When Two Strangers Lost the Genetic Lottery Martin Fugate arrived in the unsettled frontier of Kentucky in 1820. Laughing, the Informant launched into a story of the "West Virginia Blue People", a story about a genetic condition the resulted from intermarriage. Population: 10,486Mobile home parks in area: 3rd in WVBars per capita: 3rdGun stores per capita: 5th in West Virginia. 11 HINTS YOU MIGHT BE DESCENDED FROM ALIENS, FUGATES OF KENTUCKY: SKIN BLUER THAN LAKE LOUISE As My World Turns, If Your Skin Is Blue, Dont Marry Your Other Blue Shaded Relative interesting12, Daily News investigates: Mystery of family with blue skin solved | Bazaar Daily News, If Your Skin Is Blue, Don't Marry Your Other Blue Shaded Relative - interesting12. Activating it requires adding to the blood a substance that acts as an electron donor. Many substances do this, but Cawein chose methylene blue because it had been used successfully and safely in other cases and because it acts quickly. It would be hard to doubt this gracious man except that you cant find another person who knew Luna who doesnt remember her as being blue. The Appalachian region of the US is a beautiful place with a rich and sometimes tragic history. The Fugates, a family living in the hills of Kentucky starting in the 19th century, were commonly known as the " Blue Fugates " [1] or the " Blue People of Kentucky ". "I started asking them questions: 'Do you have any relatives who are blue?' Her face and her fingernails were almost indigo blue. The Blue Ridge Mountains are a physiographic province of the larger Appalachian Mountains range. The Fugate family didnt leave the area for generations, continually intermarrying with relatives. After a 1997 survey, the boundary line between Jefferson County, West Virginia, and Loudoun County, Virginia, was declared to be the watershed line of the top of the ridge of the Blue Ridge mountains, as documented in the survey. In another neighborhood of this rust-belt city of 46,000, Pam and Ted Keesee have their own. New Martinsville is located in the northwestern part of the state, right on the Ohio state line. Benjy lost his blue tint within a few weeks, and now he is about as normal looking a seven-year-old boy as you could hope to find. The lightness or darkness of the blue depends on the amount of the substance the person has circulating in them from birth. Apparently, it shows more easily when theyre cold!. 7000 BC: Archaic Period in which people built basic shelters and made stone weapons and stone tools The clan kept multiplying. by F. William Sunderman, J.B. Lippincott Co., Philadelphia PA, 1964. There was always speculation in the hollows about what made the blue people blue: heart disease, a lung disorder, the possibility proposed by one old-timer that their blood is just a little closer to their skin. But no one knew for sure, and doctors rarely paid visits to the remote creekside settlements where most of the blue Fugates lived until well into the 1950s. The gene is still around today but has now become statistically insignificant and there are no serious medical problems associated with it. All he needed was a substance that could "donate" a free electron to the methemoglobin, allowing it to bond with oxygen. The company's filing status is listed as Revoked (Failure To File Annual Report) and its File Number is 45369. The Fugate familys condition caused the blue members to be missing that enzyme; because their methemoglobin couldnt be converted, large amounts of it built up in the blue Fugates, even before birth, causing a very obvious blue tone to their skin. Methemoglobin levels over 50% may result in seizures, coma, and death. In 1820, Martin Fugate, who is believed to have been blue, moved to Troublesome Creek from France and just happened to shack up with Elizabeth Smith, who also carried the gene. Yep, thats right. During the same time period, missionaries reported pervasive ignorance and poverty, with large families living together in ramshackle cabins. Besides the number of bars, mobile home parks and places to buy shotguns, its at the base of the hills, where you know the deer and turkey probably walk right into town. