motorcyclists. .... event and so Michelle chose this traditional quilt block for her
shop. Shooting ... into the center seeking free pregnancy tests as well as help
and.
A r b u c k l e This trail begins at the East edge of Burnsville with the Serendipity Frame Shop. Look left as you drive out of town to spot the small building nestled back off the road beside an old service station. The road to the Radio Station (Sawmill Hollow Rd.) is shortly after the Serendipity Frame Shop on the left. IT has two severe hairpin turns within 20 yards of each other. Ahhh, life in the mountains. You should plan to spend some time at the EnergyXChange on Highway 80N. It’s fascinating and educational. There is a small gift shop at the site. The drive out Highway 80 North is a scenic and curvy trip. This road is a favorite of motorcyclists. They don’t make roads like this any more and if you like banked curves and few straight stretches, you’ll love this road. You may want to go beyond the Honeybees in the Garden quilt block on 80 to find the Kona Cemetery. That is where you will find the graves of Charles Silver. Both of them. The Legend of Frankie Silver was born in this area. The small church at the cemetery has an exhibit and if the church is open you will want to go inside and look around. The cemetery itself is in a lovely spot with a
spectacular view of the Black Mountains. Frankie Silver was hanged for murdering her husband Charles with an ax. She chopped him into pieces so he is buried in more than one grave as they found more of him after they buried him the first time. You can learn more about this story from local folks, or from the book The Untold Story of Frankie Silver by Perry Deane Young. Each telling of the story is different, so exactly what happened has slipped into legend. You will notice that if you head out Highway 80N you can end up on Hwy 226 which can take you to Bakersville (80 will hit a T intersection where you will turn R onto 226.) You can also go to Bakersville from Spruce Pine on 226. We have put directions on some of the pages to help you find the blocks and plan your trip.
NOTE: While we try hard to keep the maps and Tour Guides updated, blocks are going up all the time and the maps and guides may not always be up-to-date. If you spot a block not on the map, take a picture if you can and email it to us so we can update the map and guide both for the next printing and for the internet. (In other words - become one of our volunteers!!)
This trail can dovetail with Bakersville, and Spruce Pine Trails. Make sure you start with a full tank of gas.
Doctor’s Day Off 270 Grace Way Hw
y8
0
Hi
80
Sta
d.
1
26
11 9
y2
te R
Honeybees in the Garden 8865 Hwy 80N
wa
Shooting Star Serendipity Frame Shop 511 E. US Hwy 19E
gh
Hwy
Wintergreene 38 Stonewall Lane
Cathedral Windows 151 Church Rd.
Star of Bethlehem 1867 E US Hwy 19e
Burnsville Bobcat Burnsville Elementary School Burnsville School Rd.
Burnsville
Mariner’s Compass 327 Rebels Creek Rd. Bakersville Hw y8
0N
US Hwy 19e
wo B ox
Dewberry
od
Hwy 80S
River Walk Dr.
Arbuckle Coffee Pot 30 Wanna B Lane, off Arbuckle Rd, which is off 19e
y Hw
S 80
Grandmother’s Quilt Corner of Hwy 19e and George’s Fork
Snail Trail One of a Kind Gallery Hwy 80S Micaville Loop Quilt Trails Gift Shop
Radio Windmill Star WKYK Radio Station 749 Sawmill Hollow Rd. Rising Stars East Yancey Middle School Visible from Hwy 19e on the Gym
You can head North on Arbuckle which will intersect with 80N to pick up the Green Mtn. or Bakersville Trail, or head South on 80S to pick up the Celo Trail. This also connects to the Spruce Pine Trail. Be sure to visit the Energy Xchange - an inspiring and educational experience.
Dresden Plate Micaville Presbyterian Church Hwy 80 S
Little Red Schoolhouse 435 River Walk Dr.
ARBUCKLE Estimated driving time from Burnsville: 1.5 hours Head east out of Burnsville on Hwy 19e. First block is on Hwy 19e on the left.
