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Why I still vote Democrat
To the Editor: For the last decade, I have questioned my party allegiance, as well as the allegiance of others…
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Article’s premise was totally unfounded
To the Editor: The article ”Unfair collection practices in tax collector’s office?” (Feb. 25 edition) wisely includes a question mark…
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Old-time surveyors used some interesting tools, markers
“The line runs down the meander of the ridge to where Bossy dropped her first calf.” “The line runs to where…
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Down to bare rock: Smokies’ Chimney Tops could be closed for years following fire
When starting the hike, it’s not immediately obvious why the Chimney Tops Trail should be appointed for long-term closure. The…
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Firefighters combat Cold Mountain Fire
A human-caused fire estimated at 132 acres is burning in the Shining Rock Wilderness Area about 20 miles south of…
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‘Casablanca’ one of the finest scripts of all time
“Casablanca.” For some, that name evokes a city in Morocco, an urban center of four million people quartering one of…
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Behind the scenes: Artist brings theater productions to life
Haywood Arts Regional Theatre in Waynesville is fortunate to be one of few theaters to have a talented scenic artist…
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Bank robbery suspect caught
The Waynesville Police Department responded to the report of a robbery on Feb. 17 at Entegra Bank located at 2045…
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Gladys Knight, husband to host community event
A dilapidated segregation-era high school in Canton purchased by a former student will become a $5 million community center by…
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Sylva begins budget talks
Sylva is just starting budget planning for 2017-18, but this year’s process promises to be less arduous than last year’s,…
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Community ready for a fight
Macon County commissioners heard impassioned cries for help last week from families that have lost loved ones to addiction.
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Two elk found dead on Jonathan Creek dairy farm
A technician with the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission was out for a routine check of an elk fence installed at…
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Calendar change could affect some Haywood school workers
A 2012 change to a law that lays out requirements for yearly school calendars has the Haywood County School Board…
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Canton board faced with growing needs, shrinking budget
Canton officials and town staff met for four hours Feb. 16 to discuss achievements and goals, but will have to…
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Outdoor adventure park proposed in Dillsboro
Construction on an outdoor adventure park offering everything from rafting to ropes courses could begin in Dillsboro as early as…
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Tribal Council calls chief’s hotel contract into question
Opponents of Principal Chief Patrick Lambert are crying foul over a $5.6 million contract between the Tribal Casino Gaming Enterprise…
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Haywood Commissioners decide on tax collector issue
The rift between Haywood County commissioners and the last remaining elected tax collector in North Carolina — Mike Matthews —…
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Public safety, transportation top Haywood budget wish list
Budgeting for the 2017-18 fiscal year is underway across the state, but in Haywood County, a decrease in property tax…
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HART’s traveling backdrops wow theaters far and wide
Haywood Arts Regional Theatre is known for is top-rate shows and high-caliber acting not typical of community theaters. But HART…
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HART’s scenic artist sets the stage for drama
Lyle Baskin is a man of high places. He’s spent most of his life on a ladder.
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Six life lessons from a backdrop artist
The Smoky Mountain News asked Lyle Baskin, the scenic artist for Haywood Regional Arts Theatre, to share the secrets of…
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Sylva welcomes fourth brewery
Though exact details are unknown, BCNC Investments in Bryson City has announced the purchase of the building that formerly held…
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This must be the place: I’m a white man, and I know nothing
It wasn’t the film that was shocking. It was the mere fact I had previously thought “I was aware,” and…
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Mountain Heritage Center exhibit on African-American community, music
Western Carolina University’s Mountain Heritage Center, in partnership with One Dozen Who Care, will host a display on the cultural…
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SCC pottery chosen for NC Welcome Center
Heritage arts instructors Susan Coe and Ed McIlvaine, along with Kari McIlvaine (Ed’s wife and a heritage arts student), recently…
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Spikes found in Pinnacle Park, runner injured
In a bizarre discovery, over 50 intentionally placed spikes have been identified and removed from the popular trail system at…
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Shouted, Written Down & Quoted: Paul Hoffman of Greensky Bluegrass
Within almost two decades together, Greensky Bluegrass has grown from a scrappy string band to one of the premier live…
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Comprehending climate: Smokies seeks to understand impacts of shifts in seasonal patterns
According to the National Phenology Network, Punxsutawny Phil had it all wrong when he emerged from his hole this month…
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The Naturalist's Corner: Is spring springing earlier?
