Verna Mae Slone is an author, craftsperson, collector of mountain life, and a mother of five boys.  Her books written about mountain life and customs in Knott County include:: " In Remembrance" Pippa Valley   Printing, 1974; "Common Folks" Photo Com., 1978; "What My Heart Wants to Tell", New Republic, 1979; "How We Talked", Pippa Valley   Printing, 1982; and her novel, "Sarah Ellen" Pippa Valley Printing, 1982. She is writing a book about her late husband, Willie, titled "The Under Row."  She has also documented the Slone family marriage records from 1804-1940.                                                                  

Verna Mae Slone is widely known in Kentucky and the nation for her writing.  She was quoted saying "I never wrote anything until I was past sixty.  I want to show the other side of mountain life, to dispel some of the myths and misunderstandings.  Someone said I was poor and proud of it.  Not so.  I am poor and not ashamed of it.  I would love to prove to others that a person can be happy without all the things most other people count as riches."

Proud of heritage, Verna Mae had done much to help present a positive image of the mountains and its people.  She has spoke to thousands of people who have visited with her at workshops or at her home.  Visitors enjoy looking at some of the over 1,000 quilts and several hundred rag dolls she has made.

In 1986 she over saw the reconstruction of a log house on Caney Creek, her home.  She is a collector of mountain artifacts.  In 1959 she joined the Old Regular Baptist Church.  She was named a Kentucky colonel in June 1989.

 
Corbett Mullins
May 20, 2003