Author ORCID Identifier

https://orcid.org/0009-0001-9247-3053

Date Available

8-20-2027

Year of Publication

2025

Document Type

Master's Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Historic Preservation (MHP)

College

Design

Department/School/Program

Historic Preservation

Faculty

Dr. Emily Bergeron

Faculty

Dr. Douglas Appler

Abstract

On Friday, March 2, 2012, an EF-3 tornado cut an 86-mile path through the mountains of Eastern Kentucky. The storm killed six people in Morgan County and leveled its county seat, West Liberty. An hour later, another EF-3 tornado touched down in neighboring Magoffin County and was on the ground for 49 miles. High-wind events in Appalachia are rare. The region’s population, unaccustomed to such storms, was vulnerable to their effects. Extreme weather, such as this, in the Appalachian Mountains is becoming more frequent. The built environment that fortifies many Appalachians’ senses of Place and their loss, the intangible markers of a community identity that may only be recognized after the storm(s) are over, and preparing for future extreme weather events are explored in this project.

Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

https://doi.org/10.13023/etd.2025.411

Funding Information

2023 - James S. Brown Graduate Student Award for Research on Appalachia, Appalachian Center, University of Kentucky

2023 - Celebrating University Research Across the Enterprise (CURATE), University of Kentucky Office of the Vice President for Research

2023 - Edith S. Bingham Education Grant, Preservation Kentucky

Available for download on Friday, August 20, 2027

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