Brewing success: Two WNC craft breweries win national medals
With sunshine spilling into the taproom of Currahee Brewing Company in Franklin one recent afternoon, brewmaster Taylor Yates is all…
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New Sylva brewery opens
With its grand opening last Friday, Balsam Falls Brewing Company becomes the third business of its kind in Sylva.
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This must be the place: ‘Take me out to the ball game…’
My first love. Baseball. The quintessential American pastime. The thing of which childhood dreams are made. The playing grounds of…
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Local World War II vet honored
Paul Willis, 96, a World War II veteran from Canton, was awarded the French Legion of Honor by the French…
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Mountain Heritage Day award winners
A popular component of Western Carolina University’s annual Mountain Heritage Day are the judged and juried contests, and other competitions.…
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This must be the place: ‘It’s times like these you learn to live again’
It was right around the third song or so that the goosebumps kept appearing. Up and down my arms, the…
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Growing up in freedom: Gladys Knight performance to benefit proposed Canton community center
Just outside of a small Western North Carolina community known as “Papertown USA” sits a dilapidated 84-year old brick schoolhouse…
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This must be the place: ‘They won’t know what route I’m going…’
For a moment, I thought the dog was going to charge me. Running along the quiet back country of Southwest…
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This must be the place: ‘What a way to ride, oh what a way to go’
Three pickup trucks. One stretch of highway. Since 2005, I’ve routinely traversed a never-ending stretch of Interstate 81 from north-central…
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New director named for Lake Junaluska Singers
Mary Wannamaker Huff has been named the director of the Lake Junaluska Singers, a choral group that has been a…
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Symposium draws on tradition, looks to future
The eighth annual Rooted in the Mountains symposium at Western Carolina University brought concepts of Cherokee philosophy and living wellness…
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Time of the season: WNC falls into October
Amid the innumerable reasons we love Western North Carolina, the fall foliage of October might be the common denominator that…
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Autumn leaves must fall, but not before being a WNC tourism draw
It’s September in the hills when Western Carolina University’s fall foliage forecaster Beverly Collins attempts to quantify the quality of…
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This must be the place: ‘You never slow down, you never grow old’
Tom Petty. I can’t remember a time without him and his band’s music in my life. It’s always been there,…
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‘Where were you in ‘62?’
The Jackson County Genealogical Society, winner of Western Carolina University’s 2012 “Mountain Heritage Award,” will host its annual Cruise-In fundraiser…
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This must be the place: ‘Where do you think you’re goin’?’
It’s the internal struggle. Do you participate in life and soak it in like a sponge being dropped into a…
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The fog of war: Vietnam vet reflects on service, new documentary
You could see it in his eyes. Sitting across from James “Jim” Joyce in his office in downtown Waynesville, his…
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WCU’s Mountain Heritage Day returns
Western Carolina University’s Mountain Heritage Day, a free family oriented festival that celebrates Southern Appalachian culture through concerts, living-history demonstrations,…
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Tell it from the mountain: ‘Uncle Ted’ White on bluegrass, the late Steve Sutton
What defines bluegrass music would have to be the banjo played “The Earl Scruggs Way” with the three-finger roll. If…
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This must be the place: ‘Remember me if I forget…’
He suggested two. I bought three. Standing in the small main office of the Woodsmoke Campground in Unicoi, Tennessee, I…
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Carden in the rye: WNC storyteller bridges past, present
There is no middle ground. With Jackson County storyteller/playwright Gary Carden, you either love the guy or you tolerate him,…
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Disconnected from a connected world
Ugh. The moment my girlfriend handed over my soaking wet smart phone, a shiver of isolation ran up my spine.…
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Increase in state arts funding
With a boost in state appropriations, the North Carolina Arts Council will launch two new programs this year and provide…
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New director of WCU’s School of Music
