Ruth Ann Musick (September 17, 1897 – July 2, 1974) was an American writer and

folklorist Folklore studies (also known as folkloristics, tradition studies or folk life studies in the UK) is the academic discipline devoted to the study of folklore. This term, along with its synonyms, gained currency in the 1950s to distinguish the ac ...

specializing in

West Virginia West Virginia is a mountainous U.S. state, state in the Southern United States, Southern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States.The United States Census Bureau, Census Bureau and the Association of American ...

. She was the sister of

artist An artist is a person engaged in an activity related to creating art, practicing the arts, or demonstrating the work of art. The most common usage (in both everyday speech and academic discourse) refers to a practitioner in the visual arts o ...

Archie Musick and niece of writer John R. Musick.

Biography

Youth and education

Born in

Kirksville, Missouri Kirksville is the county seat of and most populous city in Adair County, Missouri, United States. Located in Benton Township, Adair County, Missouri, Benton Township, its population was 17,530 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Kirk ...

, to Levi Prince Musick and Zada (or Sadie) Goeghegan, Musick received a

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, B.S., B.Sc., SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree that is awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Scienc ...

degree in Education from Kirksville State Teacher's College (now

Truman State University Truman State University (TSU or Truman) is a Public university, public Liberal arts college, liberal arts university in Kirksville, Missouri, United States. It had 3,664 enrolled students in the fall of 2024 pursuing degrees in 55 undergraduate ...

) in 1919. From September 1919 to June 1921 Musick taught at Luana High School, Luana, Iowa, before moving to Garwin, Iowa, in 1921, where she taught at Garwin High School until June 1922. She then continued her education at the

State University of Iowa The University of Iowa (U of I, UIowa, or Iowa) is a public research university in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest and largest university in the state. The University of Iowa is organized into 12 colleges offer ...

, graduating with a

Master of Science A Master of Science (; abbreviated MS, M.S., MSc, M.Sc., SM, S.M., ScM or Sc.M.) is a master's degree. In contrast to the Master of Arts degree, the Master of Science degree is typically granted for studies in sciences, engineering and medici ...

mathematics Mathematics is a field of study that discovers and organizes methods, Mathematical theory, theories and theorems that are developed and Mathematical proof, proved for the needs of empirical sciences and mathematics itself. There are many ar ...

in 1928. Between 1923 and 1931, Musick taught at Logan High School, in

La Crosse, Wisconsin La Crosse ( ) is a city in La Crosse County, Wisconsin, United States, and its county seat. Positioned alongside the Mississippi River, La Crosse is the largest city on Wisconsin's western border. La Crosse's population was 52,680 as of the 202 ...

. For five years beginning in 1931 she taught at Phoenix Union High School,

Phoenix, Arizona Phoenix ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities and towns in Arizona#List of cities and towns, most populous city of the U.S. state of Arizona. With over 1.6 million residents at the 2020 census, it is the ...

, before returning to the Midwest in 1938 to begin her doctoral study at the State University of Iowa. It was here that her interest in

folklore Folklore is the body of expressive culture shared by a particular group of people, culture or subculture. This includes oral traditions such as Narrative, tales, myths, legends, proverbs, Poetry, poems, jokes, and other oral traditions. This also ...

developed. She was granted a

Doctor of Philosophy A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, DPhil; or ) is a terminal degree that usually denotes the highest level of academic achievement in a given discipline and is awarded following a course of Postgraduate education, graduate study and original resear ...

in English in 1943. Her dissertation was a novel, “Hell’s Holler,” which went unpublished until 2020.

It dealt with the primitive conditions of her native Chariton River Valley and its tensions with the college of

osteopathic medicine Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine (DO or D.O., or in Australia DO USA) is a medical degree conferred by the 38 osteopathic Medical school in the United States, medical schools in the United States. DO and Doctor of Medicine, Doctor of Medicine (M ...

in nearby

. While the novel reflects in some measure her grappling with her brief and unhappy marriage to an

alcoholic Alcoholism is the continued drinking of alcohol despite it causing problems. Some definitions require evidence of dependence and withdrawal. Problematic use of alcohol has been mentioned in the earliest historical records. The World Hea ...

artist, which ended in divorce in 1941, it draws heavily on events, people, and folk beliefs that surrounded her in her childhood.

