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CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Looking for that perfect holiday gift? Look no further. Goldenseal magazine is a great solution to your last-minute gift-giving needs and offers hours of reading enjoyment with stories about West Virginia traditional life.

The magazine celebrates and examines West Virginia’s rich history and folk culture through articles and first-person accounts and is illustrated with historical and contemporary photography. Recent issues have included stories about the Clarksburg Oliverio family’s famous pickled pepper business; the unthinkable basketball game between the all-white Stonewall Jackson High School team and all-black Garnet High School team in 1946; renowned fiddler Ed Haley of Logan County; minor league baseball in Charleston; and the Women’s Land Army recruits who harvested apples on the McDonald’s Media Farm near Charles Town during World War I.

The magazine regularly provides music and book reviews, listings of of upcoming events, fairs and festivals, winning lies from the annual Vandalia Liars contest, salutes to West Virginians who have passed on and much more. It also has produced two books made up of stories from past issues.

The Goldenseal Book of the West Virginia Mine Wars reprints 17 articles originally published from 1977 to 1991 in the magazine. Authors include Lon Savage, Topper Sherwood and others who have written about Sid Hatfield, Mother Jones, Don Chafin, Bill Blizzard and others ($12.95, plus shipping, handling and tax).

Mountains of Music: West Virginia Traditional Music from Goldensealdetails the lives and experiences of 25 critical folk artists from across the state for whom music is part of an ancient heritage that includes hard work, strong faith and a clear mountain identity ($33.95, plus shipping, handling and tax).

Goldenseal celebrated its 40th anniversary last year. Published by the West Virginia Division of Culture and History, the magazine’s loyal subscribers live in all 55 counties of West Virginia, all 50 states and several foreign countries.

The quarterly publication is just $20 for one year. Two-year subscriptions are offered for $36, and a three-year subscription is only $50. The magazine and both books can be ordered online or over the phone by calling Kim Johnson, circulation manager, at (304) 558-0220, ext. 134.

For more information about the magazine and upcoming stories, contact Stan Bumgardner, editor, at (304) 558-0220, ext. 135.

The West Virginia Division of Culture and History is an agency within the West Virginia Department of Education and the Arts with Kay Goodwin, Cabinet Secretary. The division, led by Commissioner Randall Reid-Smith, brings together the past, present and future through programs and services focusing on archives and history, arts, historic preservation and museums. For more information about the division’s programs, events and sites, visit www.wvculture.org. The Division of Culture and History is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer.

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