A Chattahoochee Album: Images of Traditional People and Folsky Places Around the Lower Chattahoochee River Valley

This handsome photojournal offers a window into the traditional folkwaysand rich cultural heritage of one of the Souths most distinctive regions.Immortalized in Sidney Laniers poetry, the ChattahoocheeRiver forms in the hill country of northwest Georgia, near Brasstown Bald,and flows southward to become a mighty southern river before it emptiesinto the Gulf of Mexico at Apalachicola, Florida. For 173 miles of itsmid-length it forms the border between Alabama and Georgia, draining awatershed of 877,000 square miles and 18 counties between the two states.As such, the lower Chattahoochee River Valley has been termed the geographicalcenter of the Deep South.Fred Fussell has traveled and explored this area for morethan 25 years in his capacities as a museum curator, a folklorist, anda historic preservationist. Camera in hand, mindfully ready to capturethe essence of the region, he has made a visual record of the places andthe people who perpetuate the music, the stories, and the crafts indigenousto the lower Chattahoochee River Valley. Scenes of family reunions, sacredharp singings, clog dancing, white oak basket weaving, fiddle playing,gourd trees, folk pottery, yard whirligigs, bee keeping, county fairs,canning and preserving, quilting, syrup soppins, Indian powwows, gravedecorations, roadside vendors, and blues balladeers-all portray the Chattahoocheeas a rich cultural corridor where folk expression plays a vital role.From the blending of diverse peoples, a singular culturehas developed in the lower Chattahoochee River Valley that persists tothe present day-diverse, robust, and tradition proud. Published by theHistoric Chattahoochee Commission, A Chattahoochee Album is FredFussells personal tribute to the region, lovingly compiled to honor thefolklife and traditions of an enduring place and its people.