Cherokee knew how to handle the chill of winter
 

Cherokee knew how to handle the chill of winter

“Two or more Families join together in building a hot-house, about 30 feet Diameter, and 15 feet high, in form…
Read More

Comment

New museum to celebrate Fontana Dam’s 70th
 

New museum to celebrate Fontana Dam’s 70th

A community museum and learning center at Fontana Village along Fontana Lake will commemorate the 70th anniversary of power production…
Read More

Comment

More land conserved around Waterrock Knob
 

More land conserved around Waterrock Knob

A 10-acre tract along the Blue Ridge Parkway and a new section of the Mountains-to-Sea Trail in Jackson County will…
Read More

Comment

Grant allows kids hiking trails to expand
 

Grant allows kids hiking trails to expand

Trail adventures for kids will expand in North Carolina over the coming years, thanks to a $921,000 grant from the…
Read More

Comment

National park wraps up three years of stream mapping
 

National park wraps up three years of stream mapping

A three-year stream-mapping project in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park is now complete, revealing new information about the park’s…
Read More

Comment

The open water: Improved access, mapping set to spur water recreation in WNC
 

The open water: Improved access, mapping set to spur water recreation in WNC

It’s shaping up to be an exciting year for water-lovers in Western North Carolina. After more than a decade of…
Read More

Comment

Advice for becoming a body ‘gardener’
 

Advice for becoming a body ‘gardener’

In French Women Don’t Get Fat: The Secret of Eating for Pleasure, Mirielle Guiliano produced a No. 1 New York…
Read More

Comment

This must be the place
 

This must be the place

It is the single greatest influence on my life. The people, music and culture that encompasses the Grateful Dead is…
Read More

Comment

Hardin display in Macon
 

Hardin display in Macon

A new showcase of work by artist Clint Hardin will be on display for the month of February at the…
Read More

Comment

Irish psych-mystery stages at HART
 

Irish psych-mystery stages at HART

The winter theater season continues with the Tony nominated Broadway play “Shining City” that will run at 7:30 p.m. Jan.…
Read More

Comment

Nicholson to bring bluegrass, Americana to WCU
 

Nicholson to bring bluegrass, Americana to WCU

Award-winning mandolinist Darren Nicholson of Balsam Range will perform with his solo band as part of the First Thursday concert…
Read More

Comment

State of the Arts — Haywood
 

State of the Arts — Haywood

As the crowd found their seats and got settled, all eyes were on Marty Sohovich. “I really believe 2014 was one of our…
Read More

Comment

Facts and beliefs are different animals
 

Facts and beliefs are different animals

To the Editor: Vic Drummond’s recent letter about “The Economic and Employment Costs of Not Expanding Medicaid in NC.” was…
Read More

Comment

U.S. youth need unifying experience
 

U.S. youth need unifying experience

To the Editor: Historical injustices, real and perceived, create seeds of terrorism. Today’s policies create a fertile environment for the…
Read More

Comment

Hunters and their dogs don’t deserve special protections
 

Hunters and their dogs don’t deserve special protections

By Bill Lea • Guest Columnist In the article about the bear dogs attacking a camper’s dogs (www.smokymountainnews.com/outdoors/item/14952), Wallace Messer (a…
Read More

Comment

Surely there is a solution for noise dispute
 

Surely there is a solution for noise dispute

Here’s hoping No Name Sports Pub and the town of Sylva can work out their differences on noise so that…
Read More

Comment

Schools establish criminal justice articulation agreement
 

Schools establish criminal justice articulation agreement

Southwestern Community College students who earn an associate’s degree in criminal justice technology have a new transfer option thanks to…
Read More

Comment

CCC honors groups, individuals for community work
 

CCC honors groups, individuals for community work

The Commission for a Clean County (CCC) has announced the 2014 winners of its annual Community Pride Awards program. This…
Read More

Comment

Broadband survey needs more rural responses
 

Broadband survey needs more rural responses

Haywood County leaders are still in the process of collecting data on broadband Internet service, but they need help from…
Read More

Comment

Cherokee navigate the business side of Internet for all
 

Cherokee navigate the business side of Internet for all

It’s been more than eight years since the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians made its first move toward creating a…
Read More

Comment

Judge tells Jackson County to get moving with courthouse security
 

Judge tells Jackson County to get moving with courthouse security

The exploration of inadequacies at the Jackson County Justice Center has been years in the making, but it’s looking like…
Read More

Comment

Sylva pub launches petition to amend town noise ordinance
 

Sylva pub launches petition to amend town noise ordinance

A pair of dueling petitions dealing with the question of noise at No Name Sports Pub will likely spar at…
Read More

Comment

Swain schools crack the code
 

Swain schools crack the code

“When will I ever use this in real life?” is often the question students have when faced with difficult subjects…
Read More

Comment

Faircloth’s lead finding lands him state award
 

Faircloth’s lead finding lands him state award

Harold Faircloth was recently named Environmental Specialist of the Year in North Carolina after uncovering widespread lead contamination in private…
Read More

Comment

Ghost Town not for sale
 

Ghost Town not for sale

Ghost Town owner Alaska Presley was willing to sacrifice a piece of the theme park property to generate some cash…
Read More