Back in January I surveyed the Tellico Fire with MountainTrue biologist Josh Kelly. We were there to check out the…
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Blizzard of 1993 is catalyst for a fine first novel
In True Stories At The Smoky View (She Writes Press, 2016, 325 pages, $16.95), Vrai Stevens Lynde — the “Vrai”…
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Sharing the craft: Jo Ridge Kelley Fine Art
With the traffic and noise of a busy Main Street in downtown Waynesville zooming by outside her window, Jo Ridge…
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This must be the place: So many miles, so many roads
I hadn’t slept that long in years. After driving up and down the East Coast for the better part of…
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‘Blackbeard’s Ghost’ wins national award
Western Carolina University’s 2016 original radio-style production of “Blackbeard’s Ghost and the Queen Anne’s Revenge” has won a “best of…
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The next war must not happen
By Stephen Wall • Guest Columnist On August 6, 1945, an atomic bomb exploded 1,500 feet over Hiroshima. Only 1.5 percent…
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An escape into a magical world
I was in the Disney bubble for seven days straight, so it was rather depressing driving home with the daily…
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Most presidents learn from criticism — not this one
By Martin Dyckman • Guest Columnist The press must be the keyboard on which the government can play. — Joseph…
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Valuable lessons from failed annexation
To the Editor: Thank you Smoky Mountain News and Becky Johnson for writing an article bringing to a close the…
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What to make of Trump’s eruptions
To the Editor: It’s gotten to the point that I’m hesitant to listen to or read the news. President Trump’s…
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In front of the lens: Tax collector faces uncertain fate
Haywood County Commissioners are locked in an increasingly bitter power struggle with elected Tax Collector Mike Matthews over his job…
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Public comment session at next commission meeting
The next meeting of the Haywood County Board of Commissioners will be held at 5:30 p.m. Monday, Feb. 20, inside…
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Unfair collection practices in tax collector’s office?
A Smoky Mountain News inquiry into collection procedures in the Haywood County tax collector’s office shows that some county GOP…
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Comparing tax collections under Francis, Matthews
Haywood County Tax Collector Mike Matthews’ efficiency and his use of attachments to collect past due taxes have been called…
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Cherokee man sentenced in murder case
Joshua Daniel Calhoun, 22, of Cherokee, was sentenced Feb. 14 in Swain County Superior Court to a maximum of 38…
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Haywood man convicted of voter fraud
A Haywood County jury recently convicted Dewey George Gidcumb, 52, of Haywood County of felony voter fraud for voting twice…
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Applicants needed for Swain broadband committee
Swain County commissioners are accepting applications from community members to serve on a newly formed Broadband Advisory Committee.
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Richard Reeves receives service award
Richard Reeves has been awarded the N.C. Award for Outstanding Volunteer Service and the Elaine Kuhl Volunteer Service Award for…
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Sylva will spend $25,000 on Fisher Creek Dam study
Sylva will have to spend $25,000 on an emergency action plan for Fisher Creek Dam, due to a 2016 state…
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Permanent tourism director hired in Jackson
The Jackson County Tourism Development Authority has its first permanent employee following a unanimous vote from the Jackson County Commissioners…
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Fontana houseboat owner seeks TVA appointment
After a successful campaign to keep houseboats on Fontana Lake, floating homeowner Erik Sneed is now campaigning for a presidential…
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High-density apartment proposal a no-go for Sylva
Sylva’s leaders have long grappled with how to spur the town’s stagnant residential tax base and get more high-density housing…
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