James Franklin Comstock (25 February 1911, Richwood, West Virginia - 22 May 1996, Huntington, West Virginia) was a West Virginia writer, newspaper publisher and humorist. He founded the weekly West Virginia Hillbilly (1957-1980) and compiled a definitive 51-volume encyclopedia of West Virginia history and culture.[1]
After completing high school locally, Comstock graduated from Marshall College (now University) (B.A., English) in 1934. An aspiring journalist, he found himself teaching high school English in his home town from 1938 to 1942. With the outbreak of war, he sought employment in the military industry. Finding the manufacture of gun barrels boring, however, he joined the U.S. Navy as a lieutenant and was assigned to decoding messages on Guam (1944-1946). Returning to civilian life, he worked for a time as a correspondent for the Clarksburg [West Virginia] Exponent Telegram before starting his own weekly newspaper. In 1946 he co-founded The [Richwood] News Leader with Bronson McClung (a former pupil).
Comstock devoted 20 years (1957-1977) to compiling the West Virginia Heritage Encyclopedia which included original content as well as reprinting long out-of-print material by and about West Virginians. He led a campaign to preserve the house in Hillsboro, West Virginia, where Pearl S. Buck, the Nobel Prize-winning novelist, was born. Comstock assisted with the financing of the rescue of the historic Cass Scenic Railroad. He also started the Mountain State Press to publish books of West Virginia interest.
The West Virginia Hillbillyedit
In 1957 Comstock and McClung established The West Virginia Hillbilly, which became a celebrated repository of Appalachian folklore, heritage and humor. Comstock characterized his publication as “A newspaper for people who can't read, edited by an editor who can't write”. Comstock’s regular column was christened “The Comstock Lode”. Circulation for the weekly peaked around 30,000 in the 1960s and ‘70s, with many readers subscribing from outside West Virginia. Comstock's West Virginia Heritage Foundation supported the publication and distribution of seven volumes (over six years) of West Virginia Heritage (1967-72) drawn from the periodical, including both reprinted and original material.
A 2016 tribute published in The Paris Review, asserted that “The Hillbilly wasn’t just a paper—it was an art project, a platform for historic preservation, a conservative wailing wall, and, above all, an exploration of the West Virginian id.”[2] The paper's run ended in 1980.
West Virginia Heritage, Compiled from West Virginia Hillbilly material by Jim Comstock and Bronson McClung; Richwood, West Virginia: West Virginia Heritage Foundation.
Volume 1 (1967)
Volume 2 (1968)
Volume 3 (1969)
Volume 4 (1970)
Volume 5 (1971)
Volume 6 (1972)
Volume 7 (1972)
Best of "Hillbilly": A Prize Collection of 100-Proof writing from Jim Comstock's "West Virginia Hillbilly" (1969), edited by Otto Whittaker.
'Ritin' and Railin' by Brooks Pepper (1973; edited by Comstock)
Good News the Life of Jesus Reported in Newspaper Style (1974)
West Virginia Heritage Encyclopedia; 51 vol. [Exclusive run of 3,000 sets; never reprinted] (1974-1976).
Volume 1 – A to Atkinson
Volume 2 – Atkinson to Black
Volume 3 – Black, Louis to Bruce, Barton
Volume 4 – Bruce, C.H.R. to Centennial Catalogue
Volume 5 – Centennial Catalogue to Coppiniger
Volume 6 – Copsy, John to Diss Debar
Volume 7 – Diss Debar to First Sawmill
Volume 8 – First Sawmill to Garnett, Gen.