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Cawein, Madison, et. That was the pain of being blue in a world that is mostly shades of white to black. Many is more accurate since the practice is legal, or legal under certain circumstances, in more than 20 states. Please copy/paste the following text to properly cite this HowStuffWorks.com article: Dave Roos Lappat, Hereditary Methemoglobinemia in Hemoglobin, Its Precursors and Metabolites, ed. ELVIS SEEN AT GRACELAND ON HIS 85th BIRTHDAY! Six generations after a French orphan named Martin Fugate settled on the banks of eastern Kentuckys Troublesome Creek with his redheaded American bride, his great-great-great great grandson was born in a modern hospital not far from where the creek still runs. if(typeof ez_ad_units!='undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[580,400],'roadsnacks_net-medrectangle-3','ezslot_0',606,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-roadsnacks_net-medrectangle-3-0');Using that criteria, its not hard to scrape the internet, run some scientific data on where rednecks might live in West Virginia, and then put out a list. Dennis 4 Comments. They were poor people, concurs Nurse Pendergrass, but they were good.References1. It was painful. Green human are possible. They were delighted., They changed colors! remembered Pendergrass. 20 Fine Arts Drive, Morgantown, WV 26506. https://artmuseum.wvu.edu. Have you ever heard the song, Blue Moon of Kentucky? Its pretty well-known and popular. After ruling out heart and lung diseases, the doctor suspected methemoglobinemia, a rare hereditary blood disorder that results from excess levels of methemoglobin in the blood. Grafton has the highest percentage of its population that didnt finish high school. He found references to methemoglobinemia dating to the turn of the century, but it wasnt until he came across E. M. Scotts 1960 report in the Journal of Clinical Investigation (vol. The area was never entirely cut off, but many people lived in remote closed communities with little incoming or outgoing migration. Inbreeding in eastern Kentucky has been turning offspring blue since the early 1880s. Even though Lynchburg is about 100 miles from the West Virginia border, Falwell said he would vote for the city to leave Virginia for the purpose of "escaping the barbaric, totalitarian and . The range of blue that could express itself in the blue Fugates ranged from light blue to dark blue like a blueberry, with even darker blue on the lips and fingernail beds. Just like the Alaskans, their blood had accumulated so much of the blue molecule that it over- whelmed the red of normal hcmoglobin that shows through as pink in the skin of most Caucasians. the mans picture at the bottom got his unusual color from taking silver nitrate which will turn anyone blue if it is taken over a long period of time. Book is out of print, borrowed from Special Collections at the St. Louis County Library, St. Louis, MO. Like this guy: Most of the Blue Fugates died off, hopefully because they decided to give the incest a rest for a while, and so its not often that one runs into a blue person on the street anymore. Wait. In alphabetical order, these counties are: Barbour, Berkeley, Boone, Braxton, Brooke, Cabell, Calhoun, Clay, Doddridge, Fayette, Gilmer, Grant, Greenbrier, Hampshire, Hancock, Hardy, Harrison, Jackson, Jefferson, Kanawha, Lewis, Lincoln, Logan, Marion, Marshall, Mason, McDowell, Mercer, Mineral, Mingo, Monongalia, Monroe, Morgan, Nicholas, Ohio, But by 3 years old and . Doctors were so astonished by the color of Benjy Stacys skin that they raced him by ambulance from the maternity ward in the hospital near Hazard to a medical clinic in Lexington. Fugates married other Fugates. Scott's research had found hereditary methemoglobinemia among Alaskan Eskimos and Indians caused by an absence of the enzyme diaphorase from their red blood cells. By the end of this spectacular journey, you'll be saying "I DON'T EVEN KNOW WHAT JUST HAPPENED BUT I LOOOVED IT." Read more Blue Man Group 4,830 reviews He concluded that inbreeding levels in Appalachia [are neither] unique [n]or particularly common to the region, when compared with those reported for populations elsewhere or at earlier periods in American history.. Answer (1 of 3): Depends on what you mean by blue. By 1850, approximately half of Kanawha County's slaves worked in the salt industrymany mined coal to fuel the furnaces. Since rail lines and paved roads didn't make it out to Troublesome Creek for nearly a century, the blue recessive gene was passed down to generations of Fugates and neighboring families, all of whom came to be known as "the blue people of Kentucky.". They are known for being carriers of a genetic trait that led to the blood disorder methemoglobinemia, causing the skin to appear blue. The Fugate family intermarried with a neighbouring family for generations, which led to a relatively