’s history, nature, and travel. The first time I saw Georgia Backroads, I immediately knew I wanted to be part of it. I am very proud of my first story to appear in its pages.

The article explores the history of the Scoggins family in Subligna, including the store started by my great-grandfather, Lawrence Chapman Scoggins, and the gin operated by Lawrence’s father, James Harvey Scoggins. I’m including here a couple of photos from the store that were not able to be included in the printed article.

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