Welcome to the “Porte Crayon Applejack Society” - a newsletter dedicated to the life and work of David Hunter Strother, the 19th century writer, artist, soldier and diplomat known to readers of “Harpers New Monthly Magazine” by his Porte Crayon pen name. Strother was famous for his illustrated stories about the high mountains of what is now West Virginia but also for his travelogues from New England to the American South.

Membership is free.

All you have to do is subscribe.

Aside from silly EXCLUSIVE pictures of our cats and Ornery Dog Jasper, there are no tangible benefits to receiving this newsletter in your inbox.

Except maybe for this: While I don’t claim to be an expert on our friend Porte, we’ll learn about him together and build a community around a shared interest in his life and legacy. I’m planning to go where he went, read what he wrote and tell you about it.

Also, every now and again, you might find an applejack cocktail recipe here.

Why applejack?

Because Porte mentions this venerable liquor in his writings about mountain people.

Applejack is a strong spirit produced from apples. It was once popular, especially during colonial times, but much like Porte himself, it fell out of fashion.

Porte was a native Martinsburg, a town in West Virginia’s Eastern Panhandle where I’ve lived since 2004. I decided to start learning and writing about him as my pandemic project.

I like to think Porte would have rivaled any of today’s most popular travel writers.

Together, maybe we can rescue him from obscurity and bring about a new appreciation for his work.