New Canton board to hold public forum on vision, direction for town
 

New Canton board to hold public forum on vision, direction for town

Canton residents will have the chance to weigh in on the town board’s yearlong search for a town manager at…
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Jackson County has a new slogan; now what?
 

Jackson County has a new slogan; now what?

Jackson County tourism leaders are weighing the best way to get their message to the masses.
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Laxer steep slope rules head for public hearing in Jackson
 

Laxer steep slope rules head for public hearing in Jackson

Controls on mountainside development in Jackson County could be loosened following a year-long line-by-line rewrite of steep slope rules by…
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HART to hold 2014 season auditions
 

HART to hold 2014 season auditions

There’s an open call for actors to audition for “To Kill A Mockingbird” Feb. 2-3 at the Haywood Arts Regional…
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Apollo Winds brings chamber music to WCU
 

Apollo Winds brings chamber music to WCU

Apollo Winds, a professional chamber music group, will perform at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 21, in the recital hall of…
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FUN ZONE ribbon cutting, customer appreciation skate
 

FUN ZONE ribbon cutting, customer appreciation skate

Smoky Mountain Sk8way & FUN ZONE will host a ribbon cutting ceremony and customer appreciation skate on Wednesday, Jan. 15,…
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Reenactment, other activities planned in honor of MLK
 

Reenactment, other activities planned in honor of MLK

Play Shop, a free event in honor of Martin Luther King, Jr. National Day of Service and Celebration, will be…
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2014 marks 125th year for WCU
 

2014 marks 125th year for WCU

This year marks the beginning of Western Carolina University’s 125th year of existence, and university faculty, staff and students are…
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The Stuart Brothers to play The Strand
 

The Stuart Brothers to play The Strand

Appalachian fiddle and banjo duo The Stuart Brothers will perform at 7:45 p.m. Jan. 16 at The Strand at 38…
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‘Good Thoughts Better’ exhibit opens at WCU
 

‘Good Thoughts Better’ exhibit opens at WCU

An exhibit of work by Edward J. Bisese titled “Good Thoughts Better” will open with an artist talk and reception…
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This must be the place
 

This must be the place

Hailing from the Green Mountains of Burlington, Vt., The DuPont Brothers have emerged as a breath of fresh air in…
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Tossing fate into the air
 

Tossing fate into the air

What started as a backyard game one afternoon has turned into a passionate career for Nathan Lowe. “I just got…
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Bringing in the new year naturally
 

Bringing in the new year naturally

Some musings on the New Year, from one who never cared much for noisy midnight celebrations of any sort, but…
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Bear hunting changes possible
 

Bear hunting changes possible

A public hearing on changes to the state’s hunting and fishing rules, including looser rules for black bear hunting, will…
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Deep Creek crossing wins photo contest
 

Deep Creek crossing wins photo contest

Hiker Danny Bernstein of Asheville, author of The Mountains-to-Sea-Trail Across North Carolina, won third place in the “People on the…
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Garden and landscape designer to give talk
 

Garden and landscape designer to give talk

One of the region’s premier garden and landscape designers will give a talk at 2 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 16, at…
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CBC gods smile on Lake Junaluska
 

CBC gods smile on Lake Junaluska

The annual Balsam Christmas Bird Count (CBC) took place Saturday, Jan. 4. In the weeks prior to the count many…
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Ski Junaluska Weekends pair Christian fellowship with downhill fun
 

Ski Junaluska Weekends pair Christian fellowship with downhill fun

By Colby Dunn • SMN correspondent Perched atop the crest of a mountain, with two slim pieces of fiberglass strapped to…
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O’Brien’s fiction uniquely relevant to our current issues
 

O’Brien’s fiction uniquely relevant to our current issues

In Voyage To Alpha Centauri (Ignatius Press, ISBN 978-1-58617-832-1), Michael O’Brien, Canadian writer and painter, gives us a grand tale…
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Natural areas under assault from warming
 

Natural areas under assault from warming

To the Editor: I love this time of year. Cold, crisp days remind me of the days I spent with…
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Lake J annexation issue not fairly represented
 

Lake J annexation issue not fairly represented

To the Editor: While I recognize that The Smoky Mountain News’ annual year in review awards are meant to be…
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Lots of problems with ‘Something Bruin’
 

Lots of problems with ‘Something Bruin’

In numerous newspapers in late November 2013, it was reported that six U.S. Forest Service (USFS) employees from Western North…
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Putting a price on memories
 

Putting a price on memories

By Melanie Threlkeld McConnell • Correspondent For most of Yvonne Wadham’s 64 years, horses were her life, on a big scale,…
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Course steady for Jackson Meals on Wheels
 

Course steady for Jackson Meals on Wheels

Jackson County’s new volunteer policy, enacted in November, is taking a bite out of the Meals on Wheels volunteer force. 
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Hunters claim they were unfairly targeted in undercover poaching operation
 

Hunters claim they were unfairly targeted in undercover poaching operation

Some hunters in Western North Carolina are speaking out against the tactics used by undercover wildlife officers in a multi-year…
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Tribe encourages youth to use windfall to become entrepreneurs
 

