A painting of the N.W. Woodfin house by John Holland. It is presumed that the figure on the porch is N.W. Woodfin. The home stood at what is now the corner of Broadway and Woodfin St., the approximate location of HomeTrust Bank. His property reached into where the UNC Asheville botanical gardens are today, this … Continue reading Confronting the Legacy of N.W. Woodfin: 52 Weeks, 52 Communities
A DRAMATIC READING James M. Henderson, Company F, 25 N.C. Regiment wrote to his wife Maria Henderson and little son, William Henry Drayton Henderson. Henderson was killed August 23, 1864 at battle of Weldon Railroad, Petersburg, Va. The Henderson family was from Pigeon River, Haywood County. From the NC Room Collection MS024. IN OBSERVANCE OF … Continue reading Event: CIVIL WAR STORIES BETWEEN HAYWOOD COUNTY SOLDIER JAMES M. HENDERSON AND HIS WIFE MARIA HENDERSON
Unlike most of the communities we’ve covered in this series, the community of Ramoth is in reality, no longer. Once a rather large, and even incorporated suburb of Asheville, most folks living in Buncombe County today have probably never heard of this North Asheville community. Indeed, at one time, Ramoth was so large, they intended … Continue reading Setting the Record Straight in Ramoth: 52 Weeks, 52 Communities
If you grew up in Buncombe County any time after 1960, chances are you took a trip either with your school or your parents to the Zebulon B. Vance Birthplace State Historic Site located in the Reems Creek community near Weaverville. The reconstruction of a late 18th, early 19th century mountain plantation has hosted thousands … Continue reading On a Staircase in Reems Creek: 52 Weeks, 52 Communities
One of the resources hiding away in the North Carolina Room reference stacks are various church histories and minutes. Most of the time, these valuable records sit around on the shelf and do not see much use. If you think about it, it’s easy to understand why. On the surface, it may not seem like … Continue reading “We found all in Fellowship” at Flat Creek: 52 Weeks, 52 Communities
We’re posting an addendum to our Instagram post on Arden thanks to the really insightful question posed by local writer Ami Worthen (@amiwhoa) in the comments. Our original post read, “The painting featured depicts “Struan” a home built in the Arden area in 1847 by Alexander Robertson, a wealthy rice planter from South Carolina who … Continue reading Update on Arden: Some Notes on Enslaved Labor in Buncombe County
A Social for the Friends of the North Carolina Room was held Wednesday, June 24th, 2015 at the Rankin House Inn. The oldest frame house in Asheville, it was built in 1848 by William Dinwiddle (1804-1879) and Elizabeth Lightfoot Roadman (1804-1908) Rankin. It was the perfect place for a gathering of people who love local history. The … Continue reading The Friends of the North Carolina Room Social at the Rankin House Inn
“My Dear Father, Richmond is sad to day,” begins the letter that Major David Rankin wrote to his father, William Dinwiddle Rankin, on May 11, 1863. “The news of the death of that great and good man Stonewall Jackson was received at a late hour last night and spread universal gloom over the whole city. The … Continue reading Civil War Letters from the Rankin-Bearden Collection
One of the most fulfilling kickbacks of being an archivist, for me, is knowing that there is something new to be uncovered as I pick up the next piece of paper, or the next photograph. The Rankin-Bearden Collection is no disappointer. When Asheville resident Walter Diehl found himself the last keeper of the family's records, he donated them to Pack Memorial Library's … Continue reading Col. Bishop Ozone Scrubbs and The Rankin-Bearden Collection
