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New model for mountain living
 

New model for mountain living

Mixed-use developments where residents live, work, shop and dine within a few block radius are popping up in cities around…
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Deal over Dillsboro dam could be afoot
 

Deal over Dillsboro dam could be afoot

Five years into a bitter fight over the fate of the Dillsboro Dam, Duke Energy showed its first sign of…
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Questions mount over popular Swain principal’s sudden departure
 

Questions mount over popular Swain principal’s sudden departure

Parents at West Elementary School in Swain County are questioning the circumstances surrounding the departure of a popular principal. In…
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Time to go all in at Harrah’s
 

Time to go all in at Harrah’s

It’s time for Harrah’s Cherokee Casino to offer alcohol to patrons, especially since the Tribe is counting on receipts from…
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Ivy covered walls
 

Ivy covered walls

By Jim Janke When our house was being built it became obvious that we needed to hide two 40 feet…
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Patriot’s story is unflinching, honest
 

Patriot’s story is unflinching, honest

American Patriot: The Life and Wars of Colonel Bud Day by Robert Coram. Little, Brown and Company, 2007. Robert Coram’s…
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Creation of the park was marked by triumph and tragedy
 

Creation of the park was marked by triumph and tragedy

The creation of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park 75 years ago was nothing short of a miracle. The pitfalls…
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New landfill proves money pit for Haywood
 

New landfill proves money pit for Haywood

Haywood County commissioners grappling with the $4.4 million price tag of a landfill expansion briefly eyed the steep engineering costs…
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Creating the park: the early years
 

Creating the park: the early years

1900s Logging and lumber companies built railroads, camp towns and timber camps, slashing across the landscape while fueling an economic…
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Study shows Gorge economic impact significant
 

Study shows Gorge economic impact significant

The Nantahala Gorge contributes $85 million to the local economy each year, and is the primary reason many tourists make…
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Restoration blends function with history
 

Restoration blends function with history

After more than two years, the Haywood County historic courthouse has finally been returned to its original grandeur. The painstaking…
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Haywood residents protest property tax hike during bad economy
 

Haywood residents protest property tax hike during bad economy

Scores of Haywood County taxpayers criticized the county’s proposed budget at a public hearing Monday (June 1) saying commissioners had…
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The Naturalist's Corner
 

The Naturalist's Corner

Stop and smell the flowers Sure, we all hear it and we all think, “I’m gonna do just that as…
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New hospital structure could dilute autonomy
 

New hospital structure could dilute autonomy

Although the board of Haywood Regional Medical Center could lose much of its control following its affiliation with WestCare, it…
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You can’t stash true wealth in a bank
 

You can’t stash true wealth in a bank

By John Beckman • Guest Columnist The concept of wealth has been sideswiped over the last few decades. It seems…
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Pennington recreates scenes of the Smokies
 

Pennington recreates scenes of the Smokies

As a little girl, Teresa Pennington of Waynesville looked forward to Sundays all week. After church, her family would venture…
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Rates jump prior to signing of library loan
 

Rates jump prior to signing of library loan

Hints of an up tick in the economy are good news to say the least, but a resulting rise in…
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The alluring calls of song birds
 

The alluring calls of song birds

In the opaque early-morning light outside our bedroom windows, the birds that reside in our woods — or do we…
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Research outpost engages scientists and students under backdrop of the Smokies
 

Research outpost engages scientists and students under backdrop of the Smokies

There are few places where scientists probing the mysteries of the natural world would rather be. The sweeping vistas of…
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Maggie grapples with best way to recruit new festivals
 

Maggie grapples with best way to recruit new festivals

The town of Maggie Valley fired its part-time festival director after he failed to produce results a few months into…
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A funeral story of necessity and pragmatism
 

A funeral story of necessity and pragmatism

By Dawn Gilchrist-Young This is an Appalachian story because it is about resourceful people taking care of their own with…
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Hiking and heritage converge in new trail guide
 

Hiking and heritage converge in new trail guide

A new hiking book on Western North Carolina puts the regions trails in a new perspective. It weaves together the…
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A Peacock Came to Dinner: A matter of pride, cooking with herbs and gifts from Percy
 

A Peacock Came to Dinner: A matter of pride, cooking with herbs and gifts from Percy

By Karen Dill Author’s note: This article is dedicated to our dear friend and neighbor, Louise Bedford, who passed away…
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Death in the arctic
 

Death in the arctic

The Terror by Dan Simmons. Little, Brown and Company. 2007. 769 pages. Dear readers, let’s begin by establishing two contrary…
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Recipes, 5/27/09
 

Recipes, 5/27/09

Grilled Lemon Tarragon Chicken An intense lemon and garlic-flavored grilled chicken, the addition of the dill-like herb, tarragon, adds a…
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Cherokee art institute gets new home
 