Volume 9 – Garnett, William to Greenbrier County
Volume 10 – Greenbrier County to Hays Creek
Volume 11 – Haythe, Ray to Iron Furnace
Volume 12 – Iron Furnace to Laidly, John
Volume 13 – Laidley, William Sidney to Mann, Isaac
Volume 14 – Manning, Andrew Johnson to Military Line
Volume 15 – Military Telegraph to Morris, Benjamin
Volume 16 – Morris, Benjamin to Ohio Valley
Volume 17 – Ohio Valley College to Pocahontas Times
Volume 18 – Pocahontas Trail to Reuther, Walter
Volume 19 – Reuther, Walter to Schaffer, Owens
Volume 20 – Schaie, Klaus Warner to Staats Mill
Volume 21 – Stacey, Arthur E. to Traubert, Charles Herbert
Volume 22 – Travel Councils to Werner, Harry Rupert
Volume 23 – Werner, William Lewis to Women's Reformatory
Volume 24 – Woo, George to Young, Ivan E
Volume 25 – Bibliography
Supplemental series:
Volume 1 - Hardesty's Monroe, Putnam and Tyler Counties[3]
Volume 2 – Hardesty's Doddridge, Marion, Upshur, and Wetzel Counties
Volume 3 - Hardesty's Calhoun, Pocahontas, Braxton and Berkeley Counties
Volume 4 – Hardesty's Jackson, Kanawha, and Barbour Counties
Volume 5 - Hardesty's Mason, Pleasants, Lewis, and Roane Counties
Volume 6 – Hardesty's Harrison, Cabell, Wirt, and Greenbrier Counties
Volume 7 - Hardesty's Gilmer, Ritchie, Lincoln and Wayne Counties
Volume 8 - Hardesty's Wood and Jefferson Counties
Volume 9 – The Soldiery of West Virginia
Volume 10 – Historical Records Survey, West Virginia
Volume 11 – West Virginia, A Guide to the Mountain State (1st ed. 1941, Oxford University Press; Writers' Program of the WPA in the State of West Virginia.)
Volume 12 – The Border Settlers of Northwestern Virginia from 1768-1795 Embracing the Life of Jesse Hughes and Other Noted Scouts of the Great Woods of the Trans-Allegheny, by Lucullus Virgil McWhorter (Part 1)
Volume 13 – The Border Settlers... (Part 2)
Volume 14 – Commonplace Book (A collection of articles on diverse topics, from Civil War Gen. Rosecranz to West Virginia theater)
Volume 15 – A Forrest Hull Sampler
Volume 16 - Shirley Donnelly Sampler
Volume 17 - A History of the Valley of Virginia, by Samuel Kercheval
Volume 18 – History and Government of West Virginia, by Virgil A. Lewis
Volume 19 – Stories and Verse of West Virginia (Part 1; 1st ed. 1925) by Ella May Turner
Volume 22 - West Virginia People and Places by Charles Carpenter
Volume 23 – West Virginia Songbag
Volume 24 – Stories and Verse of West Virginia (Part 2; companion and homage to Turner's book)
Volume 25 – West Virginia Women
Volume 51 – West Virginia Picture Book
Sixty Years on the Great Kanawha and other Rivers (The Life of Captain Harry White) (1976) by Jim Comstock
7 Decades: An Autobiography of a Kind (1982)
Humoredit
In 1947, Comstock founded the “University of Hard Knocks”, an honorary society with a mission to recognize people who have made a success of their life without the benefit of higher education. Alderson Broaddus College in Philippi, West Virginia sponsored the organization, which moved its offices to the A-B campus in 1976. The society was dissolved in 2014.
In 1957, Comstock perpetrated an elaborate hoax involving the use of a captive mountain lion, to convince rival editor Calvin Price of neighboring Pocahontas County that these animals still existed in West Virginia. (After the exposé, he arranged for it to live out its retirement at the French Creek Game Farm, a state-run zoo.)
In a notorious episode of pranksterism, Comstock once printed an issue of The News Leader using ink admixed with the juice of the ramp, the storied wild onion that abounds in the state in the spring. The intolerable stench at the local post office prompted the postmaster to extract a promise that he would never do it again.
Comstock embarked upon a facetious political campaign in 1964, running for U.S. Congress as the Republican candidate from the Third District in West Virginia, then an impossibly Democratic stronghold. He opposed “motherhood” among other things, and lost to incumbent John M. Slack Jr., failing even to carry his home precinct.
The masthead of The West Virginia Hillbilly announced its publication as ‘‘weakly’’.
Comstock bragged that of Richwood’s 3,000 residents, only 19 maintained Hillbilly subscriptions.
When a “slick” New York magazine referred to the Hillbilly as a “sophisticated” newspaper, Comstock demanded a retraction.
^Van Gelder, Lawrence (May 27, 1996), “James Comstock, 85, West Virginia Publisher” [Obit], The New York Times.
^Null, Matthew Neil, “Letter from West Virginia”, The Paris Review (May 17, 2016).
^Supplemental series, vols 1-8, are reprints drawn from Hardesty's Historical and Geographical Encyclopedia; "Special Virginia Edition" (1883-84; originally in 13 vols). Note that only 28 of the 54 West Virginia counties existing in 1883-84 were represented in Hardesty's.
