DA Welch Appointed to Innocence Commission

District Attorney Ashley Hornsby Welch has been named prosecuting attorney commissioner for the N.C. Innocence Inquiry Commission.
Read More

Comment

 

Lake Junaluska Begins Drawing Down Water Levels

Lake Junaluska began the drawdown of the lake on Dec. 30. The lake drawdown, which happens every few years, allows…
Read More

Comment

 

COVID-19 cluster found at Macon Valley

Macon County Public Health has identified a COVID-19 outbreak at Macon Valley. Thirteen residents and four staff members have tested…
Read More

Comment

 

Jackson County fire chief dies from COVID

The COVID-19 death count in Jackson County nearly doubled over the holiday season, increasing from 10 as of Nov. 25…
Read More

Comment

 

Elderly in Haywood can pre-register for vaccine

Beginning Jan. 6, Haywood County residents over the age of 75, who have not already been included in a previous…
Read More

Comment

 

Pardon me? Haywood man’s presidential pardon reveals systemic inequities

On a frosty Appalachian mountain morning in 1962, 22-year-old Waynesville man Charles Miller brought his car to a stop on…
Read More

Comment

 

Tribal members seek to reverse casino purchase

A group of 14 tribal members that includes two sitting Tribal Council members and a former principal chief has entered…
Read More

Comment

 

Anti-mask, anti-vax views raise concerns

One of the loudest voices against masks and vaccines during recent public comment sessions in Haywood County also serves on…
Read More

Comment

 

State finds Swain jail death caused by cardiac arrest

After a four-month investigation into the sudden death of a 25-year-old Cherokee man inside the Swain County Detention Center, the…
Read More

Comment

 

Opposition forms against proposed Haywood jail

A Nov. 3 report by the Haywood County Sheriff’s Office demonstrating the need for a $16 million expansion to the…
Read More

Comment

 

327 new COVID cases reported in Haywood

In the week since the last press release, Haywood County Public Health has received notice of 327 new cases of…
Read More

Comment

 

Positive gains continue in WNC housing market

The mountain counties of Western North Carolina posted yet another strong month of home sales in November according to the…
Read More

Comment

 

Haywood reports six more COVID-19 deaths

Haywood County Health and Human Services is reporting six more COVID-19 deaths, bringing the total number now to 68. 
Read More

Comment

 

Down Home Haywood leads campaign against new jail

On Monday, Jan. 4, Down Home North Carolina Haywood and local community members will hold a press conference to announce…
Read More

Comment

 

Three new COVID deaths reported in Macon

Three Macon County residents diagnosed with COVID-19 have passed away. The persons were over the age of 65 and had…
Read More

Comment

 

Former NPS director dies from COVID-19

Former National Park Service Director Gary Everhardt passed away on Sunday, Dec. 27, following a battle with COVID-19 and just days after…
Read More

Comment

 

Haywood Health begins COVID vaccinations

Haywood County Health and Human Services Agency has begun distribution of its first allotment of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine. 
Read More

Comment

 

Untreated sewage discharged into Pigeon River

The Junaluska Sanitary District experienced a discharge of untreated sewage from a broken sewer main.
Read More

Comment

 

2020: Burn, baby, burn

They say hindsight is 2020 and that is definitely true as we’re all eager to put this disaster of a…
Read More

Comment

 

Fake News Freakout! Five

By Cory Vaillancourt • Fake News Editor | When I started writing this yearly feature five years ago, it was…
Read More

Comment

 

Macon Human Services closes due to hazardous chemicals

Macon County Human Services building (which includes the Department of Social Services, Macon County Public Health, and Code Enforcement) was…
Read More

Comment

 

Rabies positive racoon found in Macon

Macon County has identified a rabies positive raccoon. The raccoon was turned over to Macon County Animal Services after it…
Read More

Comment

 

New COVID cases not slowing down in Haywood

Between Dec. 23 and Dec. 28, Haywood County Public Health has received notice of 185 new cases of COVID-19.  
Read More

Comment

 

COVID cluster identified at Macon 911 center

Macon County Public Health has identified a COVID-19 cluster of positive cases in Macon County’s 9-1-1 Communication Center.
Read More

Comment

 

COVID cluster found at Macon nonprofit

Macon County Public Health has identified a COVID-19 cluster of positive cases at the nonprofit Macon Program for Progress.
Read More

Comment

 

Macon educator finalist for 'Beginning Teacher' award

Teachers from across North Carolina have been selected as finalists for the North Carolina Center for the Advancement of Teaching…
Read More

Comment

 

COVID-19 update from Haywood Health

Between Dec. 18 and Dec. 21, Haywood County Public Health has received notice of 129 new cases of COVID-19. 
Read More

Comment

 

SCC re-opens from winter break on Jan. 4

To allow all employees an opportunity to get tested for COVID-19 after the winter break, Southwestern Community College will be…
Read More

