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Casino one step away from the total package
Let’s just say it’s about time. A state special deputy attorney general said in a Nov. 25 letter that alcohol…
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Great Smoky Mountains Railroad’s Polar Express rides the rails in time for the holidays
Christmas is still two weeks away, but I’ve been rehearsing the dramatic tale of Santa’s arrival with my toddler for…
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Of golf, relationships and life
A Son of the Game: A Story of Golf, Going Home, and Sharing Life’s Lessons by James Dodson. Algonquin Books,…
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Putting Panthertown on the map
Every hiker has likely named a trailside feature or two in their day. Ferns sprouting from the banks of a…
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Five miles of Parkway views preserved
A 1,488-acre tract along the Blue Ridge Parkway in McDowell County has been protected from development thanks to a conservation…
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The Naturalist's Corner
Tessentee birds Bob Olthoff and I took advantage of last Sunday’s (Nov. 29) Indian Summer weather for a couple of…
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A skunk by any other name
Five skunk species are residents in the United States: hooded, hog-nosed, western spotted, eastern spotted, and striped. Only the last…
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Maggie ABC store captures share of Waynesville business
The recession has taken a toll on liquor sales at the ABC stores in Maggie Valley and Waynesville, in turn…
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Between language and culture
Native American languages are unique. They came into being and evolved without the influence of writing. For scholars like Heidi…
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Canton leaders to compare and contrast lists
As everyone else compiles wish lists for the holiday season, Canton’s four aldermen will put together a list of their…
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Effort to revive language calls Cherokee old and young
Outside the annual Thanksgiving potluck dinner in the isolated Snowbird community, a remote corner of Graham County where the Cherokee…
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Foundering developers create vested rights dilemma
As developers grapple with financial woes forcing them to sell off holdings or succumb to foreclosure, environmental groups in Jackson…
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Consensus unlikely in Sylva board appointment
The moment of truth arrives for Sylva’s new town board on the day it starts work. When board members convene…
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Macon wrestles with impact of subdivision ordinance
Although Macon County passed its first subdivision ordinance more than a year ago, Commissioner Chairman Ronnie Beale wonders whether enough…
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Legal wrangling heats up in Jackson’s bid to wrest Dillsboro dam away from Duke
Jackson County and Duke Energy squared off this week over the Dillsboro dam, marking the first major head-to-head courtroom battle…
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Compromise ends tug-of-war over who will be Harrah’s liquor distributor
While the addition of alcohol sales at Harrah’s Cherokee Casino and Hotel will undoubtedly be lucrative for the Eastern Band…
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Tiger hurts himself with silence
Poor Tiger Woods. He is not only the greatest golfer of all time, but also perhaps the world’s most popular…
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Satire hits hard, but it works
Satire is one of language’s most powerful weapons, and when used effectively, it can foster meaningful dialogue on important topics.…
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Lighting the way Dillsboro celebrates illuminating festival in December
Every year for more than a quarter century, the village of Dillsboro transforms itself into a quintessential Christmas scene, warm…
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The Naturalist's Corner
The omnibus stops here Reliable, undisclosed anonymous sources tell this reporter that the Fiscal year 2010 Omnibus Bill expected to…
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UNC students conduct research while in Highlands
University students conducting environmental fieldwork and research at the Highlands Biological Station have spent the past semester delving into the…
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Memories from ‘up at the barn’
You’ve noticed how old barns are recognized as special places? When a person says, “I’m going down to the barn,”…
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Loophole in video poker ban makes way for cyber sweepstakes
Sweepstakes have never before been so controversial — or so complicated. Far removed from the days of dropping an entry…
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An unstable past
Located atop a nearly 3,000-foot mountain in Cullowhee, the Jackson County Airport was built to avoid the low-lying fog that…
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With real estate market still in flux, Macon postpones property reappraisal
Macon County has joined a growing trend in deciding to postpone its property revaluation process for two years. The county…
