Before there were bridges across the French Broad River, there were ferries. And then there were no bridges across the river, according to F.S. Sondley in A History of Buncombe County North Carolina, when in “1865 the Yankee invasion up the French Broad River burned the bridges at Alexanders and at what is now Craggy.
Isaac and Sarah Malke Michalove immigrated from Lithuania, Russia and came to Asheville in 1890. Isaac, a pioneer Jewish merchant, operated the Michalove Wholesale Grocery company. Isaac and Sarah’s daughter Hattie, born Sept. 20, 1890, married Barney Pearlman and they immigrated in 1901, coming to Asheville in 1908. Barney operated several groceries, and then opened a small store on Patton
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
“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
Local Asheville residents are hungry for history. Eighty-three people gathered in the Lord Auditorium, Pack Memorial Library to hear new research about the life and family of Rafael Guastavino (1842-1908), the renowned Spanish architect known for his vaults and domes. Guastavino came to Asheville in 1894 for the construction of the Biltmore Estate. He purchased 1,000 acres near Black Mountain for his home,
A couple of weeks ago we were fortunate to receive a donation of Bernard Elias material. Bernard was a photographer, filmmaker, world traveler, avid hiker, and a fierce advocate for nature conservation in the Southern Appalachian Mountains. Bernard was born in 1918 and grew up in Biltmore Forest. His family home provided a great vantage point for him
The Mountain Dance and Folk Festival: “Since 1928, mountain fiddlers, banjo pickers, dulcimer sweepers, dancers, balladeers and others have come to enjoy themselves “along about sundown” the first weekend in August at the Mountain Dance and Folk Festival. This year marked the 87th festival. 1928: Asheville, North Carolina. Well-known musician and folk historian Bascom Lamar
On October 8, 1907, Thomas Walton Patton wrote in his diary, “Election over—bad conduct on part of prohib [prohibition] ladies—very distressing.” Thomas Walton Patton, the third generation of Asheville’s Patton family, was born in Asheville in 1841 and served in the Confederate Army, 1861-1865. The city elected him mayor in 1893 and 1894. Like his grandfather
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