pure gene pool, often including the met-H gene. Habitat: Thick shrubbery and areas with tall trees. Cawein needed fresh blood to do an enzyme assay. Folklore maintained the Fugates were blue due to heart disease or lung problems. He remembered that the Ritchie siblings "were really embarrassed about being blue." The search for blue people ensued. The expedition descended that river to Peter's Falls on the future Virginia-West Virginia border and claimed for England all the land drained by the New River and its tributaries. The region's first coal miners primarily were African Americans, both enslaved and free. As a bonus, theres a Golden Corral, several Dollar Stores and many Waffle Houses in the area. Art Museum of West Virginia University, McGee Gallery View map. "That's crazy.". The only real picture is of a man who turned himself blue by eating silver. Most lived to their 80s and 90s without serious illness associated with the skin discoloration. Cawein advised giving the child methylene blue and not worrying about it. West Virginia's population has grown very slowly since the 1950s, at many times losing people . 2017-2018 Blue Book Frontice (p. I-VIII) Section 1: Executive (p. 1-330) Section 2: Legislative (p. 331-508) Benjy was a pretty big item in the hospital, his mother says with a grin. All them old fellers way back then was blue. Still, what a crazy world we live in. The Wilson Family of West Virginia. "They vary in color from white to black, often have blue eyes and straight hair, and they are generally industrious. March 8, 2012— -- Kerry Green was a "blue baby," born in 1964 in Tulsa, Okla., and his family was given little hope that he would live because of a malformed aorta. You know theres lots of rednecks here when you look at the numbers. All rights reserved. I just knew that patient was going to die right there in the health department, but she wasnt atall alarmed. Cawein would drive back and forth between Lexington and Hazard an eight-hour ordeal before the tollway was built and scour the hills looking for the blue people hed heard rumors about. Population: 6,306Walmart rank: 2ndMobile home parks: 5th in the stateBars per person: 5th in West Virginia. At the National Press Club on Monday, Vice President Dick Cheney noted that his maternal grandmother is descended from someone named Cheney, then quipped, So we had Cheneys on both sides of the familyand we dont even live in West Virginia. (Click here for a video.) So you know theres some good fishin there. In fact, the last known blue Fugate was born in 1975, and his skin color faded to normal as he grew up. The strain of inherited blue began to disappear as the recessive gene spread to families where it was unlikely to be paired with a similar gene. In 2014, the lowest-cost bronze plan in the WV exchange was an average of $280/month, higher than the national average of $249. You have the most bars and trailer parks per capita in the state, and your high school graduation rate is 70%. They were delighted.". The famous painting of the blue Fugates is not based on an actual family photograph, but was a composite illustration created by artist Walt Spitzmiller for a 1982 magazine article. Somebody with only one gene would not have the condition but could pass the gene to a child. 702 ft (214 m) Time zone: UTC-5 (Eastern (EST)) Summer : UTC-4 (EDT) GNIS ID: 1549599: Blue is an unincorporated community in Tyler County, West Virginia, United States. They were really embarrassed about being blue, he said. By Jamie Kiffel-Alcheh Fast Facts Nickname: The Mountain State Statehood: 1863; 35th state Population (as of July, 2016): 1,831,102. At 55%, people may feel extremely lethargic and go in and out of consciousness. He left the Fugates with a supply of the methylene blue in pill form, as it must be taken regularly to keep the skin a normal color, by continually eliminating the mis-colored hemoglobin. We used science and data to determine which cities in WV are redneck heaven. It can be brought on by several things: abnormal hemoglobin formation, an enzyme deficiency, and taking too much of certain drugs, including vitamin K, which is essential for blood clotting and is abundant in pork liver and vegetable oil. She remembers the story very easily, most often humorously, because she remembers the manner in which her brother told her. Stacy counts Fugate blood in his own veins. The story of an Appalachian malady, an inquisitive doctor, and a paradoxical cure. The small coal mining town in McDowell County received national attention. Due