When Your Home’s History Speaks a Different Language: Pride, Prejudice, and Property in Appalachia

By Lindon Gullett, Founder, Eastern KY Title

I came across something this morning that stopped me in my tracks—an Atlantic article about the disappearing Southern drawl (subscription required), featuring Amy Clark from the University of Virginia’s College at Wise. She talked about her great-grandmother Ethel, born in 1908 in Dickenson County, Virginia, and how recording her speech patterns revealed “the poetry for the first time in the way that she spoke.”

That line hit different.

Because here in Eastern Kentucky, we carry our history in more than just our mouths. We carry it in our deeds, our mineral rights, our family land transfers, and yes—in the way we talk about all of it.

The Language of Land

Amy Clark said something profound: “I carry my history in my mouth. My words and my grammar patterns are full of centuries of history. My ancestors are with me every time I speak.”

I carry my history in my mouth. My words and my grammar patterns are full of centuries of history. My ancestors are with me every time I speak. – Amy Clark

In the title business, I see that same principle play out differently. When someone’s ready to close on a property that’s been in their family for generations, they’re not just transferring ownership. They’re carrying forward a conversation that started before they were born.

The deed language might be formal. The legal descriptions might be technical. But the story? The story is written in Eastern Kentucky’s distinct voice—in the handshake agreements that became mineral rights, in the family understandings that became boundary disputes, in the coal company promises that became complicated title chains.

The “Low Hanging Fruit” Conversation

Speaking of language and how it reveals bias—I had an unsettling conversation recently. A competitor apparently described their business strategy as targeting Eastern Kentucky and “the low hanging fruit.“

Let me be crystal clear: Eastern Kentucky property owners are not “low hanging fruit.” They’re people with complex property histories that require deep expertise, not predatory opportunism.

This phrase—whether they meant it this way or not—echoes the same prejudice Amy Clark talks about in the Atlantic piece. The assumption that rural, Appalachian, Southern-accented people are somehow easier marks. Less sophisticated. Less worthy of respect.

It’s the same attitude that makes people think they can mock how we talk, mock where we’re from, and apparently, see our communities as easy targets for aggressive business tactics.

What Makes Eastern Kentucky Title Work Actually Complex

Here’s what companies that see us as “low hanging fruit” consistently underestimate:

The depth of our title issues. We’re not talking about suburban subdivisions with clean 30-year title chains. We’re talking about:

• Properties where the surface rights and mineral rights were separated in 1897
• Family land that’s passed through generations without formal estate planning
• Boundary disputes rooted in verbal agreements between neighbors who’ve been dead for 40 years
• Coal company transactions that created layers of rights and reservations that take genuine expertise to untangle
• Properties where the access road crosses three other parcels owned by cousins twice removed

The relational nature of the work. You can’t swoop into Eastern Kentucky with corporate efficiency and close deals on family land. These aren’t transactions—they’re family decisions that often involve multiple generations, complicated emotions, and deep community ties.

The legal sophistication required. Eastern Kentucky title work isn’t “easy.” It requires attorneys who understand Kentucky property law, mineral rights law, estate law, and the specific challenges of rural Appalachian property transfers. It requires patience, cultural competence, and genuine respect for the people involved.

Pride in Place, Pride in Practice

Amy Clark said she went through a phase where she wanted to be completely separated from her accent. “But then I came back,” she said. “I love my region; I love my family. There’s pride in that.”

But then I came back. I love my region; I love my family. There’s pride in that.

Amy Clark

That’s exactly how I feel about this work.

Eastern KY Title isn’t here to target “low hanging fruit.” We’re here because this is our community. Because we understand that when someone’s selling the family farm their grandfather cleared by hand, that’s not a transaction—that’s a trust.

We’re here because we know that “attorney-led title services” isn’t just a marketing phrase—it’s a necessity when you’re dealing with property issues that go back to land patents and railroad charters.

We’re here because somebody needs to be willing to show up at your kitchen table and actually listen when Miss Betty explains that yes, her daddy did sell the coal rights in 1952, but there was an understanding about the surface, and no, it wasn’t written down, but everybody knew, and can we fix that now?

The Underdog Advantage

There’s a reason I’ve positioned Eastern KY Title as the “Rocky of title companies.” Not because we’re scrappy and unrefined, but because we refuse to accept that being local, being rooted in this place, being proud of where we’re from somehow makes us second-rate.

Big corporate title companies think Eastern Kentucky is “low hanging fruit” because they fundamentally misunderstand what’s required here. They think efficiency trumps relationship. They think volume beats depth. They think making people drive to their office is just “how it’s done.”

They’re wrong.