May 04, 2024
comstock, james, franklin, comstock, february, 1911, richwood, west, virginia, 1996, huntington, west, virginia, west, virginia, writer, newspaper, publisher, humorist, founded, weekly, west, virginia, hillbilly, 1957, 1980, compiled, definitive, volume, encyc. James Franklin Comstock 25 February 1911 Richwood West Virginia 22 May 1996 Huntington West Virginia was a West Virginia writer newspaper publisher and humorist He founded the weekly West Virginia Hillbilly 1957 1980 and compiled a definitive 51 volume encyclopedia of West Virginia history and culture 1 Jim ComstockBornJames Franklin Comstock 1911 02 25 25 February 1911Richwood West VirginiaDiedMay 22 1996 1996 05 22 aged 85 Huntington West VirginiaNationalityAmericanEducationMarshall University 1934 Occupation s writer newspaper publisher and humorist Contents 1 Biography 1 1 The West Virginia Hillbilly 2 Works 3 Humor 4 External links 5 ReferencesBiography editAfter completing high school locally Comstock graduated from Marshall College now University B A English in 1934 An aspiring journalist he found himself teaching high school English in his home town from 1938 to 1942 With the outbreak of war he sought employment in the military industry Finding the manufacture of gun barrels boring however he joined the U S Navy as a lieutenant and was assigned to decoding messages on Guam 1944 1946 Returning to civilian life he worked for a time as a correspondent for the Clarksburg West Virginia Exponent Telegram before starting his own weekly newspaper In 1946 he co founded The Richwood News Leader with Bronson McClung a former pupil Comstock devoted 20 years 1957 1977 to compiling the West Virginia Heritage Encyclopedia which included original content as well as reprinting long out of print material by and about West Virginians He led a campaign to preserve the house in Hillsboro West Virginia where Pearl S Buck the Nobel Prize winning novelist was born Comstock assisted with the financing of the rescue of the historic Cass Scenic Railroad He also started the Mountain State Press to publish books of West Virginia interest The West Virginia Hillbilly edit In 1957 Comstock and McClung established The West Virginia Hillbilly which became a celebrated repository of Appalachian folklore heritage and humor Comstock characterized his publication as A newspaper for people who can t read edited by an editor who can t write Comstock s regular column was christened The Comstock Lode Circulation for the weekly peaked around 30 000 in the 1960s and 70s with many readers subscribing from outside West Virginia Comstock s West Virginia Heritage Foundation supported the publication and distribution of seven volumes over six years of West Virginia Heritage 1967 72 drawn from the periodical including both reprinted and original material A 2016 tribute published in The Paris Review asserted that The Hillbilly wasn t just a paper it was an art project a platform for historic preservation a conservative wailing wall and above all an exploration of the West Virginian id 2 The paper s run ended in 1980 Comstock died at St Mary s Hospital in Huntington West Virginia at age 85 Works editPa and Ma and Mister Kennedy 1965 Pa and Ma and Fiddlin Clyde 1965 West Virginia Heritage Compiled from West Virginia Hillbilly material by Jim Comstock and Bronson McClung Richwood West Virginia West Virginia Heritage Foundation Volume 1 1967 Volume 2 1968 Volume 3 1969 Volume 4 1970 Volume 5 1971 Volume 6 1972 Volume 7 1972 Best of Hillbilly A Prize Collection of 100 Proof writing from Jim Comstock s West Virginia Hillbilly 1969 edited by Otto Whittaker Ritin and Railin by Brooks Pepper 1973 edited by Comstock Good News the Life of Jesus Reported in Newspaper Style 1974 West Virginia Heritage Encyclopedia 51 vol Exclusive run of 3 000 sets never reprinted 1974 1976 Volume 1 A to Atkinson Volume 2 Atkinson to Black Volume 3 Black Louis to Bruce Barton Volume 4 Bruce C H R to Centennial Catalogue Volume 5 Centennial Catalogue to Coppiniger Volume 6 Copsy John to Diss Debar Volume 7 Diss Debar to First Sawmill Volume 8 First Sawmill to Garnett Gen Volume 9 Garnett William to Greenbrier County Volume 10 Greenbrier County to Hays Creek Volume 11 Haythe Ray to Iron Furnace Volume 12 Iron Furnace to Laidly John Volume 13 Laidley William Sidney to Mann Isaac Volume 14 Manning Andrew Johnson to Military Line Volume 15 Military Telegraph to Morris Benjamin Volume 16 Morris Benjamin to Ohio Valley Volume 17 Ohio Valley College to Pocahontas Times Volume 