Culture
German Settlers in the Appalachians
People of German descent are one of the largest ethnic groups in the United States. They came to be known by the misnomer “Dutch” because Germans refer to themselves as Deutsch. Germans’ persistent and hardworking nature allowed them to thrive in backcountry...
Dinner on the Ground
Dinner on the Ground in the Upland South from Appalachia to the Ozarks, is an outdoor picnic held at Decoration Day events. The term originally referred to eating in a churchyard or cemetery with a picnic blanket spread on the ground. Nowadays, long tables and...
Economy
Native Plants
Western North Carolina is covered with plants indigenous to the Appalachian Mountains. Here is a short list of the plants found throughout the Linville Falls area. Photographs courtesy of Mark Haskett, Western Carolina University Photographic Services. This...
Appalachian Geology
The geology of the Appalachian Mountain system is unique and complex, especially in the Blue Ridge Province. Unlike most regions of the earth where the youngest rock is the most visible, in the Blue Ridge, the younger rocks are covered by those...
Land
Woolly Worms
Not too many generations ago, before snow plows, central heat, and supermarkets, winters in Appalachia were a much different experience than they are today. Many basic necessities such as mobility, heat, and food were not taken for granted. . .
Appalachian Trail
As undeveloped land shrank in the East, the desire to preserve a wilderness experience intensified. In 1925 a forester, Benton McKaye, organized a conference in Washington, DC, to plan the construction of a footpath that would stretch the length of the Appalachian...
People
Young Adult Choir, Tried Stone Missionary Baptist Church, 2001
Mountain Heritage Award Comments SEPT. 29, 2001 Winner: Young Adult Choir of Tried Stone Missionary Baptist Church. Accepting Award: choir director Cornell ProctorChurch. The Young Adult Choir of Asheville’s Tried Stone Missionary Baptist Church has carried on...
Bea Hensley, 1995
The Sylva Herald Blacksmith Bea Hensley Wins 1995 Mountain Heritage Award. Oct. 5 1995 Bea Hensley, a master blacksmith whose decorative ironwork can be found in all 50 states and many foreign countries, is the 1995 recipient of the Mountain Heritage Award....
Institutions
Sanitariums
For several years during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, tuberculosis was the leading cause of death in the United States. Consequently, a wide variety of treatments emerged claiming to sooth. . .
Penland School of Crafts
The widespread poverty that the Great Depression brought to Appalachia led to the founding of one of the area’s most valuable treasures: the Penland School of Crafts. Nestled deep in the hills of western North Carolina’s Mitchell County is the small community of Penland. . .