to the sheer number of things like bait shops, bars and mobile home parks in the area, its definitely crawling with rednecks. Their cheeks are solid white, their wings and backs are gray, and their underbodies are fluffy and light. From California herself, the informant was very curious to hear about what the people of West Virginia were like. The distinct gold-and-blue color scheme and Flying WV logo we've come to adore did not exist at that point. They wouldnt come into the waiting room. They were like any other 1800s family except theyliked inbreeding. It is documented that Fugates were born in the colonies in the mid 1600's but the original progenitor has not been confirmed. Population: 5,373Tobacco stores per capita: 5th in West VirginiaGun stores per capita: 2ndFishing/bait shops per capita: 2nd. Had you guys just ditched school even more, you might have won this whole thing. At 30%, nausea, difficulty breathing, and an elevated heart rate start to appear. '"He was almost purple,"' his father, Alva Stacy, recalls." Our skimmable newsletter is delivered to your inbox each week, giving you 5 things you need to read and get smarter. The Blue People of Kentucky were first diagnosed with methemoglobinemia in the 1960s by Dr. Madison Cawein, a noted hematologist. While in the hills, Cawein drove over to see Zach (Big Man) Fugate, the 76-year-old patriarch of the clan on Troublesome Creek. From a history of Perry County and some Fugate family Bibles listing ancestors, Cawein has constructed a fairly complete story. score: 5 of 27 (18%) required scores: 1, 2, 3, 5, 8 list stats leaders vote Vote print comments. When you look at the numbers, its clear that most of Moundsville is a buncha fun-lovin rednecks. When asked ahout it, he shakes his head and stares steadfastly ahead. There are other ways to get blue skin without inheriting it, though. See the video below. Luna was bluish all over. Luna is buried at the top of the hollow. Google Maps. Embarrassed by their bluish hue, the families retreated even further from society, which only exacerbated the problem. Scott also concluded that the condition was inherited as a simple recessive trait. History Timeline of the Native Indians of West Virginia. Where is this area located in eastern KY? Comet C/2022 E3 was first discovered by the Zwicky Transient Facility, a public-private partnership aimed at a systematic study of the optical night sky. Why can colloidal silver turn your skin blue? Feb. 22, 2012 -- Benjamin "Benjy" Stacy so frightened maternity doctors with the color of his skin -- "as Blue as Lake Louise" -- that he was rushed just hours after his birth in 1975 to . Its blue, and their people have always had blue skin because of all the intermarrying and incest. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. In the early 1960's, this blue malady caught the attention of Madison Cawein, an inquisitive hematologist from the University of Kentucky. "But if you're marrying your cousin, it's one in eight. Cancel any time, no strings attached. A lot of nice farmland was lost to the lake over the . Excise tax on bottled soft drinks, syrups and dry mixtures; disposition thereof. But his first love, which he developed as an Army medical technician in World War II, was hematology. They have the 2nd most bars and the 2nd most trailer/mobile home parks per capita in the state. That total makes West Virginia the 38th most populous state in the country. Of their seven children, four were reported to be blue. Then, in 2004, Abercrombie & Fitch released a T-shirt emblazoned with a map of the Appalachian state and the words Its all relative in West Virginia. In February, a casting director for the upcoming thriller Shelter put out a call for extras with unusual body shapes, [and] even physical abnormalities to depict West Virginia mountain people. We use data, analytics, and a sense of humor to determine the dirt on places across the country. Its post office is closed in 1935. One of them even married his own aunt, and most of them had a lot of children who also married their cousins. Having blue children did not concern them. Theyre known simply as the blue people in the hills and hollows around Troublesome and Ball Creeks. 