Flower of the Woods Energy XChange Hwy 80N (the landfill road)
Starlight 200 Dewberry Lane off Boxwood which is off 19e barn is on your left - do not go to top of driveway - block is on back side of barn - turn around at barn to see block
Shooting Star Block Location: Serendipity Frame Shop. Drafted by Barbara Webster, Painted by Patty McIntosh and Anita Langan
Michelle Presnell opened her frame shop in October 1985. Her husband Keith had built the building she is in for a beauty shop but it was never used as such. Michelle wanted a business for herself so she apprenticed to Jack Pendley in Spruce Pine who taught her how to frame. She has been a painter all her life and her dad built boats and she had always been around wood, so the frame shop was a natural extension of her interests. Michelle and her husband, Keith, started out as co-owners of the Western Sizzlin steak house. But they decided to sell their share and Michelle started her business while Keith pursued his East Yancey Antiques business. Keith went on to serve as County Commissioner chair for 12 years, then he served as a senator in the NC Senate. Michelle says she started her business so local people could have nice art on their walls, because at the time she started, there was no place to buy nice wall art and people didn’t leave Burnsville very often. Serendipity means an unexpected event and a shooting star is an unexpected event and so Michelle chose this traditional quilt block for her shop.
Radio Windmill Star Location: WKYK buiding, 749 Sawmill Hollow Rd., Burnsville. Drafted by Barbara Webster, painted by Cheryl Hughes, Carol Bareford and Deborah Palmer.
In 1965, J. Ardell Sink, who at that time was General Manager of WKSK in West Jefferson, NC, came to Burnsville and met with town and county officials and other community leaders to tell them of plans to file with the FCC for a construction permit to build a radio station in Burnsville. Burnsville Broadcasting, Inc. was formed, with J. Ardell Sink as President and Treasurer, and Remelle Sink as Vice President and Secretary. The application was granted and the station went on the air May 28, 1967 from rented quarters on East Main St. The station originally operated with 1,000 watts at 1540 on the dial, daytime only.
We were delighted to find a traditional quilt block called Radio Windmill. We added the star to the block and changed the name to Radio Windmill Star.
In 1970, Burnsville Broadcasting, Inc. was changed to Mark Media, Inc. to reflect the purchase of other radio stations by the Sinks. In 1980, the company was able to acquire a major clear channel frequency of 940 on the dial; with this, the station was able to add two more towers and become a 24 hour station. In 1983, the station increased power to 5,000 watts clear channel and added stereo broadcasting. In 1987, the company purchased 13 acres and built a new building at 749 Sawmill Hollow Rd. to house WKYK and the Corporate offices for the Mark Media Group that had grown to seven stations. Four tall towers were constructed to make possible potential power increases and improved coverage. WKYK has been widely recognized as a small market leader in the broadcast industry because of its high listener ratings and use of the latest broadcast computer technology. The station for many years has been one of the most listened to non-metro market stations in the Southeast and has won many awards for community service.
Butterfly and Flower Location: 113 Old Hwy 19. Designed by Ragan Ramsey and Pat Young, drafated and painted by Carolyn Bareford, installed by Keith Beam.
January 2010 marked the fifteenth year that Tri-County Pregnancy Center has served families in Yancey, Mitchell and Avery counties. The pregnancy center is a non-profit organization financed by concerned individuals, churches, and businesses. Tri-County Pregnancy Center offers a safe place for women to explore their options in the event of an unexpected pregnancy. Since 1994, thousands of people have come into the center seeking free pregnancy tests as well as help and encouragement during and after pregnancy. The Center’s Earn While You Learn program provides classes about pregnancy and parenting. Participants earn credits (”Baby Bucks”) they can spend on baby supplies and other materials. Baby Bucks also are awarded for regular prenatal and well-baby check-ups, attending school, giving up smoking, finding jobs, etc. The Center offers budget planning classes and Bible studies. Many of the Earn While You Learn classes as well as a Bible study are available in Spanish. Over the past 15 years, pregnancy center staff and volunteers have listened as many women talked about their abortion experiences. It became obvious that these women needed help to heal. With that in mind, center personnel went for special training and implemented a program to help women struggling with post-abortion stress find healing in a safe, non-judgmental setting. Each group is kept small with no more than six participants, and classes occur in the evening to ensure privacy. Information about the next class may be obtained by calling Mary Higgins or Barbara Macomber at 682-7250. All inquiries are strictly confidential. The staff, volunteers, and board of directors are grateful for supporters who help keep the center open as a haven for clients. New volunteers as well as donations of baby supplies, maternity clothes, and laundry and cleaning supplies for the clients are always welcome. Diapers in sizes newborn, 3, 4, and 5 are especially needed and will be appreciated greatly. Center hours are Mondays and Wednesdays, 9am to 5pm, and Fridays 9am to 1pm. A Spanish translator is available on MONDAY mornings from 9:30am to 11:30 am. For information or to volunteer, please call 672-7250.
