On Jan. 19, 1863, Confederate soldiers executed 13 men and boys in Madison County accused of raiding properties in the town of Marshall. The action elicited condemnation both in North Carolina and other regions of a war torn nation.
Tag: Madison County
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Set in Stone?
ASHEVILLE, N.C.
Partnership for Appalachian Girls’ Education explores mountain foodways
“I see a potential for these girls not just to get educated and inspired and leave, but to take that inspiration and figure out how to instill it in their communities and create a better future,” says historian and baker Maia Surdam of the 10-year-old program.
Carolina Flowers and Josh Copus Pottery host joint open house
The two-day event will offer guided, educational tours of the flower fields, pottery studio and wood-fired kiln along with other activities.
News Briefs: Buncombe maintains state’s lowest unemployment, bat fungus spotted in Madison County
Buncombe did see its unemployment tick up from the 2.8% April rate; the May rate was also higher than the 2.8% reported for the same month last year. However, the Department of Commerce noted that all of the state’s other metro areas also saw rate increases, and the Asheville metro area actually added about 1,900 nonfarm jobs in May.
Letter: ‘No’ to roadside herbicide spraying
“What puzzles me about this widespread, hazardous herbicidal spraying all along the length of N.C. 251 in the French Broad River basin is why?”
Letter: On movies, Spillcorn and Trump
“Lots of insight into helping us transplanted urbanites comprehend the ongoing support for our current president, whom many of us consider an amoral charlatan, even when they are voting against their own interests.”
Letter: Confederate monuments and phony culture wars
“For years now, Americans have engaged in culture wars, typically over gay rights, abortion, feminism, an imperiled Christianity, bathrooms and Confederate monuments, all perhaps as contrived as the ‘winners,’ usually declared to be ‘leftists’ and ‘lie-braes,’ and ‘losers,’ the poor victimized ‘right and righteous.'”
Beyond stereotypes: portrait of the rural mountain community of Spillcorn
“White, rural communities like Spillcorn are ignored at the risk of misunderstanding their agency and influence in America today.”
Artist Josh Copus builds community
On Saturday, April 7, artist Josh Copus will dedicate his latest installation from his Building Community Brick Project at the Woodson Branch Nature School.
Nonprofit promotes art and fellowship on Bluff Mountain
“From its earliest days, even before it took its more-or-less permanent form as a 501(c)(3), Azule was integral to the Shelton-Laurel and Bluff communities it existed in,” says the organization’s coordinator, Alicia Araya.
Local agencies work to improve water quality in Buncombe & Madison counties
This week, Xpress looks at the network of agencies and organizations working in Buncombe and Madison counties to improve water quality and position the French Broad as the region’s next great tourist attraction.
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.
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.
Smart bets: Bascom Lamar Lunsford Festival
Bascom Lamar Lunsford Festival celebrates its 49th year of championing and preserving Southern Appalachian traditions at Mars Hill University on Saturday, Oct. 1.
Inaugural Pedal to Plate bicycle tour rolls out Sept. 18 in Marshall
Rolling out on Sept. 18, the inaugural Pedal to Plate event will offer tours of six Madison County farms along a 33-mile bike route, followed by a locally sourced farm dinner at Root Bottom Farm.
Murky future for Madison’s historic jailhouse
UPDATE [6/24/16]: Madison County Commissioners voted to accept the $99,800 bid for the old jailhouse property Thursday, June 23, at their monthly meeting by unanimous decision. Josh Copus, a local potter and founder of Clayspace Co-op, announced he and several partners are the purchasers on Facebook. Initial indications are the building will be utilized as […]
Letter writer: Silver Mine fire inspires poem
“Out of the ashes of her arsonist’s deliberate attack
She will rise in time and take her mountains back”
Celebrating Madison County’s farm buildings
Appalachian Barn Alliance hosts Barn Month 2016, a series of events surrounding the third annual Barn Day on Saturday, May 21. The festivities kick off on Friday, May 5, with the opening reception of The Barns of Madison County exhibit at The Madison County Arts Center.
Smoke and mirrors: the death of tobacco in WNC
Few crops have been as central to North Carolina’s economy and culture — or as controversial — as tobacco. Historically, its high market value and the relative ease of growing it made tobacco a staple for many Western North Carolina farmers. As late as 2002, 1,995 mountain farms grew tobacco. The crop’s prevalence, however, was […]
Blood in the valley: The Shelton Laurel Massacre’s haunting legacy
“Will the America of the future — will this vast, rich Union ever realize what itself cost back there, after all?” – Walt Whitman In January 1863, at the height of the Civil War, Confederate soldiers of the 64th North Carolina Regiment, composed mostly of men from the western counties, marched into Shelton Laurel. Their […]