Career

Musick began her college teaching career at Iowa's William Penn College, Oskaloosa, Iowa, in 1942; two years later she became a member of the faculty of

Iowa Wesleyan College Iowa Wesleyan University was a private university in Mount Pleasant, Iowa, United States. It was Iowa's first co-educational institution of higher learning and the oldest of its type west of the Mississippi River. The institution was affiliated ...

. In 1946 she moved to

to accept a teaching position at Fairmont State College now

Fairmont State University Fairmont State University is a public university in Fairmont, West Virginia. History Fairmont State University’s roots reach back to the formation of public education in the state of West Virginia. The first private normal school in West Vi ...

where she continued to teach until her retirement in May 1967. She felt that the

Appalachia Appalachia ( ) is a geographic region located in the Appalachian Mountains#Regions, central and southern sections of the Appalachian Mountains in the east of North America. In the north, its boundaries stretch from the western Catskill Mountai ...

n region surrounding the college was ripe for

fieldwork Field research, field studies, or fieldwork is the collection of raw data outside a laboratory, library, or workplace setting. The approaches and methods used in field research vary across disciplines. For example, biologists who conduct f ...

in folklore, and the college in need of courses on folk literature. She laid out a program of research which was approved by college president George H. Hand, and the college’s first folklore course was inaugurated in 1948. In 1950 she revived the state’s folklore society, dormant since 1917 (two years after its founding), and in 1951 became the founding editor of ''

West Virginia Folklore West Virginia has a rich tradition of folklore – including folktales, legends, and superstitions – resulting from the diverse ethnicities, religions, languages, and culture of migrants who moved there in the late 19th and early 20th centuries ...

'', serving in that capacity until her retirement in 1967. According to her eulogy by William Hugh Jansen, Folklore Professor at the University of Kentucky, she had become “a public relations agent for West Virginia Folklore.” At the same time, she wrote two folklore columns for West Virginia newspapers: “The Old Folks Say” for the '' Times-West Virginian'' in Fairmont and “Sassafras Tea” for the '' Allegheny Journal'' in Elkins and

Marlinton Marlinton is a town in and the county seat of Pocahontas County, West Virginia, United States. The population was 998 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. Located along the Greenbrier River, it is known for its scenery. History Marlint ...

, while making numerous conference appearances, publishing regularly in a wide variety of journals, offering workshops and public presentations, and giving talks on radio and television. She was also active as a poet, writer of short stories, and dramatist with community theater programs. Although little of her fiction was published, she continued writing this as well as collecting and publishing folklore. Her fiction (novels, stories, children's stories) weaves folk beliefs into the narrative. Throughout her life, Musick was a passionate activist on behalf of animals (she was a vegetarian from the age of six), justice for Native Americans, and environmental causes, activist in her writings against mountaintop removal mining, acid rain, and other issues. Dr. Musick was diagnosed with spinal cancer on November 8, 1973, and died July 2, 1974, in

Fairmont, West Virginia Fairmont is a city in Marion County, West Virginia, United States, and its county seat. The population was 18,313 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of municipalities in West Virginia, eighth-most populous city in ...

, at age 76. In the interests of medical progress, she had allowed herself to be subjected to experimental treatments. Her papers are now archived in the West Virginia Folklife Center at Fairmont State. In 1980, the university library was renamed in her honor.

Works

Books

*''Hell's Holler'' (2020), Musick's 1943 novel (and Iowa doctoral dissertation), based on folklore of Adair County MO, published as a special issue of the Missouri Folklore Society Journal, with illustrations by her brother, artist Archie Musick. *''Ballads, Folk Songs, and Folk Tales from West Virginia'' (1960), Morgantown: West Virginia University Library *'' The Telltale Lilac Bush and Other West Virginia Ghost Tales'' (1965), Lexington:

The University Press of Kentucky The University Press of Kentucky (UPK) is the scholarly publisher for the Commonwealth of Kentucky, and was organized in 1969 as successor to the University of Kentucky Press. The university had sponsored scholarly publication since 1943. In 194 ...