Grandmother’s Quilt Location: W.H. Presnell Barn at the intersection of George’s Fork and Hwy. 19. Drafted by Barbara Webster, Painted by Ulrike Poppeliers and Barbara Webster, installed by Jeff Phillips with the help of Ron Chandler’s bucket truck.
This block was the second quilt block to go up in the county. The Presnell’s wanted an eight foot block but we were afraid it would overwhelm the barn so we put up a four foot block but hung it on point which makes it appear a little bigger. (At that time, we had only the two sizes of blocks.) This is a very elegant little block and looks quite dressy on this delightful barn. Now that it is up, we see that maybe a six foot block might be the right size for the barn. We learned a lot from the first three blocks we put up! The block was originally published by The Kansas City Star. Patterns appeared in three periodicals (Kansas City Star, Weekly Kansas City Star and Weekly Star Farmer) from 1928 to 1960. Early patterns were McKim syndicated patterns, but in the early 1930s they began a unique column of traditional and new designs by staff members and readers.
Burnsville Bobcat Location: Burnsville Elementary School 395 Burnsville School Rd. Designed by Martin Webster using designs from students at Burnsville Elementary. Painted by, Installed by.
Story by Susan Buchanan
This clever quilt block features several student designs or ideas from their designs. Pencils across the top, books across the bottom, and of course the bobcat in the center. At the four points of the bobcat are graphic examples of addition, subtraction, multiplication and division. The block is painted in the school colors.
The Burnsville Elementary School Quilt Square was designed from drawings done by our students and was an integrated nd program that encompassed the 2 nine week grading period for the school year 2011-2012. The second nine week grading period focused on local heritage integrated language arts, social studies, science, technology, and math. Students studied local heritage and family history along with quilt art in October and November in their weekly art classes. We celebrated the 1st Annual Heritage Week on November 7-10, 2011. Students enjoyed an author visit by Gloria Houston, collected family history stories with the use of technology, and voted on their favorite quilt art square designed by the students. On Heritage Day, November 10, the students participated in an artifact museum in the media center, butter churning, quilt making, weaving, blacksmithing, “old timey” pictures, “old timey” games, hay rides, goat milking, soap making, and a petting zoo of calves and chickens. Heritage Day activities ended with music from Lucky Streak, student clogging, and storytelling. Our quilt square was revealed on this day. This event will become an annual event for our school and community. Burnsville Elementary School History Founded in 1959 In 1959, with the addition of two new high schools, Burnsville High School became Burnsville Elementary School. At this time, Burnsville Elementary was located at 321 School Circle and housed grades 1-8 adding kindergarten in the 1960's. The campus was split into three buildings, the brick building (now the newly renovated Yancey County Public Library), the rock building (currently the Yancey County Board of Education), and the gym. Mobile units were added in the early 1970's to provide more classroom space. Burnsville School played an important role in the integration of public schools in North Carolina. Yancey County was the first county in the state to integrate its public school system. In the fall of 1962, Burnsville Elementary integrated its facility. Many of the students integrated at this time are now parents and grandparents of students currently at Burnsville Elementary.
With the closure of Pensacola Elementary School, enrollment at Burnsville Elementary increased and in 1987, a bond referendum for money to build a new Burnsville School was brought before the voters of Yancey County. Unfortunately, the referendum did not pass. In 1991, the state appropriated money for a new Burnsville School facility. The current property formerly known as the Zeb Young farm across from East Yancey School was selected as the new location for Burnsville Elementary. One of the many reasons that the property was chosen was due to its visibility and accessibility from the main highway, Highway 19E, through Yancey County. Teachers and staff immediately made trips to other schools around the state looking for ideas and advice for their new location. In January of 1992 the students, faculty, and staff moved to the new location, 395 Burnsville School Road. With the new location, Burnsville Elementary became important due to the special education program. The school now housed the self-contained class for the elementary level for all schools in the district. This class added a new dimension to the student population. Further diversity for Burnsville Elementary began in the 1990's with the enrollment of our first Latino population. The economic boom in our area brought many migrant workers to our region. Currently, 25% of our population at Burnsville Elementary is Latino. We are still building great memories at Burnsville Elementary. Just as in previous years, Burnsville is a welcoming and an all inclusive part of the Yancey County School System. We are committed to excellence and are dedicated to excellence in education for our students. In the last four years, we have implemented the Positive Behavior Instructional Support model and a mentoring program for our at-risk students. Our population is diversifying with students bringing backgrounds from Mexico, Japan, Vietnam, Korea, Romania, and other areas of the world. We are confident that we can meet the educational needs of our students in a loving and nurturing manner. Today our school is a melting pot that expresses the acceptance of all students and provides a global awareness in educating students with the integration of 21st century skills. Hopefully, we will encourage all students to be life-long learners providing a strong framework teaching students values of good character, hard work, tolerance, and self-discipline.
