Economics
Celebrating 106 years of the Bakersville Barber Shop Building
The earliest photograph of Bakersville that shows the property on which the Barber Shop building sits today was taken after the 1901 May Flood. It’s shown here beside the first Post Office and the J W Bailey Store which was sold in 1912 to George Young. At this time,...
The Roan may become Sun Valley of the South
Don’t go looking for your skis just yet; however, this idea has an interesting history going back at least to 1920. It is well known that General John Wilder had a smaller retreat constructed on the Roan in 1877 and then in 1885 built the iconic Cloudland Hotel, which...
Building the “Scenic”
On November 16, 1933, the Blue Ridge Parkway project received approval from Congress. After much debate in Washington, the Virginia – North Carolina route won out, completely leaving out the state of Tennessee. Had the Tennessee route been included, the road would...
The Story of the Spruce Pine Depots
With all the excitement of the exterior renovation of the Spruce Pine Depot, we thought we would take a look back at the history behind the two depots that have existed in Spruce Pine. The South & Western Railroad, the forerunner of the Clinchfield Railroad,...
Penland Post Office and General Store
The building which houses the Penland Post Office and, for many years, a general mercantile, was constructed in 1902 by Isaac Bailey, a Confederate Colonel and later NC Senator from Mitchell County. Two years later, Bailey and his wife, Louisa Penland, donated land...
Peterson Store in Huntdale
The tiny town of Huntdale, NC, became a thriving community after the Clinchfield Railroad made its way through the Nolichucky Gorge in the early 1900s. In 1890, the Clinchfield tracks reached Erwin, TN, which was less than 20 miles away from Huntdale. Many Western...
The Greene Building in Bakersville
The Greene Building, which currently houses the Bakersville Emporium, was constructed on the site left vacant by the 1922 fire that destroyed part of Bakersville. The Green Building was constructed by David MacDonald Greene, who owned a big white two-story general...
Grassy Creek Golf Course has Storied Past
The Spruce Pine Golf Course had its beginnings prior to World War II, when a nine-hole-course was built on what was then part of the S.T. Henry Dairy Farm at Grassy Creek. This land was once used as a hunting ground by both the Cherokee and Catawba Indians before the...
The First Volunteer Fire Department in Bakersville
This Volunteer Fire Department, the first in Bakersville, NC, was originally known as the Mars Volunteer Fire Department, as noted on the truck’s hood (MVFD). O.D. Calhoun, operator of the Mars Theater in Bakersville was instrumental in helping the group raise the...
Spruce Pine was Hockey Town, USA
In 1982, Robert Bailey and Alvin Barrier, owners of the Buck Stove Corporation, embarked on a bold plan to redevelop the old Harris School property as an entertainment, shopping, dining, and lodging complex. They decided that the bridge between downtown Spruce Pine...