Nancy Pullum was a resourceful woman of the 19th century. Living in the Blue Ridge Mountains around present-day Thorton Gap, Nancy made a living catching rattlesnakes and rendering their oil into a medicinal ointment. She was connected with her natural world in many ways: milking cows and raising hogs, picking wild berries, and facing the harsh mountain winters. Her friends and neighbors include John (a formerly enslaved man) and the historic Virginia sculptor William Randolph Barbee.
Their story has been captured in the new historical fiction Rattlesnake Granny: Nancy Remembers Life in Old Thornton Gap, Inspired by True Stories by Stephanie Gardner. Join us on Saturday, April 26 @ 2:00 pm at the Handley Library for an author talk with Stephanie. Following the presentation, there will be book sales available and a book signing. For more details about this free event, click here.