Took Off Running: Race and Culture Along the Turnpike

Michael and Carrie Kline, Talking Across the Lines

Took Off Running is part of a series of audio history and musical productions that explore life along the Staunton-Parkersburg Turnpike, an early toll road through the Appalachian Mountains of West Virginia. Featuring first-hand accounts of local residents, this production brings to life voices of the region's inhabitants in a vibrant, fast-moving quilt of stories on race and ethnicity in the 19th and 20th century. Michael and Carrie Kline of Talking Across the Lines scripted and produced this documentary from 90 oral history interviews, seasoned with West Virginia music recorded especially for the series. Executive Producers: Phyllis Baxter and Mary Rayme Recording, Scripting & Audio Production: Michael and Carrie N. Kline Special Assistance: Bob Enoch, David McCain, David Scott, Jim Bailey and Joy Stalnaker