Rising Stars Location: East Yancey Middle School, corner of Hwy 19 and George’s Fork Rd. Drafted by Barbara Webster, painted by the Higgins QT Painters, installed by Jeff Phillips with the help of Wade Whitson of Whitson Electric.
Story by Ashley Howell The school opened as a high school in 1958, with the first graduating class in 1959. It was formed from Micaville High School and part of Burnsville High School. The school transitioned into a middle school in 1976 after Mountain Heritage High School was built to consolidate the two high schools in the county. Today, East Yancey serves students from Burnsville, South Toe, and Micaville Elementary Schools. East Yancey Middle School educates approximately 325 students and employs approximately 45 adults in various capacities. We are a school that strives for excellence in all that we do and our mission is that Each Youth Must Succeed. In preparing for success, we provide a nurturing educational environment where students develop academic, physical, social and emotional skills necessary for a lifetime of learning. Most importantly, we are a family. The East Yancey climate is one in which we take of each other through difficult times and celebrate accomplishments. We are a team dedicated to promoting our diversity, yet we still take pride in our mountain values and culture. With all these aspects and values in mind, we hope our students leave East Yancey with a sense of pride, respect, and responsibility that will help them succeed in life and strive for the East Yancey and Yancey County Schools’ vision of excellence.
Star of Bethlehem Location: Shoal Creek Baptist Church, 1867 East US Hwy 19E, Burnsville. Drafted and Painted by Carolyn Bareford.
Story by Alice Hutchins Shoal Creek Baptist Church, originally known as Upper Shoal Creek Church, first worshiped together in 1907, in a schoolhouse, which was a log building on Shoal Creek Road several miles east of Burnsville. This building served the church well and in the meantime a new white clapboard school was built right next door. In 1945, Yancey County Schools consolidated and the building was no longer needed as a school. In 1952, Shoal Creek Baptist bought the property, renovated it, and began having services there in 1955. Church growth continued and in 1971, work began on a new red brick building a stone's throw away from the two older church sites. In 2002, after many years of prayer, the current property of 23 acres was purchased off of 19E to allow room for growth, both physically and spiritually. The new church building was framed and roofed by a volunteer group called Carpenters for Christ in just 10 days during the summer of 2005 and the first service was held in October of 2006. The Bethlehem Star pattern was chosen for a variety of reasons: it is the meeting place of the Old Testament and the New, it represents the birth of the Messiah in which our hope rests, it reminds us that Christmas is for everyone, all year round, not just during the "season". Lastly, it allowed us to design the points of the star to resemble the fish pattern (ichthys) that was commonly used as a secret sign by persecuted Christians during the early church.
Snail Trail Location: One of A Kind Gallery, Micaville Loop, Micaville. Painted by Jane Greene and Miriam Savard.
Story by Telia Tollison The minute you drive up to One of a Kind Gallery, you realize you have come upon a magical spot. There is a dragon standing guard at the front door, and when you open that door, you are confronted by a mélange of history and traditional arts and crafts. There are handmade quilts, jewelry, pottery, pictures, sculpture, and even some handmade furniture. There are serious pieces of art and the whimsical—found art from obsolete items, such as a clock made from old watch faces.
Donna Sue Groves started the Quilt Trail movement in Adams County, Ohio with the block she put on her barn to honor her mother, Maxine. This is a picture of that block (Snail Trail) on her barn. While they were at it, they put up 20 other blocks, thus starting the Quilt Trail phenomenon that has swept the country. Quilt Trails can now be found in 30 states and Canada.
