Kyova

What is a Kyova?

Well I’ll fill you in—Kyova is a ten-county region in Ohio, Kentucky, and West Virginia containing around half a million.

Kyova was the runt of the colonial litter, peaking with the dawn of the automobile and then dying in the middle of its voided warranty like a Ford. The first European settlement was Collinsworth in 1775 and the rest followed after. These new inhabitants encountered a complex series of mounds scattered throughout the land and upon excavation of these mounds, the settlers discovered their true origins—the mounds were burial grounds for an ancient civilization we call the Adena, who became the Hopewell tradition and Fort Ancient culture. The people would fall victim to the smallpox epidemic of the 18th century and much of their history is lost to time.

The Kyova region rose to prominence with industry—the geographical location on the mighty Ohio River and its tributaries made sure of it. Meat packing, shoe manufacturing, even the production of baseball gloves! It was like fate willed it.

Collinsworth boomed in population from its founding until the 1930s, going from 3,000 to 80,000 in just 50 years. Shawnee’s population peaked at 30,000 in 1960, and Peatown at 40,000.

And then the industry went and left and wrecked the shit out of the region. They pumped out all the jobs then pumped the people full of fucking pills.

The Kyova tri-state has a perpetual dark cloud hanging on it. It was ranked the most miserable place in America last decade and an opioid epidemic looms over the region. Collinsworth was once dubbed America’s overdose capital. Cancer deaths are in abundance. Good jobs are scarce, and the dream of every child is to escape to greener pastures.

For some, the dream passes on to their children.