Archived (29788)
Children categories
Trying to define Appalachia and the South
Who speaks for Appalachia? That is the question implicit in Appalachian Reckoning: A Region Responds to Hillbilly Elegy (West Virginia…
Read More
Wolf Tales: Man and his wolf pack combat misunderstandings about America’s wild dog
Rob Gudger shares his Haywood County homestead with three canines and a housecat, but of the four the feline is…
Read More
Vecinos program receives grant
Vecinos Farmworker Health Program, a community service partner with Western Carolina University’s College of Health and Human Sciences, has received…
Read More
Sylva to get new board member this fall
With the first two days of election filing in the books, only three people have signed up to run for…
Read More
Haywood candidates begin filing for office
Incumbents wasted little time in declaring their intentions to defend their seats after municipal candidate filing opened at noon on…
Read More
Franklin mayor has challenger
Franklin Mayor Bob Scott has signed up to run for re-election and so far has one challenger — current Councilmember Barbara…
Read More
WCU and TWSA to consider merging water systems
Western Carolina University and the Tuckaseigee Water and Sewer Authority will explore the possibility of combining their water systems following…
Read More
Membership under consideration for Jackson’s health, social services boards
After more than a year in flux, Jackson County’s health and social service boards are likely to be re-established within…
Read More
WCU, A-B Tech sign admission agreement
Leaders of Western Carolina University and Asheville-Buncombe Technical Community College met Monday, July 8, to sign a memorandum of understanding…
Read More
Grappling with growth: Waynesville comprehensive plan unveiled
The Town of Waynesville took another big step toward plotting its long-term future with the draft release of an update…
Read More
Better together: FUMC Waynesville welcomes LGBTQ members
The congregation at First United Methodist Church of Waynesville isn’t changing who they are following a controversial vote taken at…
Read More
Vice chief candidates make their case
After more than a decade working together as members of Tribal Council, Alan “B” Ensley and Jim Owle are vying…
Read More
Lightning in a bottle: Greensky Bluegrass captures inspiration at Echo Mountain
Bordering the bustling Patton Avenue in downtown Asheville, you wouldn’t know where Echo Mountain Recording is unless you were told. …
Read More
This must be the place: Ten years later and all I got was this crappy T-shirt
This past Saturday morning, I awoke in the top bunk of an RV in downtown Sylva. I got up and…
Read More
Few surprises on first day of candidate filing
Incumbents wasted little time in declaring their intentions to defend their seats after municipal candidate filing opened at noon today,…
Read More
Why are the mountains so alluring?
Editor’s note: This column first appeared in a July 2004 edition of The Smoky Mountain News. “To myself, mountains are…
Read More
Record-setting wild turkey harvest
Results from the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission’s wild turkey harvest summary show this year’s harvest was the second highest ever…
Read More
Law changes appointment structure for Clean Water board
Gov. Roy Cooper has signed into law a bill that reconstitutes several boards and commissions that the court previously held…
Read More
Science program goes statewide: ecoEXPLORE program for kids now available in N.C. State Parks
A program that’s been getting Western North Carolina kids outside since 2016 is now a statewide offering, with a whirlwind…
Read More
Book examines stark example of racism
On February 12, 1946, just hours after his discharge from the Army, Sergeant Isaac Woodard got into an argument with…
Read More
Independent redistricting is the only answer
As we celebrate Independence Day, it seems an appropriate time to call for an independent commission to address North Carolina’s…
Read More
Climate change is in our children’s hands
Last Friday, as I watched the U.S. women’s soccer team defeat France at the Parc des Princes stadium, I kept…
Read More
Disappointed in new aquarium
To the Editor: I visited the new aquarium in Bryson City on Saturday. I was very disappointed. Volunteers put thousands of…
Read More
Educators are indeed professionals
To the Editor: I’m writing to express my outrage regarding the claim in a letter recently printed in local paper…
Read More
Why Medicaid expansion is not the answer
