"Berea- Arts Capital of Kentucky" a Berea Travel Page by Krumlovgirl

There are other towns that can admirably claim to be the "Appalachian Arts Capital" of the World, but I really think Berea has a corner on the market. I love Gatlinburg, but Berea lacks the touristy aspect of that well visited place.

Of course, Berea didn't begin as an arts and crafts place. In the 1890’s, there was a growing national interest in the culture and traditions of Appalachia by writers, academics, missionaries, and teachers. Berea was just far enough east to be considered "Appalachian" (the close-by mountains helped as well) but far enough west to not be TOO Appalachian so it was a safe place for many college donors to invest their money. Back then, some of the Berea College students who couldn't afford tuition would bring things such as homemade quilts in exchange for their chance to study. You can see what happened next-the homemade items became a hot commodity and an idea was born.

The College president, William Frost, took a lot of the items with him on his fund raising trips to the North. Seeing a market for the items he established the first Berea College Fireside Industries. Frost encouraged people to move to Berea, and the college built a loom house and hired a supervisor to train and maintain the quality of student work.

To this day, many shops carry items made by the college students. Some of the shops soley carry college crafts and this is a way that a lot of the students fund their way through school. Some things don't change.

Berea is an interesting place. There's such a difference in Richmond and Berea that they may as well not even be in the same county. Where Richmond has become very suburban and is outgrowing its box, Berea has almost no expansion in progress. Settled in the Appalachian foothills, it's a beautiful little mountain town filled with crafts and music. Definitely worth a stop if you're traveling up or down I-75.

If you're not into brooms and quilts, Berea offers other activities as well. There are some fantastic hiking opportunities in surrounding parks like Anglin Falls, the Berea College Forest, Indian Fort Theater, and the Owsley Fork Reservoir.

Personally, I love to hike in the Indian Fort Theatre. If you climb up to one of the Pentacles (not an easy walk although the climbing bit doesn't actually come until the end) you can get a great view of the surrounding counties. It's a good place for a picnic.

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Yes, all photos are by me unless otherwise noted.