Comment

To snag a cyberstalker
 

To snag a cyberstalker

For most Americans, the Internet has moved from novelty to normal, but translating that shift in norms into law has…
Read More

Comment

Haywood GOP insider charged with cyberstalking party volunteer
 

Haywood GOP insider charged with cyberstalking party volunteer

Editor's note: The cyberstalking allegations against Monroe Miller were dismissed by a judge following court testimony on March 24, 2015. Monroe…
Read More

Comment

Haywood GOP members draw the line over inflammatory emails
 

Haywood GOP members draw the line over inflammatory emails

Monroe Miller is no stranger to the inbox. Hundreds of emails from Miller have peppered the email accounts of people…
Read More

Comment

NC commissioners set legislative priorities
 

NC commissioners set legislative priorities

After wading through more than 300 legislative goals presented by more than 500 commissioners throughout the state, the North Carolina…
Read More

Comment

Maggie Valley: ‘It’s been a good year’
 

Maggie Valley: ‘It’s been a good year’

Maggie Valley officials are beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel after experiencing several tumultuous years.…
Read More

Comment

The uncommon common goldeneye
 

The uncommon common goldeneye

The best way I know of to get a rare bird to fly the coop is to write about it.…
Read More

Comment

Hike the Dirty Dozen
 

Hike the Dirty Dozen

Looking for a new way to explore the wilderness? Check out the Dirty Dozen Wilderness Hike Challenge.
Read More

Comment

The A.T. just got a little longer
 

The A.T. just got a little longer

The Appalachian Trail has a new official length. It increased by 3.9 miles from last year to 2,189.2 miles due…
Read More

Comment

Venus flytrap poachers caught
 

Venus flytrap poachers caught

Four men, ages 22 to 49, were arrested with 970 Venus flytraps in their possession earlier this month at the…
Read More

Comment

Access on Lake Emory gets better
 

Access on Lake Emory gets better

A new canoe portage around the Lake Emory dam is expected to open in Franklin sometime in late spring. 
Read More

Comment

Couple conserves private tract in Jackson
 

Couple conserves private tract in Jackson

A new conservation agreement finalized by the Land Trust for the Little Tennessee will protect 104 acres in Cullowhee from…
Read More

Comment

Smokies visitation tops 10 million
 

Smokies visitation tops 10 million

For the first time in more than a decade, Great Smoky Mountains National Park saw more than 10 million visitors…
Read More

Comment

Sylva man reflects on televised Alaskan survival experience, the adventure lifestyle
 

Sylva man reflects on televised Alaskan survival experience, the adventure lifestyle

Scott McCleskey didn’t really know what he was saying yes to when he boarded the plane to Alaska, pack of…
Read More

Comment

Painted Horses is one for the ages
 

Painted Horses is one for the ages

When people ask me what I’ve been doing this fall, I tell them I’ve been on a reading jag —…
Read More

Comment

A perspective of a retired ob-gyn on today’s situation
 

A perspective of a retired ob-gyn on today’s situation

By Gwang S. Han • Guest Columnist Obstetrics is the branch of medicine dealing with parturition, including care before and after…
Read More

Comment

Sounds preachy, but it’s right: be true to yourself
 

Sounds preachy, but it’s right: be true to yourself

One of the pure joys of my job — teaching English on the college level — is getting to spend…
Read More

Comment

School boards need to fight the good fight
 

School boards need to fight the good fight

The Haywood County School Board narrowly voted (5 to 4, with Chairman Chuck Francis breaking a tie) to contribute money…
Read More

Comment

What you really want to know when new property values arrive in the mail
 

What you really want to know when new property values arrive in the mail

Mailboxes across Macon County were blanketed with new property value notices this week, the first countywide appraisal since 2007.  As…
Read More

Comment

Meet Richard Lightner, the eagle eye of Macon’s reval
 

Meet Richard Lightner, the eagle eye of Macon’s reval

Richard Lightner isn’t one for nostalgia. For nearly 30 years, he’s been running the property reval show in Macon County.…
Read More

Comment

Macon’s reval: unplugged and uncensored
 

Macon’s reval: unplugged and uncensored

The time of reckoning is finally here. Macon County’s first countywide assessment of real estate values since the bust came…
Read More

Comment

The quest for the perfect comp
 

The quest for the perfect comp

Some weeks Tommey Allen spends more time behind the wheel than a long-haul trucker. It’s not all driving time though.…
Read More

Comment

Back from rock bottom: Macon Realtors reflect on the past, present and future
 

Back from rock bottom: Macon Realtors reflect on the past, present and future

June Tassillo loves real estate, but she never knew how exciting it could be until she worked her first all-or-nothing,…
Read More

Comment

Walmart Awards $1,500 to The Arc of Haywood County
 

Walmart Awards $1,500 to The Arc of Haywood County

Jerry Pressley, Walmart manager, presented $1,500 to The Arc of Haywood County for holiday presents and clothes to the individuals…
Read More

Comment

Wheel locks now legal in Sylva
 

Wheel locks now legal in Sylva

Sylva’s parking rules now have a stronger set of teeth with the passage of an ordinance allowing officers to put…
Read More

Comment

Jackson County gets new tourism board members
 

Jackson County gets new tourism board members

The Jackson County Tourism Development Authority will have some new faces around the table this year after the county commissioners…
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.