Cherokee art institute gets new home

Several years ago, an idea was planted to establish an institution of higher education on the Qualla Boundary that would…
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River park concept centers on dam, throws Duke for a loop
 

River park concept centers on dam, throws Duke for a loop

Jackson County commissioners got their first look last week at a master plan for a Dillsboro river park — a…
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Performing arts center to open in Franklin
 

Performing arts center to open in Franklin

When Phil Drake puts his mind to something, there’s little he can’t achieve. Drake’s company, Drake Enterprises, is one of…
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Cherokee face historic vote on alcohol
 

Cherokee face historic vote on alcohol

On June 4, members of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians will go to the polls to cast their vote…
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NOC to launch major new presence in Gatlinburg
 

NOC to launch major new presence in Gatlinburg

Nantahala Outdoor Center is planning a major new outfitters store in Gatlinburg, tapping into the hub of one of the…
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Ghost Town makes opening deadline; roller coaster still not working
 

Ghost Town makes opening deadline; roller coaster still not working

Ghost Town in the Sky drew around 2,500 people over Memorial Day weekend, despite the daunting challenges of getting the…
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Yaupon and the ‘Black Drink’
 

Yaupon and the ‘Black Drink’

For some years now — when walking the woodlands around ancient Cherokee settlements — I have been on the lookout…
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Long-held dream becomes reality
 

Long-held dream becomes reality

It’s a project that’s been years in the making, and on Saturday the scores of Jackson County residents who gathered…
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The many rewards of home improvement
 

The many rewards of home improvement

Lately, the days whiz by faster than usual. Now that we have finally decided to put our house up for…
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The Naturalist's Corner
 

The Naturalist's Corner

Crepuscular by nature The sun knows the secret. Beginning and end Are the beautiful times. The soft warm And sensual…
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Ghost Town withdraws loan request
 

Ghost Town withdraws loan request

By Becky Johnson & Julia Merchant A surprising turn of events caused the Maggie Valley town board to call off…
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Haywood considers cutting jobs, raising taxes
 

Haywood considers cutting jobs, raising taxes

Tight times in Haywood County have forced commissioners to consider significant job cuts and a tax increase in an attempt…
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Event kicks off initiative linking artists with nonprofits
 

Event kicks off initiative linking artists with nonprofits

By Julia Merchant • Staff Writer Haywood County jeweler Diannah Beauregard believes that art can change the world. With that…
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Macon, Rabun leaders eye future of water
 

Macon, Rabun leaders eye future of water

Would a water-starved Atlanta ever come after the Little Tennessee River? While it may be a long shot, the prospect…
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Project will restore courthouse’s grandeur
 

Project will restore courthouse’s grandeur

While the feeling of stately grandeur evoked by Jackson’s historic courthouse has remained over the years, many of the original…
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Under siege: Saving the sequoias of the East
 

Under siege: Saving the sequoias of the East

Jesse Webster consulted his GPS and eyed the tangle of rhododendrons stretching out of sight up the mountainside. Somewhere beyond…
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Swain jail escapees returned to NC
 

Swain jail escapees returned to NC

A murder suspect and the guard who allegedly helped him escape from the Swain County jail have been returned to…
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Cutbacks could be less severe in Swain budget
 

Cutbacks could be less severe in Swain budget

Though the Swain County government hasn’t escaped the recession completely, the blow dealt by the economy has been softer there…
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The new frugality is an old idea
 

The new frugality is an old idea

There’s talk all over about America’s newfound love affair with frugality. What Time magazine has dubbed the Great Recession is…
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Remembering Popcorn
 

Remembering Popcorn

To tell you the truth, when I read that some woman claiming to be Popcorn Sutton’s daughter was publishing a…
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A two-horse town
 

A two-horse town

A rift that splintered the town’s longtime farmers market in downtown Waynesville into two opposing groups of vendors continues to…
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Smokies relies on outside support to maintain what makes it special
 

Smokies relies on outside support to maintain what makes it special

When Steve Woody and Barney Coulter got a mysterious call from Smokies Superintendent Randall Pope in the early 1990s asking…
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Persistent WCU grads find work in tough economy
 

Persistent WCU grads find work in tough economy

It’s slim pickin’s out there, as Western Carolina University students are finding out. This past weekend, more than 1,100 graduates…
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Ghost Town seeks ride inspections
 

Ghost Town seeks ride inspections

A team of state inspectors will arrive at Ghost Town in the Sky amusement park on Monday, May 18, in…
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Grant funds installation by Haywood artist
 

Grant funds installation by Haywood artist

Susan Livengood of Fines Creek has been awarded a 2009 Regional Artist Project Grant from the North Carolina Arts Council.…
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