The art gallery has a long and colorful history. It began as the commissary for Horace Clay Company, a big mining company at Double Island. Workers were paid in script, which they used at the company store. When the company closed its local operations in 1940, it either sold or gave the store to its manager, Clarence Robinson; no one is quite clear about the transaction. Soon, J.L. Robinson bought the store and turned it into the hub of the community. Although the old store no longer carries “everything that people might need,” it still has its original chestnut shelving (created in the days before wormy was associated with the wood), oak floors and walls, and the same tin ceiling and fixtures that the Horace Clay Company installed. Eddie Robinson, J.L.'s nephew, pointed to a support pole behind a counter with a band about head height. “Do you know what that band's for?” he asked Rhonda Boone, J.L.'s granddaughter. When she shook her head no, he explained there was a hook on either side of the band from which they hung huge bunches of bananas for sale. He pointed to a beautiful glass and oak case filled with handmade jewelry. At one time, that case held ladies' unmentionables, he informed us. At J.L. Robinson's General Store, a customer could buy just about anything. If someone asked for an item Lee didn't have, he'd have it by Thursday when the supply truck came. There were hay bailing wire, horseshoes and horseshoe nails, dress shoes, hats, and women's dresses. They carried baby bottle nipples, which stretched across the top of any bottle. Eddie Robinson saw many a baby nipple stretched across Coca Cola bottles. There were ten items at cost, including sugar, flour, and snuff. Lee made a penny per pack of cigarettes, forty cents a pound on dry goods, and twenty cents plus cost on food. You could buy dynamite caps at the back of the first floor and feed for livestock.
Eddie and Rhonda met to swap stories about the general store for this narrative. Eddie worked there for many years, and Rhonda and her sisters worked at the store part time while they were in school. Rhonda remembered the sweet smell of feed in the feed room that Robinson added in the mid-40's and having to go into the spooky basement to use the restroom. Both Eddie and Rhonda recall being pinched in the soft under part of the arm when they did something wrong. Eddie laughed that anytime he saw J.L. and someone tiptoeing toward the front door, he knew that his uncle was “helping” a person leave by pinching the tender underarm. Eddie probably knows as much about the store and its history as anyone. He surprised Rhonda by informing her that there was a powder magazine in the basement where her grandfather stored dynamite for sale. He then pointed to an area of ceiling where there was no patterned tin. “That's where your granddaddy took down a wall. People used to not go behind the counter. The customer told a clerk what he wanted, and the clerk would find it. I came in one day, and Uncle Lee had a saw out to cut a counter in two.” He also had many stories about the hard times in Yancey County. He said people really struggled, but they managed to pay their bills to Mr. Robinson; he would let customers get what they needed on credit. He told Eddie, “If the people paid their bills quickly, encourage them to take anything they want. If they are slow to pay, let them take what they want, but don't encourage them.” As times grew better, many adults whose parents shopped at Robinson's told the family, “My people would have starved if it hadn't been for your granddaddy.” Customers who were unable to make it to the store had their groceries delivered. Both Eddie and Rhonda remember driving up single-lane dirt roads to take groceries. rd
J. L. Robinson was an original and a character in the true sense of the word. He only had a 3 grade education, but he could do math in his head like a calculator. “You couldn't fool Uncle Lee.” Eddie laughs about three teenagers who broke into the store to steal shoes. They put the new ones on and their old shoes in the boxes. One joker said he'd sure like to see 'ole' Lee's face when he saw the old shoes. A voice behind them growled, “Well, turn around then.” There stood J.L. with his hand on the pistol he always carried. J.L. could have turned them over to the law, but he didn't, and the man who tells the story said he never stole again. The store kept 3 barrels of oil for sale: kerosene, motor oil, and floor oil. Lee insisted his own floors be oiled almost every night. Eddie thinks to this day that Lee knew when the younger Robinson wanted to leave early to go courting because that's when Eddie had to swab the floors. Before the elder Robinson closed the store each night, he'd walk outside and look both ways on the road. If he saw car lights, he would wait to close. More likely than not, those lights meant a customer. He generally opened up at 5:00 a.m. and closed