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,
Who can go on vacation and return home without some sort of souvenir? Not me: though I’m happy with a free shard of wave-tossed sea glass, better yet I like to make a special purchase of something-or-other to commemorate a trip. When I was a five-year-old, on a summer visit to Cherokee, someone bought me
The 1915 Asheville Board of Trade’s yearly booklet titled, Asheville North Carolina, America’s Beauty Spot, “Land of the Sky” boasts that “Asheville was the first city in the country–June, 1898–to pass an ordinance prohibiting expectoration on the streets, in street cars and public buildings. This ordinance has been copied by cities throughout the world.”
Hiram Lindsey’s General Store was on the east side of South Main Street, (#450 then, later #458), now Biltmore Avenue, near Victoria Road. Mr. Lindsey standing in front. Note advertising placards for Ivory Soap and Toasted Corn Flakes. Hiram, born in 1876, moved to Asheville with his mother, Sarah and at least two of his younger siblings
* Some eye-catching advertisements from a stack of old Asheville newspapers I happened across. * * * We’ve always been foodies. * * * Oh how we love our spirits…even if we don’t have a “stomachic.” * * * Water seems to always be an issue. And look…”wind-mills!” Sustainable energy source pre-solar panels. * * *
Jon Elliston opened his “Asheville in 1915” talk by appearing in period costume dressed as a “newsie” with a newspaper delivery bag slung over his shoulder, and walked up the aisle hollering out the news headlines of the day while passing out copies of a 1915 Asheville Citizen front page. All one hundred and fifty enthralled attendees were suddenly transported to
After last week’s post about Douglas Ellington’s drawing for a city auditorium, Asheville architect Jim Samsel, with an interest in buildings that didn’t get built, brought our attention to this 16-story building also designed by Douglas Ellington, and also never built. The site location is at Pack Square next to the Langren Hotel, the current location of the Akzona-Biltmore
The North Carolina Room and the Preservation Society of Asheville & Buncombe County are partnering together to offer the “Scan the Plan” project. Anyone with eligible architectural drawings can come to the North Carolina Room at Pack Memorial library and get your plans digitized. The service only takes a few minutes, and participants will be able to
THE ELEGANCE OF ASHEVILLE’S ARCHITECTURE RENDERED ON NOTE CARDS BY ARTIST MARGARET DAHM The Friends of the North Carolina Room are pleased to provide the solution to all of your correspondence needs. Yes, you can stop postponing to write those long overdue thank you notes because you “don’t have a card”. Drop by the North Carolina Room and purchase a pack