The same prejudice that makes people think Southern accents sound uneducated is the prejudice that makes companies think Eastern Kentucky closings are simple. Both assumptions reveal more about the people making them than about us.

What Attorney-Led Mobile Title Services Actually Means

When we say Eastern KY Title is attorney-led and mobile, here’s what we mean:

We come to you. Every time. No extra cost. Want to close at your kitchen table? We’re there. Want to close at your REALTOR®’s office? We’re there. Want to close at the property itself? We’re there. We don’t have a brick-and-mortar office because that’s not how Eastern Kentucky works. You shouldn’t have to drive an hour to sign papers. We bring the closing to you.

We can spot the complicated stuff before it becomes a crisis. That deed from 1923 that mentions “the spring branch” as a boundary marker? We know that matters. That mineral deed with the vague severance language? We know how to research and resolve it.

We can handle the work ourselves. We’re not a title company that has to send complicated files to outside counsel. We are counsel. When there’s a title issue, we fix it.

We understand the stakes. In Eastern Kentucky, property isn’t just an investment—it’s identity. It’s where your people are buried. It’s where you learned to hunt. It’s the land your grandfather worked. We treat it that way, and we show that respect by coming to you.

The Poetry of Property Rights

Amy Clark’s great-grandmother Ethel told her: “We’d go birch sappin’. You’d find you a birch tree, and my brother Bill would take a ax, and he chopped that tree all around and he skinned the bark off of it. We’d all take spoons, and we’d go around and get us a big piece and scrape that birch sap out of that old bark. It tasted so good.”

That’s poetry. That’s also a property rights narrative—knowledge of the land, use of resources, family traditions that create understanding about how land is used and shared.

In my work, I see similar poetry in the old deed language: “Beginning at the white oak on the ridge, thence down the hollow to the rock fence, thence as the creek runs to the old home place.”

That’s not vague legal description—that’s landscape memory. That’s a community’s shared understanding of place.

Fighting Prejudice with Excellence

The best response to companies that see us as “low hanging fruit” isn’t outrage, it’s excellence.

Every complicated title we clear. Every family land transfer we handle with dignity and care. Every closing where we show up at the kitchen table instead of demanding everyone come to an office somewhere. Every time we take the call at 7 PM because someone’s anxious about their closing tomorrow.

That’s how we prove that Eastern Kentucky isn’t “low hanging fruit“—we’re high-value clients who deserve high-quality service from people who actually understand this place.

Why Mobile Matters

Here’s something the corporate title companies don’t get: in Eastern Kentucky, mobility isn’t a luxury service—it’s basic respect.

When your grandfather is 87 and selling the home place, you don’t make him drive to Ashland. When a working family is buying their first home and both parents have jobs they can’t easily leave, you don’t make them choose between missing work and closing on time. When the property is two hollers back and the seller has lived there for 60 years, you don’t demand they come to you.

You go to them.

Eastern KY Title doesn’t charge extra for this because it’s not an extra service—it’s how we do business. It’s built into who we are.

We’re not asking people to come to us. We’re meeting people where they are. Literally.

Your Ancestors Are With You

Amy Clark’s most powerful line: “My ancestors are with me every time I speak.”

In Eastern Kentucky title work, your ancestors are literally with you in every closing. They’re in the deed chain. They’re in the property history. They’re in the rights and restrictions that shape what you can do with your land today.

Our job at Eastern KY Title is to honor that. To understand that we’re not just transferring property—we’re continuing a story that started generations ago and will continue long after this closing.

We’re not looking for “low hanging fruit.” We’re looking for opportunities to serve our neighbors with the expertise and respect they deserve.

Because this is our place too. Our history is in our mouth. Our ancestors are with us every time we close a file.

And there’s pride in that.

Need title services from a company that actually understands Eastern Kentucky? Eastern KY Title brings attorney-led closings to your kitchen table, your REALTOR®’s office, or wherever works best for you—at no extra cost. We specialize in the complex property issues that make our region unique: mineral rights, family land transfers, heir property resolution, coal rights, and boundary disputes.

Ready to get started? Visit easternkytitle.com or fill out our simple online order form at easternkytitle.com/order-form. Have questions? Call us at (606) 226-0024.

We come to you. You deserve nothing less.

Lindon Gullett is the founder of Eastern KY Title, bringing attorney-led title insurance and real estate closing services to Eastern Kentucky communities. A Kentucky attorney with deep roots in the region, Lindon specializes in the complex property issues that define Appalachian real estate—from mineral rights and coal rights to heir property and multi-generational land transfers. Eastern KY Title operates as a mobile service, bringing closings directly to clients’ homes, REALTORS®’ offices, or any location that works best. No brick-and-mortar office. No extra fees. Just attorney-led expertise where you need it.