when people stopped coming, somewhere between 7:30 and 9:00. Eddie recalls getting out of high school (now Micaville Elementary School) at first bell so that he could be ready to dip ice cream when everyone else got out. When the feldspar mill was in operation, J.L. would come get Eddie out of school to cash tickets. Drivers would take a truckload of 'spar, generally around 2240 pounds, to the mill and get a ticket for their load. Truckers would then bring their tickets to the store to cash them. At the end of the week, the elder Robinson would turn in the tickets to the mill for reimbursement and a tidy profit. At one point in time the store carried fresh meat and ground its own sausage. They also made fresh sandwiches that were very popular when the Taylor Togs Plant down the road was in operation. Rhonda remembers fighting with her sisters about whose turn it was to work for
granddaddy. Those sandwiches were delicious, and there would be long lines of workers waiting for lunch. He was a hard taskmaster, as his granddaughter recalled. He was always on the lookout for ways to make money. One time a friend offered Robinson a filling station and the acreage behind it. Robinson had the cash in his pocket to pay for it, but decided he wanted to keep the cash to pay for stock. Soon afterwards, the acreage sold for a quarter of a million dollars. Robinson swore that he'd never turn down the opportunity to buy property again. Because he did business with everyone around, he had accumulated a lot of land by his death. Later, his son ran the store until it closed in the 1980's, but he “never could do it right.” J.L. liked to go to the store everyday, even after retirement. From his young days, he kept the keys to the store in his back pocket behind his wallet. One time he went home, bathed and changed clothes, then returned to the store. His son was looking for the keys to close up, but J.L. had left them home in his old pants. He knew perfectly well where the keys were, but slyly urged Eddie to “let them hunt for them.” A story that Eddie seemed particularly proud to recall happened about 1953 when they were rewiring the school. A company from Asheville won the contract and had some 'colored fellas' working for them. These guys kept peeping in the front door, until one of them finally got the courage to ask Uncle Lee if he would mind fixing them some sandwiches and bringing them to the feed door so they buy them. Uncle Lee said, “No. This is my store. If you want a sandwich, you come right on in just like everybody else. And if you don't behave, I'll do you just like everybody else and take you across the road.” A story that both Rhonda and Eddie were a part of involved another local character, Fred, who had a drinking problem. He would come to the store drunk, which J.L. didn't like. J.L. said, “Look here, Fred. You can't come into the store drunk;” then he'd make Eddie or Rhonda take him home. The only problem was that Fred took the back way and usually beat them back to the store. Now, while J.L. Robinson was running his store, his wife Hettie loved to be outside. She had a huge garden up the side of the mountain so remote that the only way to access it was by walking. Sometimes, Rhonda would go with her to help, but Rhonda said her grandmother could out-work her granddaughter any day. Hettie would much rather be using a hoe or shovel than doing housework. When she wasn't outside gardening, she was inside canning. When the store closed, it underwent several incarnations, but the property remains in the hands of the Robinson family, a memorial to their grandfather. Currently, it is leased by Estela Shackelford, Kari Weaver, and Lynda Gayle Banner, who have established the OOAK (One of a Kind) Art Gallery. When they decided that they wanted to add a quilt square to the exterior, they contacted Rhonda and her sister, Belinda Woody. After much discussion, everyone concluded that the perfect square would be a variation of the very first quilt block erected, Snail Trail with its one curving trail. J.L. Robinson's General Store has led many lives and thus deserved many trails, so the block has four trails that intersect. Come, sit on the front porch and imagine the world of the past, then go inside and see what artists are doing to honor their heritage.
Dresden Plate Location: Micaville Presbyterian Church on Hwy 80, Drafted by Barbara Webster, Painted by Carolyn Bareford, Margot Parker, Cheryl Hughes, and Deborah Palmer. Installed by Willow Johnson with help from Wade Whitson, Whitson Electric, and Harry Childs. Block donated by Sharon Herndon.
Story by Betty Wells Dresden Plate block in memory of Ruth Bostian Hughes and in honor of Sarah Roberts Boone given by Sharon Herndon.
Exit Hwy 19 onto Hwy 80S and travel the short distance to Micaville where you will find this church next to Taylor Toggs. You can get back onto Hwy 19 by continuing straight past the church.
