Reverend Bob.

#055

Earlier this week, I got a piece of mail from my friend Bill Burke. I never cease to be amazed when I get mail from him. I wrote briefly about this back in October here. He simply puts a stamp on the back of a work print, makes a note, and drops it in the mail. This print measures 5.75”x8.5” and is noted “Rev. Bob and his flock some where near Jolo WVA.”

Reverend Bob looked familiar to me as I’ve pored over Burke’s West Virginia and Kentucky pictures for a long time. I remembered seeing another portrait of Reverend Bob with his niece on the Smithsonian’s website (below).

Bill Burke, Reverend Robert Elkins and Niece, Church in Jesus Name, Jolo, West Virginia, 1979, gelatin silver print, image: 19 1/8 x 14 5/8 in. (48.6 x 37.2 cm.), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase, 1984.11.3, © 1979, Bill Burke.

Reverend Bob passed away in 2007, according to this obituary. I would love to find his niece and make a portrait of her.

Thanks to Bill, I have a stack of these prints I’ve accrued over the years. Maybe I’ll show more of them in a future post if you’d like to see them.

---

Here’s some good news from the past week:

• I got a new job! I’m working with the West Virginia Mine Wars Museum as the Community and Project Coordinator. Over the next two years, my primary focus will be on the Courage in the Hollers project, a labor history trail in southern West Virginia. I’ll be sharing more about this in future posts!
  

• My good friend, Rich-Joseph Facun, has a new book out in the world. I received my copy of 1804 this week. I’ll be sharing more about this book and some events happening later this year that I’m excited to be involved with for the book.
  

• After 18 days, the temperatures got high enough to melt the remaining ice on our hill and we can now drive up and down our driveway. That’s a new record for us.
  

• And I had a birthday.

---

Thanks for reading and supporting my newsletter! Please continue to comment, like, and share this newsletter.

Take care of each other.

- Roger