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Tobacco farms, once an icon of American history, are disappearing from the landscape.For the Kentucky tobacco growers who are the focus of this study, tobacco farming is a livelihood that involves a mastery of traditional skills passed through generations and adapted to changing circumstances-technological, economic, social, and political.In this project, I examine the consequences of the changing status of tobacco and the category "tobacco farmer," both of which have become stigmatized because of the health effects of tobacco use.This dissertation examines the current period of transition for Kentucky burley production and the implications for tobacco farmers of the changing contexts of this traditional occupation, often described as "a way of life."The project is based on ethnographic fieldwork in Central Kentucky, supplemented by the collection of public discourses from multiple sites about tobacco production past and present.It brings folklore research and theory together with historical and archival research, economic data, and rhetorical analysis.In addition to a metahistory of tobacco production in the U.S. and Kentucky, and a fieldworkbased description of the 2007 crop-year, this dissertation examines the movement of the social and occupational category "tobacco farmer" from respect to stigma, and considers the repercussions of this movement on central folkloristic concepts, heritage and tradition.A doctoral dissertation cannot be completed without the input, support, and assistance of many individuals and institutions.This is especially true in the case of one based on ethnographic fieldwork with those who are the experts on the topic.I am grateful to the farmers and farm family members, tobacco warehousemen, University of Kentucky Cooperative Extension Service personnel, and many others who so generously and graciously gave me their time and knowledge.I also owe a great debt to the many individuals who introduced me to farmers in their communities, including Keenan Bishop (County Extension Agent for Agriculture and Natural Resources, Franklin County), Edwin Chavous (Small Farm Program Assistant, Franklin County), George Duncan (Professor Emeritus,
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