Ruth Hughes was born in Knoxville, TN, but the family moved to Burnsville and she grew up here graduating from Burnsville High School and a business school in Knoxville. She married James Clarence "Jake" Hughes, a Yancey County native, who operated a small store in Micaville where the Post Office is now. (The Post Office then was located in the East end of the old store.) They had one daughter, Sharon, who graduated from East Yancey High and Mars Hill College. The family lived on Ransom Silvers Rd. just off the Micaville Loop. Ruth served as Post Master in Micaville for 31 years, retiring in 1972. In her spare time she was an avid quilter and enjoyed other arts and crafts. One of her favorite quilt patterns was the Dresden plate, and her favorite color was blue. Sharon was an active youth member of the Micaville Presbyterian Church and was married there to Rodney Styles. Rodney passed away in 1973. In 1990 Sharon married Robert Herndon. Sarah Boone grew up in Asheville and went to school and lived there until 1950 when she married Jack Boone, Sr. who lived in Micaville right on the Loop. His family owned a large tract of land facing on the Loop and directly across from the post office which includes the house where he grew up(#49) as well as the house to which he brought his bride (#9). Their house had once been a small store which has had numerous additions. They had one son, Jack, Jr., a teacher now retired from East Yancey Middle School who lives with his family in a newer brick house on the same tract of land beyond the original two houses. Sarah was a homemaker until 1960 when she began to work at the Micaville Post Office as Clerk on a parttime basis; and when Ruth retired , Sarah took over as Post Master serving until she retired in1992. Ruth and Sarah were fairly close neighbors in a small community and had their job in common. They became fast friends and often worked together on their crafts and quilting. Sarah preferred ceramics whereas Ruth preferred quilting; but together, sharing time, talents and materials, they created many beautiful handmade items. In the late 60's when the Rev. John Powers was pastor of the
Micaville Presbyterian Church, he initiated several community projects, one of which was the Community Club. Sarah and Ruth kept the scrapbook of all their activities. At a regional meeting in Asheville of such small clubs, their book won 1st place, and it is still kept at the church. Through the Club and the church, they were very involved in their community often doing things for others that went unheralded. For example, when Sharon was planning her wedding, she asked some Virginia relatives to attend and to provide the music. Unfortunately, there was no organ in the church. So what did the "girls" do? They, along with another friend, purchased an organ on the installment plan so Sharon could have her music as she wanted it. They paid for it month by month and donated it to the church. Sarah's husband Jack had been a member of the Micaville Presbyterian Church most of his life and Sarah and family continued to worship there. She has been church treasurer for 40 years and shows no indications of wanting relief from the job.
Cathedral Windows Location: 151 Church Rd., off Shoal Creek Rd. in the Windom community, Burnsville. Painted by Katie Webster and Carolyn Bareford. Installed by Jeff Phillips with the help of Wade Whitson of Whitson Electric.
Story by Ramona Maximillian This quilt block was painted to match a family quilt owned by Ramona Maximillian, made by her mother, Beatrice Coone Phillips of Mooresville, NC and hangs on Ramona's home, the former Shoal Creek Baptist Church. The former Shoal Creek Baptist Church was reluctantly sold because of an expanding congregation, requiring more space and parking area. Now the private residence of Xavier and Ramona Maximillian, it was also bought in memory of Mrs. Maximillian's beloved parents of Mooresville whose dream was to someday live in the gorgeous Blue Ridge Mountains. Ramona is now living their dream for them. Beatrice Coone Phillips, much loved wife and mother of five, liked to quilt, the Cathedral Windows pattern being her favorite. Every tiny stitch reflected the devotion of this extremely shy and humble woman to her family. Highly respected and liked by everyone she came in contact with, she always had a friendly smile for all. In the old days, it was customary and necessary for very young people to go to work, most often in cotton mills throughout the South. Beatrice spent her entire working career as a weaver at Moore Mills, which was followed by Burlington Mills, and then Draymore, all in Mooresville. In the 30s, 40s, and early 50s, times were really tough for just about everyone. It was necessary for women to make quilts for warmth as most houses only had one heated room. During the frequent layoffs by the mills, Beatrice, after household chores, spent time during the long, cold winter nights doing what she loved to do – quilt for her family and friends. Money was very scarce so every scrap of material available went into quilts. Only a few people could afford yards or bolts of material that many of today's quilts require. Instead, remnants, and old clothes were used. Nothing was wasted. Ramona remembers when it was actually a thrill for women to purchase bags of flour with all kinds of floral designs. Many Southerners lay their heads down at night on pillowcases and snuggled beneath quilts made of these sacks. It was truly amazing how quilters created beautiful patterns from anything available during those lean years. Even today, the old fashioned patchwork quilt remains a beloved American treasure and is highly prized by those who own one or more. The feedsack patterns from the 30s and 40s are now being reprinted as yardage and can be bought in quilting stores, sparking a renaissance of feedsack quilts. Those who own quilts made from original feedsack fabric are lucky, indeed. The Cathedral Windows quilt pattern is usually made almost entirely by hand. Colored squares are placed on top of machine-prepared muslin squares. The
muslin is folded over the center square and sewed down by hand. This creates a set of arcs around the central square, and when the squares are all sewed together the arcs make an interlocking circular pattern, much like the double wedding ring pattern. The quilt does not usually get further hand stitching once sewn together, and they are famously heavy. Technically, they are not considered a true quilt (at least not at formal quilt shows) because they do not have the traditional two layers of fabric separated by a layer of batting, which are then stitched together…the description of a quilt. But this pattern was hugely popular among mountain women because it could be made by hand and in small increments, and because it didn't require large pieces of fabric to make. The end result was also very warm. This quilt block was the most complex ever painted by the Quilt Trails painters. The pattern was developed from photographs of the quilt, enlarged to actual size and then traced onto the block for painting. Paint colors were chosen to match the quilt so the block is a true replica of the original quilt. Ramona says a knock on the Fellowship Hall door might get you an invitation to tour the church and see the original quilt from which the block was derived, and a friendly cup of coffee or tea as well. You may get invited to see her art collection - a result from 12 years working at American Embassies around the world. In her career she got to meet Mother Theresa, Howard Hughes, Senators, and traveled with President Bush (Senior) to Tokyo.
