Part biography, part travel guide, Bruce Johnson’s latest book highlights key landmarks and locations the three literary icons visited or frequented during their respective stays in Asheville in the 1930s.
Tag: Thomas Wolfe
Showing 1-21 of 28 results
Asheville Archives: Thomas Wolfe befriends F. Scott Fitzgerald
Shortly after the 1929 publication of Look Homeward, Angel, author Thomas Wolfe met fellow writer F. Scott Fitzgerald. The two did not always see eye-to-eye.
Asheville Archives: Thomas Wolfe returns for a summer in the woods
After eight years in self-exile, writer Thomas Wolfe returned to his hometown of Asheville.
Asheville Archives: The formation of the Asheville Fire Department, 1882
Prior to the formation of the Asheville Fire Department in 1882, residents and business owners had only themselves and their neighbors to rely on.
Remembering the fire that nearly destroyed the Old Kentucky Home
July marks the 20-year anniversary of the unsolved arson that nearly destroyed one of Asheville’s historic landmarks.
Asheville Archives: The deaths of Thomas Wolfe
It’s not often that two men, unrelated, share both a name and a profession. But this was the case for writers Thomas Wolfe.
Asheville Archives: Look Homeward, Julia Wolfe
Not only did Look Homeward, Angel result in Thomas Wolfe’s own literary fame, but it also propelled his mother Julia to a level of local and national recognition.
Tuesday History: ‘We are born alone’
October was a significant month in writer Thomas Wolfe’s life. The Asheville native was born Oct. 3, 1900. Decades later, his first novel, Look Homeward, Angel came out on Oct. 18, 1929. Local responses were not favorable to Wolfe’s book.
It takes a village to preserve a city
Various tax credits and preservation easements offer financial benefits to owners of historic properties; advocates also tout broader benefits, such as job creation, the reduced environmental impacts of restoration versus demolition, and the intangible value of connecting the present with the past.
Tuesday History: Bringing the Old Kentucky Home to Black Mountain College
We continue with the letters of Frank Wolfe, older brother of Thomas Wolfe. This particular batch, written in 1947, examines Frank’s unique relationship with Black Mountain College. It also touches on the challenges Frank faced in preserving his younger brother’s literary legacy. He would play a major role in the creation of The Thomas Wolfe Memorial Association, […]
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 […]
Tuesday History: The Will Harris murders, part I
On Tuesday, Nov. 13, 1906, near the midnight hour, shots rang out in downtown Asheville.
Smart bets: Thomas Wolfe reading
The free performance, which hinges around the author’s parents, takes place at the Thomas Wolfe Memorial on Thursday, Oct. 13.
Tuesday History: Thomas Wolfe’s last letter
This Thursday, Sept. 15 will mark the anniversary of Thomas Wolfe’s death.
Tuesday History: Thomas Wolfe and his “queer talk,” 1938
We were never taught, for example, to question the life around us, which was the little world of Asheville, which in its turn is the whole world of America.
Tuesday History: Thomas Wolfe v. the state of North Carolina, 1924
N.C. needs honest criticism—rather than the false, shallow “we-are-the-finest-state-and-greatest-people-in-the-country”—kind of thing.
Book traces the arc and influence of Jews in Asheville
The history of Asheville’s Jewish community is indistinguishable from the city’s history. A new book takes a look at the economic and philanthropic contributions of Asheville’s Jewish community.
Of time and the city: Issues facing Asheville in Wolfe’s youth mirror today’s concerns
Asheville and environs have seen considerable change in the 77 years since Wolfe’s death, yet many of the aspects he wrote (and sometimes fumed) about seem uncannily familiar. And as current residents ponder the challenges the city faces today, a look at several of the celebrated author’s key themes might prove instructive.
Smart bets: Thomas Wolfe mystery dinner theater
Lex 18 hosts an immersive historical dinner experience featuring Thomas Wolfe and other period characters on Sunday, Sept. 20.
Asheville Wordfest shifts focus to local speakers, Wolfe inspirations
The 2015 Wordfest takes place Friday, May 1, and Saturday, May 2, at Lenoir-Rhyne University’s Asheville campus. The festival is a chance to see narrative as a connective force across communities and this year’s theme is an expansion of what many authors live for and love — community, creativity and Asheville itself.
City Council to hear preliminary steps in evaluating shape of Thomas Wolfe Auditorium
Asheville City Council has a light schedule for its regular April 14 meeting. Council members will hear a resolution to approve preliminary steps in evaluating the condition of the Thomas Wolfe Auditorium, as well as tackle some administrative tasks in Buncombe County’s purchase of a 137-acre plot on Ferry Road near Bent Creek from Henderson County.