“Greetings From Asheville: Postcards in the North Carolina Collection,” runs noon-1 p.m. on Wednesday, March 29 inside the Lord Auditorium located on lower level of the Pack Memorial Library.
How interstate highways changed the face of WNC
As plans move ahead for the Interstate 26 Connector project through Asheville, community members look back to reflect on the profound impact major road construction projects have had on the region.
Tuesday History: Catholic Hill School and the fire of 1917, part 2
“Darkness ended the heroic labors of the firemen, who were searching among the ruins for the bodies of those still missing, while keeping streams of water on the hot ashes and charred timbers,” notes The Asheville Citizen, in its 1917 article, “Death Toll At Catholic Hill School May Be Eight Children.”
Labor pains: WNC unions at a crossroads
In Western North Carolina and across the country, labor unions seem to be a dying breed these days, and many local residents don’t seem overly concerned about it. Yet WNC’s complex history of unionization stretches back to the late 19th century. From high-profile labor disputes and the emergence of “right to work” laws to the […]
Tuesday History: Catholic Hill School and the fire of 1917
Catholic Hill School — Asheville’s first school building constructed to serve the African-American community — was built in 1892. The three-story brick building held classes for students in the first through ninth grades. On Friday, Nov. 16, 1917, the school’s furnace malfunctioned. Fire consumed the building, and seven students perished in the flames. In 1923, Stephens-Lee […]
In situ remediation could revitalize hazardous waste sites
A group of innovative strategies collectively known as “in situ remediation” could dramatically improve the prospects for addressing groundwater and soil contamination at several local hazardous waste sites more quickly and at lower cost.
Tuesday History: Isaac Dickson and the YMI
The Triangle Park Mural on South Market Street, completed in 2013, was created by Asheville Design Center, in collaboration with community organization Just Folks. Local artist, Molly Must was recruited as the project’s lead designer. The mural captures some of the history of the African American experience in Asheville. Among its many images is one of […]
Calling (college) students of history for new summer internship
Put on those latex gloves, we’ve got primary source material to look into! Mountain Xpress has announced a summer internship for college students interested in local history. Summer interns will have the opportunity to research Asheville’s historic citizens, buildings, events, triumphs and tragedies. In addition, you will learn of, and develop contacts with, local historians and […]
Rural Heritage Museum highlights history of WNC barns
From the Ani Katuah to white settlers and tobacco farmers, barns and buildings have played a central role in defining the culture of the Southern Appalachians. Shelter on the Mountain: Barns and Building Traditions of the Southern Highlands traces the evolution of local building practices.
Tuesday History: The final segment of Martin Luther King’s historic Montreat speech
In the final portion of King’s 1965 Montreat speech, he spoke to the power of the maladjusted.
Tuesday History: Martin Luther King’s historic Montreat speech, part 4
This week, King addresses the “lonely island of poverty in the midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity.”
Tuesday History: Martin Luther King’s historic Montreat speech, part 3
“It may well be that we will have to repent in this generation not merely for the vitriolic words and the violent actions of the bad people… but also for the appalling silence and indifference of the good people who sit around and say wait on time.” — Rev. Martin Luther King
Tuesday History: Martin Luther King’s historic Montreat speech, part 2
“What is segregation but an existential affirmation of man’s tragic estrangement, his terrible separation, his awful sinfulness,” said Martin Luther King, in his 1965 address at Montreat.
Thousands march in Asheville to commemorate Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
A diverse crowd numbering in the thousands marched from the St. James AME Church at 44 Hildebrand St. in Asheville to Pack Square Park to honor Martin Luther King Jr.’s life and legacy on Monday, Jan. 16. Many carried signs expressing love for King and his message of social justice.
Tuesday History: Martin Luther King’s historic Montreat speech, part I
In honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day, we bring you our regularly scheduled Tuesday History post, one day early. On Aug. 21, 1965, the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. addressed an audience of nearly 3,000 people in Montreat Conference Center’s Anderson Auditorium. King, the keynote speaker for the Presbyterian Church’s annual Christian Action Conference, […]
Minerals Research Lab cooks up cutting-edge solutions
For 70 years, the Minerals Research Laboratory on Coxe Avenue has collaborated with mining companies and educational institutions to develop more efficient processes for extracting the state’s mineral resources as well as ways to reuse potentially harmful byproducts.
Tuesday History: John Brinkley, the goat gland king
The John R. Brinkley historic marker in Jackson County, N.C. reads: “Medical maverick, radio and advertising pioneer, candidate for governor of Kansas. Boyhood home stood across the river.” While “medical maverick” touches on Brinkley’s unorthodox role within the world of medicine, it doesn’t address the duplicity of his practice — namely, a scam that involved the implantation […]
Tuesday History: The hermit of Dixieland
The Thomas Wolfe Memorial recently acquired a series of letters written by Frank Wolfe, older brother of Thomas Wolfe. Frank is portrayed as Steve Gant in Look Homeward, Angel. He was the last member of the Wolfe family to live in the Old Kentucky Home, at 48 Spruce St. Frank played a crucial role in keeping […]
Cherokee spirituality straddles past, present and future
“You have to take time to look at yourself, look at your spirit and where you come from, and let the spirit guide your interests and love.”
Diverse Muslim community finds common ground in Asheville
“You could say I was hungry for the truth without even realizing I was searching for it,” says Western North Carolina native Joseph (Yusuf) Gantt, “and that led to a journey of maybe 10 or 15 years in which I finally recognized Islam. It satisfied my hunger.” Two of Gantt’s family members, his mother and […]
Tuesday History: When a poet discovers the segregated South
In the summer of 1947, poet Galway Kinnell (Feb. 1, 1927 – Oct. 28, 2014) spent a brief two-week period at Black Mountain College. He arrived by way of Princeton, with plans to work on his thesis. During his stay, the poet witnessed the reality of the segregated South. The experience left a lasting impression. In a 2001 […]