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WCU hosts January dulcimer weekend at Lake Junaluska
Western Carolina University will sponsor its fifth annual Mountain Dulcimer Winter Weekend beginning Thursday, Jan. 7, and continuing through Sunday,…
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Judgment day arrives
The Cleansing by Ben Eller. Fireside Publications, 2009. 292 pages In Ben Eller’s science fiction novel, The Cleansing, (2020), progress…
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Master plan underway for Sylva’s Pinnacle Park
Pinnacle Park, a favorite recreational haunt in Sylva that was once home to the town’s watershed, will benefit from a…
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The Naturalist's Corner
The hunter is back Orion the hunter, one of the most noted and most recognizable constellations in the heavens is…
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Nantahala headwaters tract protected
A 248-acre tract known as Rainbow Springs at the headwaters of the Nantahala River in Macon County has been protected…
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Suspects nabbed in Macon church break-in spree
A string of church break-ins that had captured widespread attention in Macon County came to an end last week when…
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Macon tax hike in store to pay for new elementary school
Macon County’s schools will get a long-awaited upgrade, but its taxpayers are going to have to pay extra for it.…
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Franklin students’ hard work helps greenway
Franklin High students became active volunteers in a service-learning program this fall to improve the ecosystem along the Franklin Greenway.…
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Future of Jackson airport up in the air
The Jackson County airport has reached a crossroads. For years the little aviation field above the clouds has been a…
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The life and times of Cataloochee Ranch
Tom Alexander, a famed mountain man, forester and founder of Cataloochee Ranch, chronicled his adventures over the course of his…
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As rockslide cleanup trudges on, misleading detour signs plague tourism industry
The cost of repairing Interstate 40 after a massive rockslide in late October will now be borne by the federal…
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Shuler collects baggage, but he’ll likely survive this one
Now that it’s clear that Rep. Heath Shuler, D-Waynesville, did indeed mislead everyone about his involvement in a land deal…
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Legacy of a mountain family
For 75 years, Cataloochee Ranch has been serving up a taste of the Wild West in the Smokies. From its…
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Rutabagas and history of Hemphill Bald
Let us consider the relationship between grassy balds, Tom Alexander and the self-proclaimed “Potato and Rutabaga King of Haywood County.”…
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At free clinics survival trumps politics
Dr. David Trigg, medical director at the Good Samaritan Clinic of Jackson County, doesn’t know if he should do more…
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Parkway right-of-way battle hard-fought through Cherokee
The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians played an integral role in the creation of the Parkway. The Parkway was envisioned…
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Past illness leaves woman ‘uninsurable’
Though Sylva resident Marsha Crites had no risk factors, she suffered a major cerebellum stroke at the age of 49.…
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While politics reign in Washington, real people struggle with health care costs
It was late September, and Travis George, a 27-year-old Waynesville resident, was almost done mowing his grandmother’s yard. With just…
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Haywood library to accept canned food in lieu of fines
Haywood County library is experimenting with novel methods for wiping out some of the $250,000 in late fees it is…
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Flirting with my own mortality
I felt something clutch, almost seize up, and then a shooting pain in my chest, and my first thought was,…
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Thanksgiving in the mountains: Memories and food from the past
By Karen Dill • Special to the Smoky Mountain News My memories of Thanksgiving in the mountains are of simple…
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Tickets soon available for Garrison Keillor appearance at WCU
Tickets go on sale Monday, Nov. 30, for an appearance at Western Carolina University by Garrison Keillor, host of the…
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Shooting bear on Parkway nets prison time
Two Jackson County men were sentenced to 10 months in federal prison for shooting a bear on the Blue Ridge…
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Grant to restore migration in Little T tributaries
The Little Tennessee Watershed Association has received a $75,000 grant to help restore migration for aquatic species. Two years ago,…
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The Naturalist's Corner
I wanna go home with the armadillo When you’re stuck in one place for 12 hours at a time, a…
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