History:

Storytelling. The word conjures up different images for each of us: a group of scouts seated around a campfire, a young child perched upon his grandfather's lap, a dedicated teacher illustrating the lesson with a story of her own creation. Stories are an essential part of life. They have the power to teach, to inform, to challenge and, of course, to entertain. Despite the many modern methods of conveying stories in video form, the tradition of storytelling is as popular as ever.

In the last few decades a storytelling movement has gained momentum and storytelling festivals have popped up at various locations across the United States and around the world as quality storytellers have been willing to travel and share their stories with those interested in hearing them. Communities rich in history and dedicated to the promotion of the arts have established such festivals to help perpetuate the tradition of storytelling and to allow people for miles around to experience these wonderful stories.

There is no place where storytelling has been more a part of the fabric of life than here in southern Ohio. The Shawnee and Mingo tribes that inhabited these hills maintained their history through stories passed down from generation to generation. The pioneers who established our communities brought with them the stories of their ancestors even as they created their own. The travelers, and those who helped them, along the Underground Railroad encouraged one another with their special stories of hope as they passed through our area of the country.

The tradition of storytelling is alive and well in southern Ohio and is being celebrated with an amazing festival that brings some of the country's best-loved storytellers to our community every September to join with regional and local storytellers as they educate, inform, challenge and entertain.