Tribe encourages youth to use windfall to become entrepreneurs

By Colby Dunn • Correspondent  Since Harrah’s Cherokee Casino opened and started bringing an influx of steady cash to the Eastern…
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Sheriff’s office to buy pill counter to save time
 

Sheriff’s office to buy pill counter to save time

Amid the epidemic of prescription pill abuse, the Haywood County Sheriff’s Office is buying a niche device more common to…
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Time will tell if Waynesville reaps profit from new ABC store
 

Time will tell if Waynesville reaps profit from new ABC store

The attractive, even swanky new liquor store in Waynesville got off to a sluggish start the first two months after…
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SCC charts course for major Macon campus expansion
 

SCC charts course for major Macon campus expansion

Southwestern Community College leaders unveiled a master plan last month outlining a major expansion of its campus in Macon County. …
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Folkmoot to finally get title to old school
 

Folkmoot to finally get title to old school

An old elementary school in Waynesville that serves as a giant bunkhouse for troupes of international performers during the signature…
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A waiting game: WNC counties hope for continued PILT funding
 

A waiting game: WNC counties hope for continued PILT funding

From Clingmans Dome to Juneywank Falls to the winding Blue Ridge Parkway, Swain County is rich in natural beauty. But…
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‘Galaxy of Stars’ presents ‘50s rock revue
 

‘Galaxy of Stars’ presents ‘50s rock revue

“Smokey Joe’s Café,” a song and dance revue of hit tunes from the rock ’n’ roll era before the Beatles,…
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Cherokee exhibit at Jackson County library
 

Cherokee exhibit at Jackson County library

The touring exhibit “Understanding our Past, Shaping our Future,” will be on view through Feb. 9 at the Jackson County…
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Earl Scruggs Center documents the life of a premier musician
 

Earl Scruggs Center documents the life of a premier musician

The new Earl Scruggs Center, honoring one of the nation’s premier banjo artists, will celebrate its grand opening at 11…
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Haywood celebrates MLK weekend
 

Haywood celebrates MLK weekend

Haywood County will celebrate Martin Luther King Jr. Day with a pride march and a weekend full of services, including…
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WCU events commemorate the life of Martin Luther King Jr.
 

WCU events commemorate the life of Martin Luther King Jr.

Western Carolina University has several speakers and programs as part of its annual Martin Luther King celebration, which is themed…
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This must be the place
 

This must be the place

The train came to a halt. Looking out the foggy window, a cold, snowy landscape awaited me.  “The current temperature…
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Welcome to the crib: Game of cribbage mixes competition, congeniality
 

Welcome to the crib: Game of cribbage mixes competition, congeniality

By Colby Dunn • Correspondent If someone asked you to describe the world of competitive, non-electronic gaming, your first thought…
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WNC Beef Cattle Commission honors champion
 

WNC Beef Cattle Commission honors champion

Waynesville cattleman Tony McGaha was honored recently by the WNC Beef Cattle Commission with the Happy Hollow Award for his…
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Sewage spills into Richland Creek tributary during rains
 

Sewage spills into Richland Creek tributary during rains

About 200,000 gallons of untreated wastewater spilled from a manhole and made its way into a small tributary that feeds…
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Pigeon River Fund grant to help fix failing septic systems
 

Pigeon River Fund grant to help fix failing septic systems

A $30,000 grant to repair failing septic systems in Haywood County will help reduce bacteria contamination in local waterways.
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Slide on U.S. 441 will not disrupt traffic
 

Slide on U.S. 441 will not disrupt traffic

A landslide in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park was recently discovered along Newfound Gap Road, but is not blocking…
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Time to rejoin the “battle outside”
 

Time to rejoin the “battle outside”

This appears especially true in the Old Home State where the (first in over 100 years) Republican triad used the…
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Seeds of Change: Trading seeds is at root of effort to save crops
 

Seeds of Change: Trading seeds is at root of effort to save crops

Survey your supermarket and you’ll see pretty much the same stuff anywhere in the country: oranges from Florida, onions from…
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The remaking of a learned writer
 

The remaking of a learned writer

The new year is a time when many people, dissatisfied with some condition of their lives, resolve to make changes.…
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Education reform effort is like a slap in the face
 

Education reform effort is like a slap in the face

To the Editor: This move by the state to “reward” 25 percent of the state’s teachers (and I’m not even…
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If the shelf was small, these are the books I’d fill it with
 

If the shelf was small, these are the books I’d fill it with

Each new year brings out the list-makers, pundits and critics who catalogue everything from the year’s best movies, books, and…
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2013: The year in review
 

2013: The year in review

2013 is behind us now, and all the news reported over the last 12 months is headed for the history…
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Ellison to host watercolor, collage demo
 

Ellison to host watercolor, collage demo

Painter and paper maker Elizabeth Ellison will demonstrate the use of collage in a landscape painting at the Art League…
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Folkmoot generates $9.2 million economic impact
 

Folkmoot generates $9.2 million economic impact

Folkmoot USA had a $9.2 million impact on Western North Carolina in 2013, according to an economic impact study conducted…
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