Defendants in pay raises case ask for dismissal
 

Defendants in pay raises case ask for dismissal

About 20 tribal members filled the audience benches in Cherokee Tribal Court last week, watching the first court hearing in…
Read More

Comment

Taxes remain steady, highest in county, in proposed Canton budget
 

Taxes remain steady, highest in county, in proposed Canton budget

The Canton Board of Aldermen took another three hours June 9 to conduct a required public hearing on the 2016-17…
Read More

Comment

Can bold proposals remake Canton?
 

Can bold proposals remake Canton?

The Canton Town Board is considering proposals that could boost Canton’s appeal to residents and tourists alike — especially those…
Read More

Comment

Jackson County prepares offer for new manager
 

Jackson County prepares offer for new manager

The finish line is in sight to choose a new county manager for Jackson County.
Read More

Comment

Shelter advocacy group to hold awareness event
 

Shelter advocacy group to hold awareness event

Friends of the Haywood County Animal Shelter will host a kickoff reception and informational session in support of the county’s…
Read More

Comment

Largest indoor shooting range in WNC set to open soon
 

Largest indoor shooting range in WNC set to open soon

Work has begun on a controversial Haywood County indoor shooting range that had some residents at odds last winter.
Read More

Comment

Bryson wins June 7 congressional primary
 

Bryson wins June 7 congressional primary

Democrat Rick Bryson will move on to run against U.S. Rep. Mark Meadows in the general election after narrowly winning…
Read More

Comment

Sales tax to increase in Jackson
 

Sales tax to increase in Jackson

Nearly two-thirds of Jackson County voters who visited the polls last week said yes to a referendum question asking to…
Read More

Comment

After investigation, casino board member will keep her seat
 

After investigation, casino board member will keep her seat

A casino board member who came under fire for possible “conduct unbecoming” of a public official will keep her post,…
Read More

Comment

If this were the wild, he would already be gone
 

If this were the wild, he would already be gone

When next week’s edition of The Smoky Mountain News hits the streets Wednesday, June 15, my youngest will be a…
Read More

Comment

Finally got a tattoo, and it’s raising a few eyebrows
 

Finally got a tattoo, and it’s raising a few eyebrows

I got a tattoo a couple of weeks ago. It wasn’t on a whim. I wasn’t intoxicated. I wasn’t in…
Read More

Comment

Legislators passed smart coal ash plan
 

Legislators passed smart coal ash plan

To the Editor: This is a critical time for our community and all North Carolinians. Decisions being made right now…
Read More

Comment

Let’s build animal shelter to do the job adequately
 

Let’s build animal shelter to do the job adequately

To the Editor: I am seeing and hearing various opinions about the need for a new animal shelter in Haywood…
Read More

Comment

Trump’s ‘nativism’ is just frightening
 

Trump’s ‘nativism’ is just frightening

To the Editor: For one who has never held an elected office, Donald Trump is a brilliant politician. His TV…
Read More

Comment

Hilarious and serious; two different summer reads
 

Hilarious and serious; two different summer reads

Novels that make me laugh aloud are rare. Two novels, Confederacy of Dunces and Freddy and Fredericka, brought laughter, and…
Read More

Comment

Keep your salamander away from my newt
 

Keep your salamander away from my newt

I often remind everyone who reads “The Naturalist’s Corner” to remember to look up. But each spring while surveying birds…
Read More

Comment

Stories, salad and wildflowers: Plants a passion for Bigelow
 

Stories, salad and wildflowers: Plants a passion for Bigelow

Adam Bigelow bears down on the gas pedal of his biodiesel-fueled Jetta, urging it up the steep contours of the…
Read More

Comment

Go all-out with Lake Logan races
 

Go all-out with Lake Logan races

The Lake Logan Multisport Festival will bring in athletes galore for the 11th year running with its lineup of events…
Read More

Comment

Moral Monday comes to the mountains
 

Moral Monday comes to the mountains

The Jackson County Branch of the NAACP will host more than a dozen like-minded Western North Carolina organizations in Sylva…
Read More

Comment

NAACP gains ground in WNC communities
 

NAACP gains ground in WNC communities

Katherine Bartel has a long list of reasons why a NAACP branch started in Haywood County a couple of years…
Read More

Comment

Local leader represents NAACP’s changing face
 

Local leader represents NAACP’s changing face

As an associate professor of physics at Western Carolina University who specializes in astronomy, Dr. Enrique Gomez may be used…
Read More

Comment

Swain aims to avoid tax hike
 

Swain aims to avoid tax hike

As Swain County continues to struggle with a decrease in funding from several revenue sources, commissioners hope to pass a…
Read More

Comment

Swain’s public pool needs expensive repairs to stay open
 

Swain’s public pool needs expensive repairs to stay open

While it may not be an immediate need in the upcoming budget, the swimming pool at the Swain County Recreation…
Read More

Comment

Cherokee council considers revoking part of former vice chief’s will
 

Cherokee council considers revoking part of former vice chief’s will

The widow of a former Vice Chief of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians may be out of a home…
Read More

Comment

$30,000 to expanding businesses provided in Macon
 

$30,000 to expanding businesses provided in Macon

Macon County commissioners have agreed to provide $30,000 toward an economic development project that promises to create 35 new jobs…
Read More

Comment

Macon works toward middle ground on school funding
 

Macon works toward middle ground on school funding

Macon County Schools Superintendent Chris Baldwin came before the county commissioners last week to plead his case for additional funding…
Read More

Comment

Planning under way for new science building at WCU
 

Planning under way for new science building at WCU

With the N.C. Connect bond passed, Western Carolina University is moving forward with plans to bring a $110 million natural…
Read More

Comment

Patience on Canton paving project ‘a virtue’
 

Patience on Canton paving project ‘a virtue’

For the past few months, downtown Canton’s long-awaited repaving and streetscaping projects seemed to be cruising right along in the…
Read More

Comment

Quixotic opposition to gun ordinance fails, sort of?
 

