Irma Henderson Smathers was born in Madison County in 1910 to Carlene “Jenny”and Logan Henderson. Growing up in Marshall, “Irma painted her dolls with Mercurochrome and did surgery and suturing on their sawdust bodies. She told everyone she was going to be a doctor. They said, “No, dear, you mean you are going to be a
Wade “Gob” Hampton Martin was born in 1920, the son of Marcus Lafayette and Callie Holloway Martin. He had four brothers, Edsel, Wayne, Fred and Quintin and one sister, Zenobia. All of them carved. In the early 1930s the family moved from Andrews, N.C. to Swannanoa, N.C. Wade was nine at the time and grew
Our fearless leader, Laura Gaskin, is retiring from Pack Memorial Library after 24 years of dedicated service. Laura has been the Head Librarian here for most of that time, but she cut her teeth as the first Special Collections Librarian at Pack. It’s staggering to think about the work and dedication it must have taken to process, organize, and
“Skyline Dairy was clean, modern, and cool. We would have cones of lemon sherbet after a Sunday afternoon drive. Most often we ate in the car, probably because it kept my brother and I quiet and contained for a few minutes. Always loved that facade — another example of short-lived good modern architecture, now
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
What a pool it was, too. An acre in size, the pool opened July 17, 1924. At the time it was said that the pool “is clearly among the largest, and costliest in America.” Masonry walls of massive granite enclosed the pool. “The water was continuously filtered, chlorinated, aerated and introduced to the pool through an attractive grotto
Currently on view in the North Carolina Room William Henry Jackson (1843-1942), was one of the earliest and most important American photographers. From 1869 to 1878 he was the official photographer for the U.S. Geological Survey of the Territories. Jackson’s images of the Rocky Mountains, especially of the Yellowstone region, taken in 1871 and widely published,
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
My, how good the Nichols Building looks now that it has a little breathing room! [This is a follow-up to a previous post about the razing of the Blomberg Garage which sat just to the side in this photo.] The Nichols Building was built by Archibald Nichols (1875-1937) former secretary for eight years of the