Hidden in the midst of the Appalachian Mountains are secrets. A mystery, a people forgotten on purpose.

"I don't think that we could really go back far enough that we could establish exactly how they got here or who they were or are," said DruAnna Overbay. "Melungeons was a stigma, it was a matter of self-preservation. I don't fault any of my ancestors for trying to preserve their lives."

Melungeon. The word itself is a mystery.

The Portuguese term for ship mate is Melungeon but to many, the word means a mixture.

But perhaps its most likely origin is the French word melange, a slur used in the old south against anyone with dark skin.

"A lot of people were really upset because they may be classified as being black," Overbay said.

The dark-skinned, blue-eyed people settled at the feet of the mountains in a valley near Hancock County.

Many people believe they are a mixed race made up of European, Native American, perhaps even shipwrecked Portuguese sailors.

Stories say they were following Daniel Boone but stopped in the mountains when a child died, and the mother refused to leave her child's grave. Some swear they are shipwrecked Portuguese sailors. Others are trying to pick up the pieces on the land where the Melungeon Patriarch Vardamin Collins lived.

"We have very few people who will agree on any of the theories on their origins," said Overbay. "Everyone has a different spin."

One spin is they come from African descent.

"They kind of [...] were quiet about their ancestry," she said. "I think it was a means of protecting us. The civil rights movement hadn't come."

These whispers in the mountains echoed through generations, but the secret stayed trapped, attempting to cover up who they were, afraid for their lives to admit they had any African blood in their veins.

"Go back to the 1800s. Would you want to admit that you were African American and become a slave? No," said Overbay.

For all that's unknown, one thing is sure, they suffered.

Overbay grew up in Vardy. It was the only life she knew, but without a clue about who she was.

"I was five years old in 1947, I went to school up here on the hill," she said. "I picked up the magazine, the Saturday Evening Post and started reading the article. My mother was inside preparing for class and she came right out and she said you give me that dirty, filthy magazine, and I don't ever want to hear you mention it again. And she took it away from me."

The people in the magazine were from Vardy. The faces looked like hers. Her curiosity grew roots, but her questions weren't answered.

"Whenever I first discovered that I was Melungeon, my mother was absolutely adamant that we were not," she added.

With their dark skin they were forced to defend themselves against the shock waves of racism sweeping a nation.

"She didn't want us associated with being Melungeon because she wanted to protect us."

Because where there were secrets also lurked danger.

"There was a fella in Virginia, Walter Plecker, who was emasculating young Melungeon boys, or he wanted to emasculate them because of genetics," she said.

Because of his age, Overbay said her brother was a target.

"Hitler even sent in his henchmen to study under Walter Plecker to study how to eradicate a race. Because Walter Plecker felt like Melungeons were inferior. If there was one drop of African blood, they were to be destroyed," she said.

Another Vardy myth was that Melungeons were illiterate moonshiners. Overbay said the educational system in Vardy was advanced for the time. The Presbyterian Church set up missionaries, built schools and brought in instructors to teach the Melungeon children how to read among other subjects.

For Overbay, the pride of her region is stronger than ever. She worked tirelessly to uncover her family's buried secrets.

It wasn't until the end of the century that her mother opened up to her.

"She said I have something to give you. If you're going to tell this story, I might as well give you what I've got so that you can tell the story as true as we know it. And that's when she gave me that Saturday Evening Post magazine back. I went, I couldn't' believe it," she said.

Overbay has submitted several DNA tests, but each test comes back with conflicting results.

Now, she serves as the Secretary of the Vardy Community Historical Society and works on restoration projects at the original Melungeon homestead. She preserves the land, bringing back to life the story that was never told.

"This is where my ancestry began," she said. "How much pride I have."

Still a mystery remains hidden in the mountains, finding the forgotten faces of Appalachia..

"We want to solve a good mystery," Overbay said.

Overbay shares the mission of the Vardy Community Historical Society that aims to record and report on the lives, times, and culture of families living in the Vardy Valley from 1892 to 1974.

The Vardy Community Historic District consists of Vardy Community School built in 1929, Vardy Presybterian Church built in 1899, the second Vardy Mission School built in 1902 (now a private residence), the Mary J. Rankin House built in 1920 (now a private residence), the Chester F. Leonard Manse and Clinic (now a private residence), the Drew B. and Alyce Horton Williams Home built in 1934 (now a private residence), and the General Store built in 1937 that was destroyed by a fire.

The Vardy Presbyterian Church and Mahala Mullins Cabin are open to the public for interpretive presentations and guided tours each Saturday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. from May to September and on the third Saturday of the month from October to April. To arrange a tour or request more information, call 423-733-2305.