An acclaimed pianist who has performed around the world and who teaches that musical artists must be entrepreneurs and good…
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This must be the place: Feeling lucky? Cast the first stone
I ain’t perfect. And the older I get, the more I realize just how true that statement is. Along with…
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Take it or leave it: Foghat to headline Cherokee Blue Ridge Run
It’s the intersection of American blues and British rock. When you throw some Foghat onto the stereo, you’re entering a…
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When my last song is sung: A conversation with Rob Ickes
In the bluegrass world, it doesn’t get much bigger than Rob Ickes. Fifteen-time “Dobro Player of the Year” by the…
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The music of the heart: 48th annual Smoky Mountain Folk Festival
It gets to the point without distraction. Folk music — the intersection of the human heart and the greater world…
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This must be the place: ‘North Country Ice Storm of ‘98’
I can still feel the cold air, the sense of hopelessness. Watching the clips of the massive rainfall and flooding…
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Play by your own rules
An iconic mandolin and fiddle player, Sam Bush has rewritten the game of bluegrass, especially when it comes to live…
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Balsam Range turns 10 atop IBMA nominations
Leading this year’s International Bluegrass Music Association awards with eight nominations, Haywood County group Balsam Range is atop the mountain…
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Chatham County Line
Formed in Raleigh in 1999, Chatham County Line has emerged as one of those unique branches of tone and approach…
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Canton Labor Day: Ricky Skaggs
Throughout the 1980s, Ricky Skaggs was the toast of country music. Twelve #1 hits, eight CMA and ACM awards, a…
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The ‘Canton Comeback’
When the Town of Canton relaunched its Labor Day Festival a couple years ago, it was in a crucial move…
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This must be the place: ‘Tired, but wiser for the time’
The trifecta. By this past Monday morning, I was running on fumes heading back to my humble abode in downtown…
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DSO returns to WNC
In their 20 years together, the members of Dark Star Orchestra have equaled — if not surpassed — the number…
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Comin’ Home: Former Black Crowes start anew with Magpie Salute
With the demise of The Black Crowes in 2015, Rich Robinson was in search of new digs.
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WNC welcomes ‘The Great American Solar Eclipse’
At 2:35 p.m. on Aug. 21, Western North Carolina residents and visitors will have the chance to watch as the…
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Prepare to shoot: Eclipse photography takes research, preparation
It’s safe to say that a good solar eclipse photo requires a bit more preparation than your average snapshot.
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Local governments plan for the worst, hope for the best
There are still many unknowns as the historic Total Solar Eclipse approaches Aug. 21, but local governments are trying to…
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Behold the Seer: Chris Robinson Brotherhood roll on
The CRB sports a curious and mischievous grin these days, whistling a tune near-and-dear to their hearts, all while slowing…
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No way to stop the flow: A conversation with Tim O’Brien
In the annals of bluegrass history, the chapter on multi-instrumentalist Tim O’Brien is not only long and bountiful, it’s also…
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This must be the place: ‘Catch my soul, catch the very light ... ’
It does mean something. Sitting in the darkness of the Grail Moviehouse last Thursday, this overwhelming feeling of deep sadness…
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Roundabout: YES swings through WNC
Spanning over six decades, British prog-rock act YES were recently inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Although…
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Finding a balance: Tipping Point Brewing closes, new location set for Brevard
It’s 12:15 p.m. Sunday. On a normal weekend, Tipping Point Brewing in downtown Waynesville would have been open for 45…
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This must be the place: ‘We will get by, we will survive’
Happy birthday, Captain Trips. On this day (Aug. 1) some 75 years ago, Jerome Garcia was born in San Francisco.…
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Field of Dreams: If you build it, they will come
By Kurt J. Volker • Contributing Writer In a sense, Warren and Phil Drake and Warren’s wife Ronda have created their…
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Mortgage agreement goes up in flames
Forty-one years have gone into making Dogwood Crafters Cooperative of Dillsboro the successful business it is today. And the co-op…
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