In 1888, Asheville opened its first two public schools: the White Normal School and the “colored school.”
Future transit efforts, concerns mirror Asheville’s past
Asheville as we know it today was built upon the back of its electric streetcar system, one of the largest networks of its time. As the city finds itself in a growth spurt once again, could its defunct trolley system provide some clues to Asheville’s transit future?
Asheville Archives: Emancipation Day
Throughout the late 19th and early 20th century, Asheville’s African-American community took to the streets on Jan. 1 of each year to celebrate Emancipation Day.
Poet Zack Zachary shares his civil rights activist experiences
Poet and activist Zack Zachary hosts The Eccentricness of Black Folk from a Black Perspective on Thursday, Feb. 22, at The BLOCK off Biltmore. The spoken word event combines poetry, storytelling, music and conversation.
A scholar and pioneer: Turner speaks on African-American history in Appalachia
On Thursday, Feb. 22, UNCA will host a free lecture, From the Mountaintop! The Civil Rights Movement in Appalachia.
Asheville Archives: The short life of Dr. William Green Torrence
In 1906, Dr. William Green Torrence arrived in Asheville. Four years later, he would set up the city’s first African-American hospital inside his home on Eagle Street.
Asheville Archives: An exercise in perseverance at Highland Hospital
Dr. Robert S. Carroll founded Highland Hospital in 1904. Originally located on Haywood Street in downtown Asheville, it was first known as Dr. Carroll’s Sanitarium.
Asheville Archives: ‘White supremacy made permanent,’ 1900
In 1900, N.C. was set to vote on an amendment to its state constitution. Literacy tests were among the additions proposed. Illiterate white men, however, need not worry. This point was made clear in a Jan 30, 1900 Q&A in The Asheville Daily Citizen. Titled, “WHITE SUPREMACY MADE PERMANENT,” the piece answered all inquiries and concerns surrounding the amendment.
Pack Memorial Library hosts forum on Confederate monuments
On Saturday, Feb. 3, historian Fitzhugh Brundage will participate in “Monumental Decisions: The Legacy and Future of Civil War Markers in our Public Spaces,” a free community forum. The event will also include presentations by Roy Harris and Jon Elliston, members of the Friends of the North Carolina Room.
Asheville Archives: The great snow debate of 1906
Snow fights were part of the fun during a big 1906 snowstorm. But some in the community argued that the severity of the weather did not hold a candle to snowfalls of winters past.
Asheville Archives: The Langren Hotel brings the latest amenities to the city, 1912
The Langren Hotel opened on July 4, 1912. It had 210 rooms and was capable of accommodating 500 guests. The city celebrated the new hostelry. Meanwhile, the Asheville Gazette News declared it “the most important achievement in the way of provision for the tourist business, in western North Carolina in a decade.”
Asheville’s equity manager reflects on MLK
Kimberlee Archie came on board city staff as Asheville’s first equity and inclusion manager last July. In honor of Martin Luther King Day, Xpress asked Archie to share her thoughts on King’s legacy and how it applies to the continuing effort to create equity in Asheville.
Asheville Archives: Victory arch spurs controversy, 1919
In 1919, U.S. soldiers were returning home from WWI. In Asheville, a proper welcome became the source of much local debate.
Asheville Archives: A cloud of war welcomes 1918
On the eve of 1918, wartime efforts overshadowed revelry.
Asheville Archives: Love in the time of Pinchot
In Paula Ivaska Robbins’ latest book, On Strawberry Hill: The Transcendent Love of Gifford Pinchot and Laura Houghteling, the writer explores an unusual connection and undying love that began in West Asheville in the early 1890s.
The changing faces of faith
While Asheville thrives on a diverse spiritual life, shifting demographics and evolving notions of religion’s role in daily life have many historic congregations reconsidering the part they play in local culture — and how best to address a changing community’s concerns.
Asheville Archives: Bolsheviks, Bibles and the poor man’s bank
Violence, illness and a coin toss would eventually lead Harry Finkelstein to Asheville, where in 1903 he opened the Asheville Pawn and Loan Office.
Smoky Mountains cemeteries embody region’s traditions
A new 700-page book, Cemeteries of the Smokies, published by the Great Smoky Mountains Association, serves as an exhaustive guide to graves in Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Through photographs, oral histories and scholarship, the tome also sheds light on the unique world of Appalachian burial lore and traditions.
Asheville Archives: Silk and juvenile shoes arrive at the Grove Arcade, 1929
In 1929, the Grove Arcade opened. The building’s original competition date was scheduled for the summer of 1927. But the death of its developer, E.W. Grove, led to a two-year delay.
UPDATED: Racial tensions mar WNC holiday events
Separate incidents in Canton and Buncombe County over the past week highlight the racial tensions that have dominated headlines throughout 2017 in WNC and across the country.
CTS clean-up moves forward as community wrestles with torrid past
Cleanup efforts are finally beginning at the CTS of Asheville Superfund site on Mills Gap Road, but past controversies and a lack of trust in Environmental Protection Agency officials continued to dominate the discussion during a Nov. 30 public meeting to review the impending remedial projects and address residents’ concerns.