West Virginia State Folk Festival Belles

By Jason Gum

Do you know a woman of, at least, 70 years of age who possesses the pioneering, can-do spirit of our mountain ancestors? If so, she could be your county’s next West Virginia State Folk Festival Belle. The West Virginia State Folk Festival has existed to preserve the traditional pioneer way of life for over 75 years, and the Belles have been a part of the celebrations for nearly just as long. As the event evolved during the mid-1950s, Fern Rollyson looked for ways to get additional counties vested in the event and the idea for “Belles” began. The French root of the word belle indicates a charming, beautiful woman who stands out—and the Festival Belles certainly meet that definition.

Rollyson was named Belle Committee Chairman during a meeting in November of 1956. She initially reached out to organizations in twelve surrounding counties and was able to get ten to participate. The first Belle selected for Gilmer County was Emma Minney. Other counties initially represented were Braxton, Calhoun, Clay, Doddridge, Lewis, Nicholas, Ritchie, Roane, and Wirt.

Promoting the heritage of our past ancestors is greatly on the mind of each Belle. The Belles represent their county and take pride in being selected. They are ambassadors for the Folk Festival and wear their county name on a sash over a beautiful, long, flowing dress of many colors. Some of the ladies wear bonnets or hats and some carry a parasol or umbrella, but—regardless of their outfit—they all are proud to have been selected as a West Virginia State Folk Festival Belle. “These women serve as an inspiration to others with strong work ethic, rugged individualism, perseverance, loyalty, compassion, and unselfish love. The West Virginia State Folk Festival is honored to have these women represent the pioneering spirit of our state,” said Judy Meads, a former Festival Board Member.

The activity became successful, and by 1960, efforts were being made to seek representation from every county in West Virginia. This eventually took the form of working primarily with the WV Community Educational Outreach Service (WVCEOS) organizations in each county to sponsor their individual Belle.

Brenda McCartney has been associated with the festival for several decades. Her first experiences were as a child during the 1960s, and she hasn’t missed a festival since. By the mid-1970s, she was assisting her husband, Jack, with Harlan Hogue’s beef pit activity in Fern Rollyson’s yard that acted as a demonstration and also fundraiser for the Festival itself. By 1978, she was assisting with the Belle activities. As she continued that work, she also began assisting Mack Samples with the layout of the Folk Festival Newspaper during the 1980s. Brenda served on the Belle Committee from 1978 to 1990 and has had numerous other positions, including secretary and board member, with the Festival over the past five decades. Since 2022, she has served as Vice-President under the leadership of President David O’Dell. 

Brenda has helped see that the Belle tradition remains a mainstay of the festival, and this has included making sure all invites go out, all rooms are ready, and that deadlines are met. “We have never been able to get a Belle from every county during my time, but we have seen 39 or 40 counties represented. This year, we are expecting about 27 different Belles,” she stated. She loves this aspect of the Festival and hopes it always continues. This is one part of the festival that definitely exhibits an authentic representation of early life in the region. She looks forward to being a future Gilmer County Belle, when her work with the festival in this capacity will come full circle. 

Barbara Moss has been selected as the 2025 Gilmer County Belle. Moss says that she is as excited as can be to finally take part after decades as an observer. She is 75 years old and sees it to be fitting that she will be part of the 75^th West Virginia State Folk Festival. Many may remember Barbara from her time working in the Country Store during the last few Festivals. 

Barbara’s experiences with the Festival began in college during 1969. She stayed on campus at Glenville State during her first summer semester and was able to see everything that transpired during that June’s celebrations. While she moved to Tanner, WV to live with her grandparents after that, she still traveled the short distance to be a part of the activities. Her experiences at these festivals instilled an appreciation for traditional life, performance, and square-dancing. “The Festival has always been so full of pure talent and magic. It is so great to see the young and the old. There are always newcomers and experts. I am so excited to meet all the other 2025 Belles too,” Barbara commented. While she has been more of an observer than participant at the square-dance over the past few years, she is developing her Belle outfit and has already received approval to square-dance in the attire at this year’s event.

The Belles always have a full social schedule during their time at the Festival. They generally arrive at Glenville State University’s campus around midday on Friday. The group then visits the home of Ike and Sue Morris for the yearly tea and group photo before returning to campus for dinner with their companions. The ladies then make their way to be the featured guests at the evening concert in the Fine Arts Center Auditorium where they lead the audience in singing The West Virginia Hills. Their activities continue on Saturday with a breakfast hosted by the Glenville State University President, a featured spot in the parade, lunch with the Junior Belles, a gospel sing, and the Belle Recognition Ceremony. Most Belles even stick around until Sunday to take part in the morning Job’s Temple Church Service that wraps up the Festival’s activities.

The West Virginia State Folk Festival Association hopes that everyone who attends will meet some of these ladies and get to know them.