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Haywood soda company aims to change palettes
Haywood County just got a little sweeter. Specializing in “handcrafted, locally produced, artisan beverages,” Waynesville Soda Jerks is a new…
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Landslide forces family into unsettled lifestyle
For more than a month, 25-year-old Slyenia Rhein and her three children lived in a single hotel room with her…
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Long time street cleaner replaced by work crew
Foot traffic undeniably brings dollars to Waynesville’s downtown businesses. But what the passerby also brings is trash.
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NASA helps geologists try to understand WNC landslides
Mitigating the deadly and damaging effects of mountain landslides might be as simple as understanding them.
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Mountain Momma
Count my daughter among the millions of kids whose first word was “doggy.” For a several-week stretch, “doggy” was also…
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Dog show trots into Waynesville
Western Carolina Dog Fanciers Association, an area AKC Kennel Club, will host an American Kennel Club all breed dog show…
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New discoveries in Kephart presentation
A panel discussion will present recent discoveries and observations relating to legendary Western North Carolina figure Horace Kephart at 7…
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Beer and barbecue in Bryson
A BBQ & Brews Dinner Train will depart at 7 p.m. Saturday, June 22, at the Great Smoky Mountain Railroad…
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Pow Wow festival in Cherokee
The 38th annual Cherokee Pow Wow Festival is June 14-16 at the Acqouni Expo Center (Old Cherokee High School).
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Alt-country, Americana and bluegrass in Balsam
Kim Richey, Irene Kelley and Thomm Jutz will bring an adventurous musical spirit to the Songwriters in the Round series…
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Bluegrass royalty to converge at Cherokee campground
The Cherokee Bluegrass Festival will run from June 13-15 at the Happy Holiday RV Village in Cherokee.
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Appalachian storyteller to play Haywood library
Storyteller/singer-songwriter Dusk Weaver performs at 3 p.m. Sunday, June 16, at the Waynesville Public Library. Weaver is an upbeat entertainer…
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Stecoah arts center receives grant
The Blue Ridge National Heritage Area Partnership has announced an award of $10,000 to the Stecoah Valley Cultural Arts Center…
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This must be the place
I had never seen the color green like that before. Touching down at the Shannon Airport in southwest Ireland, the…
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Finding your roots in Appalachia
Ronan MacGregor didn’t know where he came from. He knew he was of Scottish decent, but that was about it.…
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Smoky Mountain Living magazine seeks reader photos
Smoky Mountain Living prominently features images from across the southern Appalachians in each edition. Photo essays adhere to the issue’s…
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Wi-Fi part of regional wireless initiative
A new 8.5-mile fiber optic cable linking government buildings in Waynesville has recently been installed.
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Now what will the wagging tongues talk about?
Jack Cox and Kayden Zollinger (soon to be Cox, pending paperwork) are proud — and relieved — to announce the…
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Moratorium will preserve building industry, not destroy it
The Jackson County commissioners should move forward with their temporary subdivision moratorium, notwithstanding all the concerns that have been raised…
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The day Uncle Curtis’ rabbits did the town
By Carl Iobst Well if this don’t beat all. Over in eastern Germany where lederhosen, apple strudel, and skinheads are…
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N.C. side of Smokies goes biodiesel
About two dozen diesel vehicles used by the Great Smoky Mountains National Park on the North Carolina side of the…
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LTLT preserves 850 acres in Cherokee County
A cattle farm in Cherokee County known as Ridgefield Farm has been preserved for future generations thanks to a conservation…
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Allons au Bayou Noire
I guess the real Bayou Noire would be in Houma or Sulphur or somewhere else across Acadiana, where the slow…
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One acre at a time: Paul Carlson helps set the standard among WNC land trusts
By Michael Beadle Paul Carlson has plenty of maps to show you. There are maps with stars. Color-coded maps of…
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Smokies National Park conducts 530-acre prescribed burn
The Great Smoky Mountains National Park conducted a prescribed burn on a 530-acre tract of forest in the Cataloochee Valley…
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Dial-A-Story: Marianna Black library revives popular kids’ program
By Sarah Kucharski • Staff Writer Christine Tyndall’s voice hits a high note as she reads from the Maurice Sendak…
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The Broken West nails vintage pop — in all the right ways
It’s the tambourine that gives it away. Those insistent eighth notes from the piano during the chorus, the sparkly harmonies…
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Recommended diversions
Nature Deficit Disorder Sometimes, you read an interview and it hits home, hard. Last month’s issue of The Sun, a…
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Thankfully, some books are short
Ludie’s Life by Cynthia Rylant. Harcourt Children's Books, 2006. 128 pages. Sometimes bad things come in small packages.
