In pursuit of truthful marketing, the Asheville Advertising Club formed in 1922. The group grabbed many headlines early on, but its contributions failed to draw attention as the years progresses
Author: Thomas Calder
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Asheville Archives: Billy Borne’s 1922 cartoons
As in years past, we revisit cartoonist Billy Borne‘s work as part of our latest Humor Issue. For over two decades, starting in 1907, Borne offered commentary on local, national and international matters through his illustrations, published in The Asheville Citizen. Our focus here, however, is exclusively on 1922. As readers will see, Borne’s cartoons from […]
Local author examines Western North Carolina’s violent past
In her latest book, Murder in the Mountains: Historic True Crime in Western North Carolina, local author Nadia Dean examines 10 deadly crimes from the region’s past.
Asheville Archives: 3 local historians speak of 2021’s historical achievements
Three local historians reflect on historical moments and projects that occurred in 2021.
Cover time: Highlights from 2021
Every week, Xpress proudly displays a new issue in its purple distribution boxes. Each week’s cover comes about in a unique way, as our design and editorial teams work together with local photographers and illustrators to create an eye-catching visual. Below, we’ve selected a cover from each month to highlight some of the important topics we covered […]
Asheville Archives: Local writer satirizes the holiday shopping experience, 1912
“The Society for the Prevention of Useless Giving seems to have but few advocates in this city or rather, none of the Asheville citizens appear to think that their gifts will be useless,” writer Tooth Barkington reported in the Dec. 15, 1912, edition of The Sunday Citizen.
Asheville Archives: Black residents testify in suit over the obstruction of popular pathway in Stumptown, 1909
In 1909, a fence disrupted a pathway in Stumptown, a Black neighborhood near Riverside Cemetery. Initial complaints eventually led to a lawsuit.
Asheville Archives: Performers from a musical comedy flop tour the city’s specialty shops, 1917
A troupe of visiting performers toured Asheville’s specialty shops as part of a promotional campaign in December 1917. Despite the group’s tireless effort, the production itself proved to be poorly attended by local residents.
Asheville Archives: Local beer sales spike in the aftermath of Prohibition, 1933
An early beer craze hit Asheville, following the end of prohibition. But the new brews were produced with a lower alcohol content, which did not sit well with everyone.
Local author examines music, obsession and death in her debut novel
Local author Christy Alexander Hallberg’s recently published debut novel, Searching for Jimmy Page, is a book 15 years in the making. A series of tragedies and personal quests delayed the project prior to its October release.
Asheville Archives: Reflections on Thanksgiving amid the Great Depression, 1930
“Prayer is an attitude. Thanksgiving is a mood,” The Asheville Citizen wrote in a Nov. 27, 1930, editorial reflecting on the season of gratitude at the onset of the Great Depression.
Asheville Archives: Salvation Army establishes a local chapter, 1890
First established in London in 1865, the Salvation Army’s local branch formed in Asheville a quarter of a century later in 1890.
Asheville Archives: Halloween celebrations return after the 1918 influenza
In 1918, city officials prohibited Halloween due to influenza. A year later, Asheville residents were eager to celebrate.
Asheville Archives: City faces housing shortage for summer tourists, 1920
With the number of visitors expected to reach new highs, residents and local officials worried about housing issues for Asheville’s 1920 summer tourists.
Asheville Archives: Women’s professional attire, 1911
In honor of our annual Women in Business issue, we explore professional women’s attire in the early 1910s.
Asheville Archives: Local resident reflects on Cherokee history, 1903
“Too little has been written about the early Indians who peopled North Carolina,” The Asheville Citizen declared on July 19, 1903. Fortunately for the paper’s readers, a June 1903 booklet — North Carolina Cherokee Indians — offered a detailed account on the very topic.
Drug trafficking and racial tension converge in Wiley Cash’s latest novel
The New York Times bestselling author and UNC Asheville Writer-in-Residence Wiley Cash discusses his latest novel, When Ghosts Come Home.
Asheville Archives: The city celebrates Cornelia Stuyvesant Vanderbilt’s birth
On Aug. 22, 1900, Cornelia Stuyvesant Vanderbilt was born. The Asheville Citizen and other papers reported on the arrival of the newborn at the Biltmore Estate.
Asheville Archives: Residents protest new construction on public land, 1891
Local resident E.J. Armstrong began work on constructing a pavilion on Court Square (today’s Pack Square) in 1891. The initial project was met without resistance; but as the size of the structure became apparent, citizens called for its removal.
Asheville Archives: Literary expectations hound Thomas Wolfe, 1931
Despite public outcries over his 1929 debut novel, Look Homeward, Angel, local residents were still eager to know what Thomas Wolfe had planned next. As pressure mounted to deliver his next book, Wolfe begged his mother to not leak any information to the Asheville press.
Asheville Archives: 1891 resident shares his vision of the city’s future
In an 1891 article, published by The Asheville Daily Citizen, an unnamed writer shared his visions from a recent dream wherein he time-traveled to 1950.