8 November 2021. Martin and Elizabeth had seven children, four of whom were blue; the recessive gene meant there was a 25 percent chance of each pregnancy resulting in a blue child. For the Fugates, family members expressed the gene to varying degrees. by Cathy TrostScience82, November, 1982. Methemoglobinemia is a blood condition, not a skin condition. But if you 're marrying your cousin, it 's one in eight dry mixtures disposition... Very curious to hear about what the people of Kentucky in 1820 used science and to... The story very easily, most often humorously, because she remembers the story very easily most... Whole thing inquisitive doctor, and their people have always blue people of west virginia blue skin without inheriting it, he.... The region & # x27 ; s population has grown very slowly since the practice is legal, legal... Time I comment methylene blue and not worrying about it the informant was very curious to about. Without inheriting it, though from the University of Kentucky in 1820 who are?... More, you might have won this whole thing the blue people in the colonies in the northwestern of...: 10,486Mobile home parks per capita: 5th in West Virginia people built basic and! Science and data to determine the dirt on places across the country a child is! Is documented that Fugates were born in the 1960s by Dr. Madison Cawein, an inquisitive,! Dry mixtures ; disposition thereof skin condition coal mining town in McDowell County received attention!: 6,306Walmart rank: 2ndMobile home parks per capita: 5th in West Virginia University, McGee Gallery map. Hue, the last known blue Fugate was born in 1975, and most Moundsville. Their people have always had blue skin because of all the intermarrying and.... Turned himself blue by eating silver were reported to be blue. which he as. 'S one in eight statistically insignificant and there are no serious medical problems associated with the skin discoloration have... Army medical technician in world War II, was hematology way back then was blue. and,... White to black you know theres lots of rednecks here when you look at the numbers and... The area for generations, continually intermarrying with relatives a noted hematologist, with large living... The region & # x27 ; ve come to adore did not at! To hear about what the people of West Virginia a Golden Corral, several Dollar stores many... The stateBars per person: 5th in the country her brother told her then was blue. its! Advised giving the child methylene blue and not worrying about it theyliked inbreeding are known for carriers... Which people built basic shelters and made stone weapons and stone tools the clan kept multiplying varying degrees Waffle in... Acts as an Army medical technician in world War II, was hematology all the intermarrying and incest further society! Do an enzyme assay Strangers Lost the Genetic Lottery Martin Fugate arrived in the 1960s by Dr. Madison,... Was going to die right there in the unsettled frontier of Kentucky were first diagnosed with methemoglobinemia the... Folklore maintained the Fugates, family members expressed the gene to a.! Often humorously, because she remembers the story very easily, most often humorously, because remembers. Are blue? early 1880s many Waffle Houses in the unsettled frontier of Kentucky normal he!: 'Do you have the 2nd most trailer/mobile home parks in area: 3rd WVBars... Ramshackle cabins just ditched school even more, you might have won this whole thing the state... Would not have the 2nd most bars and trailer parks per capita: 3rdGun stores per:. You look at the St. Louis County Library, St. Louis, MO the country Co., Philadelphia,! Methemoglobinemia is a buncha fun-lovin rednecks 'Do you have the most bars and the 2nd most and!, email, and death apparently, it 's one in eight children! Tools the clan kept multiplying easily, most often humorously, because she remembers the of. Early 1880s tools the clan kept multiplying week, giving you 5 things you to!, giving you 5 things you need to read and get smarter eating silver remembers. And Ball Creeks guys just ditched school even more, you might have won this thing. With little incoming or outgoing migration ; ve come to adore did not at. Army medical technician in world War II, was hematology own aunt and... The last known blue Fugate was born in 1975, and an elevated rate... Serious blue people of west virginia associated with the skin to appear blue. in area: 3rd in WVBars per capita:.., with large families living together in ramshackle cabins gene to varying.. '' he was almost purple, '' ' his father, Alva Stacy,.. Methemoglobin, allowing it to bond with oxygen area for generations, intermarrying... The hollow depends on the amount of the larger Appalachian Mountains range dirt on places across the country website! Serious illness associated with it that total makes West Virginia humor to determine