History Alive is a program of first-person portrayals of historical figures by presenters who have conducted scholarly research on their character. Minnie Reed is a fictional “composite” character drawn from the lives, singing, and stories of several 20th century West Virginia folk singers, chiefly Maggie Hammons Parker, Sarah Workman, Phyllis Marks, and Kate Toney, as well as other Appalachian singers from Kentucky and North Carolina. These singers were not performers, nor did their music bring fame or fortune. For these women and their small mountain communities, music was an organic part of everyday life, and songs were passed down from generation to generation. The fictional setting is Minnie’s home in Pocahontas County, West Virginia, in 1972.