Comment

 

Ceasars, EBCI announce Indiana deal

Ceasars Entertainment and the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians today released a formal announcement regarding the sale of operations at…
Read More

Comment

 

Help make a child’s last wish come true

As Amanda McLeod celebrated her sweet 16 birthday last week, she wasn’t thinking about herself or the rare auto-immune disease…
Read More

Comment

 

The day Santa came to Red Fox Loop: In search of the Christmas spirit in Appalachia

With a frigid wind pushing across the parking lot of the Clyde Volunteer Fire Department last Saturday afternoon, Santa Claus…
Read More

Comment

Screenshot test
 

Sylva teen club closes quietly

A Sylva teen club that sparked controversy two months ago by disseminating a flyer inviting high school students to “come…
Read More

Comment

 

School board to borrow county funds for office renovations

At a school board meeting Monday, Dec. 14, Haywood County School Board members were split on how to pay for…
Read More

Comment

 

First COVID-19 vaccines make it to WNC

The COVID-19 vaccine distribution has begun in Western North Carolina with the first doses going to healthcare workers and emergency…
Read More

Comment

 

Economic development ranking system ‘cuts both ways’

Each year around this time, North Carolina takes a look at the economic prosperity, or lack thereof, in every one…
Read More

Comment

 

Council votes to purchase Indiana casino operation

Tribal Council decided by a razor-thin margin last week to pursue a $280 million deal to purchase the gaming operation…
Read More

Comment

 

Transparency concerns surround Council casino discussions

When the Cherokee Tribal Council waded through its final hours of discussion — and, ultimately, a vote — on the…
Read More

Comment

 

Haywood County to get a new high school

At the regularly scheduled meeting of the Shining Rock Classical Academy Board of Directors, the decision was made to begin…
Read More

Comment

 

Cashiers residents organize against proposed development

As the Jan. 6 hearing that will determine the project’s fate draws nearer, opposition is mounting to a plan that…
Read More

Comment

 

Seven more COVID-19 deaths reported in Haywood

Haywood County Health and Human Services is reporting seven more COVID-19 deaths, bringing the total number now to 62. 
Read More

Comment

 

Macon identifies COVID-19 cluster at sheriff's office

Macon County Public Health has identified a COVID-19 cluster of positive cases in the Macon County Sheriff’s Office.
Read More

Comment

 

Holiday gatherings lead to more COVID spread

Between Dec. 12 and Dec. 14, Haywood County Public Health has received notice of 112 new cases of COVID-19.  As…
Read More

Comment

 

Dog Park Initiative by Vision Cashiers Moves Forward

Vision Cashiers, a not-for-profit organization led by volunteers and devoted to improving the Cashiers community, recently announced it has received…
Read More

Comment

 

Haywood announces spring school calendar

Following the semester and holiday break, Haywood County Schools will return for blended and in-person learning on Monday, Jan. 11,…
Read More

Comment

 

Franklin man pleads guilty to drug trafficking

Caught out and arrested by a sharp-eyed deputy sheriff, a Franklin man is headed to state prison after a failed…
Read More

Comment

 

Soup and Cornbread canceled, support still needed

Altrusa of Waynesville is part of an International nonprofit organization that emphasizes community service including literacy, education and other needs…
Read More

Comment

 

Waynesville passes State of Emergency ordinance

A routine update to the Town of Waynesville’s State of Emergency ordinance finally passed on Dec. 8 after being tabled…
Read More

Comment

 

‘Darkest before the dawn’: Sylva doctor contracts COVID amid rising cases, hospitalizations

It was the Saturday after Thanksgiving, and Sylva resident Ben Guiney was spending the morning decorating the Christmas tree with…
Read More

Comment

 

Farmers, pantries strive to feed the hungry

Food pantries and meal delivery programs have had to change how they operate during the pandemic while still trying to meet…
Read More

Comment

 

Volunteers ‘fill in the gaps’ of the food security spectrum

Passing modest, nondescript houses with swing sets and dog houses in their yards, the big red pickup truck lumbered up…
Read More

Comment

Smokey Mountain News Logo
SUPPORT THE SMOKY MOUNTAIN NEWS AND
INDEPENDENT, AWARD-WINNING JOURNALISM
Go to top
Payment Information

/

At our inception 20 years ago, we chose to be different. Unlike other news organizations, we made the decision to provide in-depth, regional reporting free to anyone who wanted access to it. We don’t plan to change that model. Support from our readers will help us maintain and strengthen the editorial independence that is crucial to our mission to help make Western North Carolina a better place to call home. If you are able, please support The Smoky Mountain News.

The Smoky Mountain News is a wholly private corporation. Reader contributions support the journalistic mission of SMN to remain independent. Your support of SMN does not constitute a charitable donation. If you have a question about contributing to SMN, please contact us.