There’s perhaps been no greater ideological clash in American government over the past century than the extent to which the…
Read More
Rural WNC fights for Medicaid expansion
Only $80 stands between Sylva resident Carrie McBane and affordable health care coverage. If she made $80 less she would…
Read More
Frustrations mount over health care access
Carrie McBane of Sylva was at the end of her rope a year ago. She knew something was wrong and…
Read More
Medicaid: what it is and what it does
There’s a good reason President Lyndon B. Johnson traveled to Independence, Missouri on July 30, 1965, to sign the legislation…
Read More
Chief candidates square off in debate
Principal Chief Richard Sneed and challenger Teresa McCoy will face off at the ballot box this September as Cherokee voters…
Read More
Shining Rock remains shrouded in secrecy
Transparency and accountability have long been concerns at Shining Rock Classical Academy — since before the troubled taxpayer-funded school even…
Read More
Shining Rock hires new head of school
Editor’s note: This is the sixth in a series of stories on Haywood County’s public charter school, Shining Rock Classical…
Read More
Canton board seat will remain open, for now
The three remaining members of the Canton Board of Aldermen/women have decided not to appoint anyone to a board seat…
Read More
Budget standoff hinges on Medicaid expansion
Calling the $24 billion state budget passed by North Carolina’s Republican-led legislature “an astonishing failure,” Gov. Roy Cooper, D-Rocky Mount,…
Read More
Teacher resigns following alleged sexual activity with student
UPDATED 1/24/2020: Following several meetings with the alleged victim and family, the District Attorney's Office declined to file charges in…
Read More
Gerrymandering ruling leaves NC districts in place
A June 27 Supreme Court decision not to get involved with politically gerrymandered congressional districts in Maryland and North Carolina…
Read More
Small-town sequel: Waynesville’s Smoky Mountain Cinema reopens
Standing in the lobby of the Smoky Mountain Cinema in Waynesville this past Monday morning, owner Greg Israel is putting…
Read More
This must be the place: Ode to Jeff Austin, ode to the power of music
The hardest part of being a journalist, and especially one whose core focus is music, is seeing those you were…
Read More
Cherokee recognized for leadership in healthcare
In a ceremony held at the Cherokee Indian Hospital today, the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians was awarded the Redefining…
Read More
Shining Rock hires new head of school
More than seven weeks after a series of grievances were filed against Shining Rock Classical Academy’s interim head of school,…
Read More
Trillium Gap Trail Temporarily Closed Due to Trail Conditions
Trillium Gap Trail in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park will be temporarily closed through Thursday, July 11, due to…
Read More
The dog’s eating our daughter’s college fund
I think our chihuahua has an eating disorder. He’s a rescue, and since we rescued him, he’s twice the dog…
Read More
Leveraging the best requires better broadband
By Bob Scott • Guest Columnist Those of us fortunate enough to live in communities where natural amenities abound know…
Read More
Impeachment is worth the risks
To the Editor: To impeach or not to impeach, that is the question on the minds of many Americans and…
Read More
Right-wingers spread fake news
To the Editor: FAKE NEWS! While I don’t make a habit of using Trump terms, it’s the best way to…
Read More
Lumberjack ‘family’ to get a home: Construction underway on new HCC timbersports building
After more than 20 years of wood chopping and log sawing and award winning, the Haywood Community College Lumberjacks —…
Read More
Waynesville Judo Club brings home awards
The Waynesville Judo Club recently competed in the South Carolina State Championship, coming away with 11 medals.
Read More
The Naturalist's Corner: Windy City peregrines
My bride and I spent a few days in Chicago last week. She was there for a business seminar and…
Read More
Writing to heal the wounds of war
June 2019 marks the twentieth anniversary of The Smoky Mountain News. At the party celebrating this landmark in the paper’s…
Read More
Public comment open for new voting rules
The N.C. State Board of Elections is seeking public comments through July 12 on proposed rules changes related to the…
Read More
Waynesville chief calls it a career
As a 28-year veteran of the Waynesville Police Department, Captain Brian Beck — soon to be interim chief of police…
Read More
