Big John's Column
Read the Front Porch
Stories, memories, and mountain wisdom from Big John — pull up a rocking chair and stay a while.
Latest Coalfield Heritage · September 12, 2026
Shame on You, You Know Who…
America still owes a debt to coal miners’ families. I was raised in the coalfields of Eastern Kentucky, where a man’s word meant something and a hard day’s work was simply expected.
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Mountain Stories · August 14, 2026 · 3 min read
A Drink of Water from Home
My brother, Dr. George Richard Chaney, told me this story one evening after a long day at the clinic. He didn’t dress it up. Didn’t have to.
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Heritage · July 17, 2026 · 3 min read
I'm From Eastern Kentucky
When I was a young boy growing up in the mountains, I often wondered why people called our home Eastern Kentucky instead of simply Kentucky. Now, as I approach my 68th birthday, I finally understand.
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Mountain Life · June 1, 2026 · 5 min read
The Art of Putting Up
There's a smell that lives in the back of my memory like it never left — hot sugar and ripe tomatoes, mason jars lined up on the counter like little soldiers, and Mama moving around that kitchen like she was born to it.
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