By Mary Wade Burnside
Times West Virginian
FAIRMONT —
Judy Byers’ families’ stories were so interesting, folklorist Ruth Ann Musick used to come to Sunday dinner a few times a month to listen and write them down.
“She was looking for a lot of informant families that would really have a lot of traditions to share in the 1950s,” said Byers of the famed former Fairmont State professor and author of story compilations that included “The Telltale Lilac Bush.”
Musick started visiting when Byers was just 6 years old and kept coming back for 11 years, until about the time Byers began studying English at Fairmont State. Influenced by Musick, Byers now serves as the director of the Frank and Jane Gabor West Virginia Folklife Center and the Abelina Suarez professor senior level of English and folklore studies at Fairmont State.