*''Green Hills of Magic, West Virginia Folktales From Europe'' (1970), Lexington: The University Press of Kentucky *''Coffin Hollow and Other Ghost Tales'' (1977), Lexington: The University Press of Kentucky * ''Mountain Mother Goose: Child Lore of West Virginia'' (posthumous: 2013) Fairmont: Fairmont State University

Short stories and articles

*1946. “A Missouri Dance Call.” ''

Journal of American Folklore The ''Journal of American Folklore'' is a peer-reviewed academic journal published by the American Folklore Society. The journal has been published since the society's founding in 1888. Since 2003, this has been published at the University of I ...

'', 59, 323-34. *1946. “Three Folksongs from Missouri.” '' Hoosier Folklore'', 5 (March 1946), 29-34. *1946. “Iowa Student Tales,” ''Hoosier Folklore'', 5 (September 1946), 103-110. *1947. “Folklore from West Virginia,” ''Hoosier Folklore'', 6 (June 1947), 41- 49. *1947. “The Old Album of William A. Larkin.” ''Journal of American Folklore'', 60, 201-51. *1947. “A Snake Story from West Virginia.” ''Journal of American Folklore'', 60, 301. *1947. Review of Ozark Folksongs, Vol. I, by Vance Randolph. ''Journal of American Folklore'', *60, 434-36. *1948. “West Virginia Folklore.”'' Hoosier Folklore'', 7 (March 1948), 1-14. *1948. “The Tune the Old Cow Died On,” ''Hoosier Folklore'', 7 (December 1948), 105-106. *1949. Review of Ozark Folksongs, Vols. II-III, by Vance Randolph. ''Journal of American Folklore'', 62, 453-55. *1950. “Children's Rhymes from Missouri.” (written in collaboration with Vance Randolph) ''Journal of American Folklore'', 63, 425-37. *1950. “Skeletons from a Homespunner's Closet,” From the Manuscript of James S. Williams. ''Hoosier Folklore'', 9 (October–December 1950), 111-116. *1951. “Folksong Hunters in Missouri.” (written in collaboration with Vance Randolph) '' Midwest Folklore'', 1,23-31. *1951. “Juggin' Party Tales.” '' Southern Folklore Quarterly'', 15 (September), 211-219. *1951. Review of Ozark Folksongs, Vol. IV, by Vance Randolph. ''Journal of American Folklore'', 64, 442-43. *1952. “Indiana Witch Tales.” ''Journal of American Folklore'', 65, 57-65. *1952. “Omens and Tokens of West Virginia.” ''Midwest Folklore'', 2, 263- 267. *1956. “European Folktales in West Virginia.” ''Midwest Folklore'', 6, 27- 37. *1957. “Ballads and Folksongs from West Virginia: Part I.” ''Journal of American Folklore'', 70, 247-61. *1957. “Ballads and Folksongs from West Virginia: Part II.” ''Journal of American Folklore'', 70, 336-57. *1957. "The Man Who Could Ride Lightning." ''Colorado Quarterly'', 6, 1 (Summer 1957), 17-29 *1958. “West Virginia Ghost Stories.” ''Midwest Folklore'', 8, 21-28. *1960. “The Trickster Story in West Virginia.” ''Midwest Folklore'', 10, 125-132. *1963. "Jesse James and the Mortgage Holders." ''Colorado Quarterly'', 7, 2 (Autumn 1963), 129-139 *1974. Witchcraft and the Devil in West Virginia.'' Appalachian Journal: A Regional Studies Review'', 1974. 1, 271-76.

References

*Byers, Judy Prozillo, "Ruth Ann Musick — The Show-Me Mountaineer: A Missourian Adopted by West Virginia', '' Missouri Folklore Society Journal'', 1986-87. 8-9, 89-114

*Prozzillo, Judy, "Ruth Ann Musick", '' West Virginia Encyclopedia'', Supplemental Vol.25. pp. 230–232. *Musick, Pat, niece of Ruth Ann Musick: letters and papers of Ruth Ann Musick and of her other nieces {{DEFAULTSORT:Musick, Ruth Ann 1897 births 1974 deaths People from Kirksville, Missouri Truman State University alumni University of Iowa alumni Deaths from spinal cancer Deaths from cancer in West Virginia Neurological disease deaths in West Virginia American folklorists American women folklorists William Penn University faculty 20th-century American women writers 20th-century American writers Iowa Wesleyan University faculty Fairmont State University faculty Writers from Missouri Writers from West Virginia Schoolteachers from Wisconsin American women academics