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River group considers car removal from Tuck
A fledgling effort now under way could lead to the cleanup of junked cars lining the banks of the Tuckasegee…
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Easley urges legislature to fix Medicaid woes
For years, county leaders have been lobbying law makers in Raleigh to stop packing off a portion of Medicaid costs…
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Emotions build in run-up to moratorium hearing
Frenzy surrounding a proposed moratorium on new subdivisions in Jackson County reached a fever pitch in the run-up to a…
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Project will track growing number of lots
As Western North Carolina wrestles with growth issues, a project is under way to track where and how large mountain…
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This time, neighbors want Wal-Mart’s drawing power
With Wal-Mart’s future in Franklin in limbo, business owners near the existing big-box store continue to worry they’ll lose the…
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Downtown Waynesville wi-fi to go live by April
Since Suzanne Gernandt opened Textures in downtown Waynesville three years ago, she’s noticed one question in particular has been on…
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WCU launches ambitious $40 million campaign
Western Carolina University Chancellor John W. Bardo has officially launched the first comprehensive fundraising campaign in the university’s 118-year history,…
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Chapin channels something powerful in The Calling
In 1992 Mary Chapin Carpenter released Come On, Come On, and though it’s a little hazy as to how I…
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Recommended diversions
Battlestar Galactica Okay, I’ll admit it. I’m a Battlestar fanatic. A few weekends ago, my wife and I glued ourselves…
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Y’all come back
By Michael Beadle The annual foot-stompin’, hand-clappin’, kick-up-your-heels music-and-dance show known as the Summit Country and Western Show at Tuscola…
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A debut reminiscent of other stirring westerns
Back in the 15th century, when Europe underwent a remarkable surge in creativity, the word “Renaissance” (meaning “rebirth”) was frequently…
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Plan to buy building with room tax hike meets opposition
A push to move the Swain County Chamber of Commerce into a vacant bank building is meeting resistance from some…
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Crowded, contentious hearing remains civil
More than 1,300 people crowded into the public hearing last week over a proposed moratorium on new subdivisions in Jackson…
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Fontana library system has deep roots
The six libraries in Macon, Jackson and Swain counties are part of the Fontana Regional Library system, headquartered at Marianna…
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Moratorium debate reveals deep rift in Jackson
The debate over a proposed moratorium on new subdivisions in Jackson County is divided into two main camps: those who…
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New Macon library to become Fontana system’s showcase
It’s no small task moving a library.
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Improving the science of development
When Bob Brannon saw a newspaper announcement last spring seeking developers to participate in a pilot mapping project, he already…
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Accounts of a horned serpent
I have on more than one occasion written about Uktenas, the giant horned serpents modeled on timber rattlesnakes that appear…
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Easley’s budget goes wrong way on lottery
Gov. Mike Easley’s proposed budget would decrease the portion of lottery proceeds going to education — before legislators have a…
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Tax policy can help save rural land
By Susan Ervin • Guest Columnist The recent tax revaluations in Macon County have many people worried — not just…
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Fire on the mountain
By Sarah Kucharski • Staff Writer A forest fire burned nearly 40 acres in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park…
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