Since I began documenting Henry Harrison Mayes work online, I knew I would rely on people who know more than I do and visited places I will never be able to visit. I found that the people who conserved the most knowledge before internet posts on blogs or social media were a thing, were three…
I found references to Mayes markers in the book Mountain Holiness: A photographic narrative from 2003 which can be ordered via the UT Press website or borrowed digitally over at archive.org. It features markers in Ewing, VA, Harlan, KY and this cardboard sign by Mayes. Photography by Warren E. Brunner
Last year I found out that Henry Harrison Mayes and Folk Art legend Rev. Howard Finster knew each other and Mayes even influenced Finster with his sign ministry. The first clue about this relationship I found in Norman Girardot’s book Envisioning Howard Finster: The Religion and Art of a Stranger from Another World. And digging…
The YouTube Channel “The Appalachian Storyteller” features Harrison Mayes story. Found my Conway, AR sign in there, so I assume one or another image was sourced from here as well. Which is cool. I found a few more leads in the comments, so maybe I’m able to add more to the map.
It’s hard to tell if this is a genuine Mayes cross. I’ve seen images of crosses with a similar typeface attributed to him. Those were older, and given the bad paint job and the time frame of William R. Ferris photo, this might be one of those older crosses, painted over by someone who “took…
Harrison Mayes is mentioned in the book “The Serpent Handlers: Three Families and Their Faith” by Fred Brown and Jeanne McDonald, which depicts the well-known Coots family in Middlesboro, KY.
There is a high probability that this is an early sign made by Harrison Mayes, photographed by Eliot Elisofon for the feature “The Fruitful Mountaineers” in the TIME Magazine, Dec. 1949. The photo doesn’t appear in the magazine, but in a blog post, that is not publicly available any more (archived version). Time Magazine, Dec….
I found these two photos that resemble Harrison Mayes’ work, but I’m not 100% certain. His typography has undoubtedly influenced them. Photographer Don Dudenbostel posted some more photos and some background information on this photography forum.
Scholar and artist Eleanor Dickinson is responsible for getting Henry Harrison Mayes work into the Library of Congress. She conducted countless interviews with the Mayes, brought Rev. Howard Finster and Brother Mayes together, and documented the culture of the mountain folks. The book REVIVAL! contains Dickinson’s beautiful line-drawings, photos of religious services, artifacts, and stories…
Since I discovered that there are documents that prove that Folk Art Visionary Howard Finster and Roadside Evangelist Harrison Mayes met and exchanged ideas, I was determined to find out what these two old geezers had to tell each other. Also I wanted to hear Mayes voice, how he talked, and maybe there was even…
Finally, got a Wikipedia article of Harrison Mayes approved. I will expand it and hopefully, there are folks who want to contribute or at least help to rewrite it, to fix my shortcomings with the English language. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_Harrison_Mayes
A kind person from the internet tipped me off with three location of extant Henry Harrison Mayes “GET RIGHT WITH GOD” signs. All three are heart-shaped metal signs with red-green letters. This is the first time I’ve seen those in the wild (means lately photographed by Google street view). All three seem to be from…
For some reason (East Kentucky), Mayes’ marker show up in snake handling documentaries like this one – “Snake Man Of Appalachia”. This is the trailer and the marker appears right at the beginning. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1957595/
Mention of Mayes crosses along the Dixie Highway in ROADSIDE ARCHITECTURE OF KENTUCKY’S DIXIE HIGHWAYS A TOUR DOWN ROUTES 31E AND 31W
Photo of one of Harrison Mayes metal crosses by Peter B. Lowry, Georgia 1970 used as cover artwork for a compilation with rare post-war gospel This album contains a representative collection of post-war gospel recorded between 1947 and 1953. The post-war period through to the mid-50s is generally regarded as the finest for gospel music…
A rather unusual, more primitive concrete marker on Hwy 80 in Rockwood, TN near Kingston, TN. The cross misses the typical lettering and message, instead it appears rough and with a different wording than Mayes on each side. One side says JESUS CHRIST IS LORD, the other is barely readable but states …BUT THE BLOOD……
Daniel Bachman is an artist, musician, and independent scholar primarily interested in the folk histories of Virginia. Bachman has released 9 full length records since 2011, and toured extensively internationally and throughout the US, garnering wide acclaim. Daniel Bachman Over the last 10+ years, Daniel Bachman was and still is a huge inspiration for me. The…
The link between two American visionaries.
Eleanor Dickinson was very close to the Mayes, visited them, recorded them, and she connected Harrison Mayes with the Smithsonian and got some of his work into their collection. Audio and video recordings as well as drawings and photos by Eleanor Dickinson is archived at the Smithsonian. https://blogs.loc.gov/folklife/2016/12/eleanor-dickinson-finding-aid/ Search results for Photo, Print, Drawing, Eleanor…
Mailing to a ministry in Jerusalem, asking them to put up an oil cloth sign/cross. (Smithsonian, Eleanor Dickinson Collection, 1967) https://americanhistory.si.edu/collections/search/object/nmah_659735 https://americanhistory.si.edu/collections/search?return_all=1&edan_local=1&edan_q=Mayes%2C%20Harrison
