by mcncdmin | Dec 10, 2018 | History
A lot of older folks recall their parents and grandparents telling stories about the deadly “grip” that many Mitchell County families suffered 100 years ago. “They said that some took sick and died in two or three days. It was pretty bad.” Little did they know that...
by mcncdmin | Dec 10, 2018 | History, People
It’s back to school time! These days public schools have consolidated, with only 2 high schools, 2 middle schools, 2 elementary schools, and 1 primary school in Mitchell County. A century ago, however, each community had a small school with most grades attending...
by mcncdmin | Dec 10, 2018 | Economics, History, People
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,...
by mcncdmin | Dec 9, 2018 | History, People, Places
In 1885 Civil War general Thomas Wilder constructed a grand resort hotel atop Roan Mountain near a hunting lodge he had built after he came to the area following the war. The Cloudland Hotel opened to great fanfare with plans to make Roan Mountain a destination for...
by mcncdmin | Dec 9, 2018 | History, Places
Baptisms in a creek or river were once the rule rather than the exception for Appalachian Christians. Even if they hadn’t believed immersion in an outside body of water was appropriate, it was some time before indoor plumbing would have made a baptistery inside a...
by mcncdmin | Nov 28, 2018 | Communities, Economics, History, People
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...
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