18 Pocahontas Trail to Reuther Walter Volume 19 Reuther Walter to Schaffer Owens Volume 20 Schaie Klaus Warner to Staats Mill Volume 21 Stacey Arthur E to Traubert Charles Herbert Volume 22 Travel Councils to Werner Harry Rupert Volume 23 Werner William Lewis to Women s Reformatory Volume 24 Woo George to Young Ivan E Volume 25 Bibliography Supplemental series Volume 1 Hardesty s Monroe Putnam and Tyler Counties 3 Volume 2 Hardesty s Doddridge Marion Upshur and Wetzel Counties Volume 3 Hardesty s Calhoun Pocahontas Braxton and Berkeley Counties Volume 4 Hardesty s Jackson Kanawha and Barbour Counties Volume 5 Hardesty s Mason Pleasants Lewis and Roane Counties Volume 6 Hardesty s Harrison Cabell Wirt and Greenbrier Counties Volume 7 Hardesty s Gilmer Ritchie Lincoln and Wayne Counties Volume 8 Hardesty s Wood and Jefferson Counties Volume 9 The Soldiery of West Virginia Volume 10 Historical Records Survey West Virginia Volume 11 West Virginia A Guide to the Mountain State 1st ed 1941 Oxford University Press Writers Program of the WPA in the State of West Virginia Volume 12 The Border Settlers of Northwestern Virginia from 1768 1795 Embracing the Life of Jesse Hughes and Other Noted Scouts of the Great Woods of the Trans Allegheny by Lucullus Virgil McWhorter Part 1 Volume 13 The Border Settlers Part 2 Volume 14 Commonplace Book A collection of articles on diverse topics from Civil War Gen Rosecranz to West Virginia theater Volume 15 A Forrest Hull Sampler Volume 16 Shirley Donnelly Sampler Volume 17 A History of the Valley of Virginia by Samuel Kercheval Volume 18 History and Government of West Virginia by Virgil A Lewis Volume 19 Stories and Verse of West Virginia Part 1 1st ed 1925 by Ella May Turner Volume 20 Porte Crayon Sampler Volume 21 Pages from the Past by George W Summers Volume 22 West Virginia People and Places by Charles Carpenter Volume 23 West Virginia Songbag Volume 24 Stories and Verse of West Virginia Part 2 companion and homage to Turner s book Volume 25 West Virginia Women Volume 51 West Virginia Picture Book Sixty Years on the Great Kanawha and other Rivers The Life of Captain Harry White 1976 by Jim Comstock 7 Decades An Autobiography of a Kind 1982 Humor editIn 1947 Comstock founded the University of Hard Knocks an honorary society with a mission to recognize people who have made a success of their life without the benefit of higher education Alderson Broaddus College in Philippi West Virginia sponsored the organization which moved its offices to the A B campus in 1976 The society was dissolved in 2014 In 1957 Comstock perpetrated an elaborate hoax involving the use of a captive mountain lion to convince rival editor Calvin Price of neighboring Pocahontas County that these animals still existed in West Virginia After the expose he arranged for it to live out its retirement at the French Creek Game Farm a state run zoo In a notorious episode of pranksterism Comstock once printed an issue of The News Leader using ink admixed with the juice of the ramp the storied wild onion that abounds in the state in the spring The intolerable stench at the local post office prompted the postmaster to extract a promise that he would never do it again Comstock embarked upon a facetious political campaign in 1964 running for U S Congress as the Republican candidate from the Third District in West Virginia then an impossibly Democratic stronghold He opposed motherhood among other things and lost to incumbent John M Slack Jr failing even to carry his home precinct The masthead of The West Virginia Hillbilly announced its publication as weakly Comstock bragged that of Richwood s 3 000 residents only 19 maintained Hillbilly subscriptions When a slick New York magazine referred to the Hillbilly as a sophisticated newspaper Comstock demanded a retraction External links editWest Virginia amp Regional History Center at West Virginia University Jim Comstock Newspaper Editor and Collector PapersReferences edit Van Gelder Lawrence May 27 1996 James Comstock 85 West Virginia Publisher Obit The New York Times Null Matthew Neil Letter from West Virginia The Paris Review May 17 2016 Supplemental series vols 1 8 are reprints drawn from Hardesty s Historical and Geographical Encyclopedia Special Virginia Edition 1883 84 originally in 13 vols Note that only 28 of the 54 West Virginia counties existing in 1883 84 were represented in Hardesty s Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Jim Comstock amp oldid 1197834268, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
