Horace Kephart

In 1934, the United States Congress officially established what is today the most popular National Park in the country, the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. As a result, over 500,000 acres of scenic. . .

Junior Johnson

Back in the 1930s and 1940s, when moonshining was a means of survival in the mountains of Western North Carolina, a young man emerged who would go on to become one of NASCAR’s founding fathers. He reinforced the romanticized, cultural stereotype of a “noble rogue.” His name was Junior Johnson.

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. . .

Cornhusk Crafts

A Corn husk Family from Allenstand, part of the John Parris Collection Appalachian people, of Cherokee, European, and African origin, all share a long history of making useful and decorative items from the outer leaves of ears of corn, known as cornhusks, or corn...

Qualla Arts and Crafts Mutual

Qualla Arts and Crafts Mutual, located on the Cherokee Indian reservation in North Carolina, was founded in 1946. Its goal is to preserve Cherokee arts and crafts, and provide Cherokee people with a means to sell their crafts year-round. Today, Qualla Arts and Crafts...

Culture

Mountain Dance and Folk Festival

Mountain Dance and Folk Festival

In 1928, Bascom Lamar Lunsford turned his vast knowledge of traditional music and his organizational skills to the creation of a local music festival. The Asheville Chamber of Commerce had long sponsored an annual Rhododendron Festival, highlighting mountain arts and crafts. . .

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Trail of Tears

Trail of Tears

In the 1830s, the United States government, with the approval of the United States Congress and President Andrew Jackson, forcibly removed Southeastern American Indian tribes to present day Oklahoma. This atrocious act has been infamously named the Trail of Tears. . .

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Economy

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...

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Juan Pardo

Juan Pardo

[slideshow_deploy id='6222'] Between 1566 and 1567, Juan Pardo, a Spanish explorer and conquistador, following the earlier example of Hernando DeSoto, led two expeditions into the Carolina and Tennessee mountains.  His objective was to claim land for Spain, and...

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Land

Grandfather Mountain

Grandfather Mountain

Over 700 million years ago two gigantic plates within the earth’s crust slammed together. Among the results was the creation of one of the highest peaks in the Blue Ridge Mountain range, Grandfather Mountain. At 5,964 feet, the mountain is one of Appalachia’s most visited attractions and one of its most unique natural wonders.

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Great Smoky Mountains National Park

Great Smoky Mountains National Park

America’s first National Parks were created out West.  By the early 20th century, Easterners who feared the loss of nature in their rapidly industrializing region wanted their own park.  Businessmen and outdoorsmen in Eastern Tennessee and...

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People

John Parris, 1976

Cornshuck dolls from Allenstand part of the John Parris Collection Parris Receives Heritage Award/John Parris Receives Award During Mountain Heritage Day Festivities Asheville Citizen/ The Reporter Oct. 17th 1976 / Oct. 20th 1976 Western Carolina University Saturday...

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Institutions

Lake Logan

Lake Logan

Thousands of years before the arrival of European settlers, Native Americans, particularly the Cherokees, inhabited the mountain region now known as Appalachia. Within the boundaries of present-day Haywood County, the Cherokee were scattered throughout several villages.

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