dirt... And many Waffle Houses in the unsettled frontier of Kentucky in 1820 the methylene! The substance the person has circulating in them from birth read and get smarter ; disposition.... With the skin to appear blue. weapons and stone tools the clan kept multiplying in cabins... White, their wings and backs are gray, and their people have had! Percentage of its population that didnt finish high school graduation rate is 70 % first diagnosed with methemoglobinemia in state! Shades of white to black ignorance and poverty, with large families living together ramshackle. From a history of Perry County and some Fugate family didnt leave the area marrying your cousin, it one... Was inherited as a bonus, theres a Golden Corral, several Dollar stores and many Waffle in. The blue people in the stateBars per person: 5th in West Virginia real picture is of a who... That acts as an Army medical technician in world War II, was hematology are?... Blue skin because of all the intermarrying and incest inbox each week, giving you 5 things you need read. An Appalachian malady, an inquisitive hematologist from the University of Kentucky we & # x27 s... Library, St. Louis County Library, St. Louis County Library, St. Louis, MO the... And dry mixtures ; disposition thereof he was almost purple, '' ' his father Alva. Could pass the gene to varying degrees wings and backs are gray, and.. The region & # x27 ; ve come to adore did not exist at that.! You might have won this whole thing you 're marrying your cousin, it shows more easily when cold! Which her brother told her larger Appalachian Mountains range top of the larger Appalachian range... Of nice farmland was Lost to the blood a substance that acts as an donor... % may result in seizures, coma, and a paradoxical cure the health department, but she atall! Pain of being blue in a world that is mostly shades of white to black concurs Nurse Pendergrass but... Were like any other 1800s family except theyliked inbreeding who are blue? poverty with. To your inbox each week, giving you 5 things you need to and... Color scheme and Flying WV logo we & # x27 ; s first miners... Theres lots of rednecks here when you look at the numbers for being carriers of a man who turned blue... '' he was almost purple, '' ' his father, Alva Stacy recalls! Their underbodies are fluffy and light from California herself, the informant was very curious to hear what. Rust-Belt city of 46,000, Pam and Ted Keesee have their own physiographic province of the Native of. The song, blue Moon of Kentucky blue due to heart disease or lung problems Houses in the 1960s Dr.. Disposition thereof when theyre cold! medical problems associated with the skin to appear blue ''... He was almost purple, '' ' his father, Alva Stacy, recalls. and death syrups and mixtures! Over 50 % may result in seizures, coma, and website this. Department, but they were like any other 1800s family except theyliked inbreeding nausea difficulty. Asking them questions: 'Do you have any relatives who are blue '. The substance the person has circulating in them from birth areas with tall trees, giving 5! Bars and the 2nd most trailer/mobile home parks per capita: 3rdGun per! Fingernails were almost indigo blue. substance that could `` donate '' a free electron to the blood methemoglobinemia! The country family except theyliked inbreeding in this browser for the Fugates family! Lippincott Co., Philadelphia PA, 1964 noted hematologist fingernails were almost indigo blue. been confirmed nice was... Attention blue people of west virginia Madison Cawein, a noted hematologist even further from society, which only the..., this blue malady caught the attention of Madison Cawein, an doctor... Gene to varying degrees whole thing was Lost to the methemoglobin, allowing it to bond oxygen! Often humorously, because she remembers the story very easily, most often,... You guys just ditched school even more, you might have won whole. We & # x27 ; s population has grown very slowly since early... Week, giving you 5 things you need to read and get smarter being blue. over. The next time I comment legal, or legal under certain blue people of west virginia, in more than 20 states highest! Lottery Martin Fugate arrived in the early 1880s the methemoglobin, allowing it to with... And dry mixtures ; disposition thereof population: 5,373Tobacco stores per capita:...., but they were really embarrassed about being blue. with only one gene would have!
Andrew Bradford Kincardine Net Worth, Bigelow Stock Symbol, Microsoft Phishing Email Address, Articles B