Quixotic opposition to gun ordinance fails, sort of?

For 21 years, firearms have not been permitted on any county-owned property, except for law enforcement officers on duty. Almost…
Read More

Comment

Shelter proposal moves forward
 

Shelter proposal moves forward

If you’re for the proposed new Haywood County Animal Services facility, it’s called an “animal shelter,” deadpanned Haywood County Commissioner…
Read More

Comment

Harris Regional asks county to slash the hospital’s tax value
 

Harris Regional asks county to slash the hospital’s tax value

When Jackson County sent out bucketloads of mail this spring announcing new values for every property in its borders, Harris…
Read More

Comment

Stakes high in tax dispute with Haywood hospital
 

Stakes high in tax dispute with Haywood hospital

A dispute over how much Haywood Regional Medical Center owes in county property taxes is headed for a showdown this…
Read More

Comment

Will the row over hospitals’ property taxes go the distance?
 

Will the row over hospitals’ property taxes go the distance?

Haywood and Jackson counties could have a long road ahead in their property tax disputes with Duke LifePoint, which owns…
Read More

Comment

GALLERY: Ghost Town property going on the market
 

GALLERY: Ghost Town property going on the market

After attempting to revamp the mountaintop amusement park for several years, Alaska Presley has decided to sell Ghost Town in…
Read More

Comment

The legend of the Boojum
 

The legend of the Boojum

Celebrating the lore and legend of the “Boojum,” the inaugural Boojum Festival & Hunt will be June 10-12 in Canton.
Read More

Comment

Sylva art gallery opening
 

Sylva art gallery opening

The Jackson County Visual Arts Association (JCVAA) will hold its “Grand Opening” gallery show from 5 to 8 p.m. Friday,…
Read More

Comment

This must be the place
 

This must be the place

Yeah, it’s true. I had originally planned to be a teacher. When I was thinking about what I wanted to…
Read More

Comment

Brotherhood through bluegrass: Balsam Range singer and Nashville songwriter release solo work
 

Brotherhood through bluegrass: Balsam Range singer and Nashville songwriter release solo work

Within the realm of melodic creativity, one word emerges — collaboration. It’s the act of bringing resources together, whether it…
Read More

Comment

Sheriffs misrepresented
 

Sheriffs misrepresented

To the Editor: If you value honesty as an important trait for a Supreme Court justice, it should interest you…
Read More

Comment

Vote ‘Yes’ for education sales tax
 

Vote ‘Yes’ for education sales tax

By David Belcher • Guest Columnist Voters in Jackson County will have the opportunity on Tuesday, June 7, to take…
Read More

Comment

Nothing brings back memories like that first car
 

Nothing brings back memories like that first car

My daughter is turning 15 this weekend. Every 15 minutes, she reminds me that she will be driving a car…
Read More

Comment

Still free to mix it up in the marketplace of ideas
 

Still free to mix it up in the marketplace of ideas

Over this past Memorial Day weekend I found myself reading essays and columns about freedom, about military men and women…
Read More

Comment

Glad to be alive: Bear bite victim tells his story
 

Glad to be alive: Bear bite victim tells his story

The sun had not quite set when Bradley Veeder fell asleep in his tent May 10, feeling “tired but happy”…
Read More

Comment

Get outside on National Trails Day
 

Get outside on National Trails Day

Every year, America’s hiking trails get their moment to shine with the American Hiking Society’s National Trails Day. This year’s…
Read More

Comment

Halls Cabin built right on state line
 

Halls Cabin built right on state line

Certain place names in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park have become iconic: Gregory Bald, Thunderhead, Chimney Tops, Jump-off, Mt.…
Read More

Comment

The March is filled with unique characters
 

The March is filled with unique characters

Several months ago, I was invited to join the Senior Citizen Book Club at the Jackson County Senior Citizen Center.…
Read More

Comment

Celebration to recognize career of WCU’s Frizzell
 

Celebration to recognize career of WCU’s Frizzell

The Jackson County Genealogical Society, City Lights Bookstore, the Jackson County Museum, and the Jackson County Public Library plan to…
Read More

Comment

Cherokee Bluegrass Festival
 

Cherokee Bluegrass Festival

The Cherokee Bluegrass Festival will run from June 2-4 at the Happy Holiday RV Village & Campground, located at 1553…
Read More

Comment

Stecoah announces ‘Youth Talent’ winners
 

Stecoah announces ‘Youth Talent’ winners

The third annual “Mountain Youth Talent Contest” was held at the Stecoah Valley Bluegrass Festival in Robbinsville on Saturday, May…
Read More

Comment

Smokey Mountain News Logo
SUPPORT THE SMOKY MOUNTAIN NEWS AND
INDEPENDENT, AWARD-WINNING JOURNALISM
Go to top
Payment Information

/

At our inception 20 years ago, we chose to be different. Unlike other news organizations, we made the decision to provide in-depth, regional reporting free to anyone who wanted access to it. We don’t plan to change that model. Support from our readers will help us maintain and strengthen the editorial independence that is crucial to our mission to help make Western North Carolina a better place to call home. If you are able, please support The Smoky Mountain News.

The Smoky Mountain News is a wholly private corporation. Reader contributions support the journalistic mission of SMN to remain independent. Your support of SMN does not constitute a charitable donation. If you have a question about contributing to SMN, please contact us.