Flower of the Woods Location: EnergyXchange, 66 EnergyXchange Dr. off Hwy 80N. Drafted by Barbara Webster, Painted by Heather Dawes, Installed by Randy McMahan and Sam Vandenberg.
Story by Heather Dawes
Follow Highway 80 North (exit left off Hwy 19e) to find the EnergyXchange. The sign may be hard to spot so keep a sharp eye for a left turn.
Nestled in the Black Mountains of Western North Carolina, Yancey and Mitchell are two of the state's most rural counties. The area is rich in cultural, natural, and historic assets including the legendary Penland School of Craft, Mayland Community College and Mount Mitchell, the highest peak east of the Mississippi River. Residents of Yancey and Mitchell counties are concerned about conservation and economic prosperity. When the landfill that served the two counties was closed in 1994, extensive research and a lot of brainstorming generated a host of ideas for reuse. One board member said, “no idea was too ridiculous . . . we could have branched out a thousand different ways.” This flexibility allowed local leaders to create and customize an appropriate energy reuse for the landfill. As home to some of America's most creative artists and beautiful native plants, the Yancey-Mitchell landfill seemed the perfect place for developing craft incubator studios and greenhouses to cultivate endangered flora while utilizing the landfill gas. What is landfill gas? As the municipal solid waste decomposes beneath the surface of the Yancey-Mitchell landfill cap, landfill gas is created. Landfill gas consists of about 50% methane, the primary component of natural gas, and 50% carbon dioxide, with a small amount of other compounds. Ordinarily, without a collection system, the landfill gas moves upward and finds places to escape into the air. At EnergyXchange the landfill gas is captured and used as an energy source. This helps reduce local smog and global climate change.
The idea for EnergyXchange was created through the partnership of three organizationsBlue Ridge Resource Conservation and Development Council (BRRC&D), HandMade in America (HandMade), and Mayland Community College (MCC) – recognized for their strong track record for education, community development and environmental protection in Western North Carolina. The partners strategically worked to get the EnergyXchange idea and campus going from 1996 until 2000. BRRC&D began investigating potential uses of the landfill gas in 1996. County commissioners sponsored the project and asked BRRC&D to conduct research, investigating other locations were landfill gas was used successfully. Their research led to a new EPA program called the Landfill Methane Outreach Program (LMOP). In 1997, MCC began planning the Project Branch Out initiative that would encompass the horticultural endeavors at EnergyXchange. Additionally, EPA-LMOP agreed to conduct a feasibility study on the quality and quantity of methane in the gas being produced by the landfill. Their study determined that the site was commercially viable for energy development. In 1998, due to the large volume of gas revealed in the study, HandMade joined the partnership to implement the craft business incubators involving a clay studio and a glass studio. That same year, the EPA awarded a $50,000 grant to hire a project manager, and The Community Foundation of Western North Carolina awarded $10,000 for greenhouse construction. Many significant grants were awarded after 1998 for the construction of the gas collection system, and construction of the campus. On Earth Day 1999 the landfill gas system was activated. By 2001, the campus was complete and the first six artists had begun their residencies. EnergyXchange has become one of the nation's model energy recovery projects and is used internationally as an example of successful small landfill gas projects. For example, the EPA Methane to Markets Program included the EnergyXchange project in a 2008 landfill gas workshop in Poland. Methane gas from the decomposing trash powers ovens for glass blowers, a pottery kiln, and supplies radiant heat for the studios and greenhouse. It is estimated to save $1 million in energy costs over the landfill's 20-year reuse cycle. By burning the methane it combines with oxygen to form carbon dioxide. Methane is a 'greenhouse gas' that is 21 times more effective at holding heat than carbon dioxide. According to the EPA's feasibility study, the environmental impact of the Yancey-Mitchell County landfill Reuse Project is equivalent to planting 14,000 acres of trees or taking 21,000 cars off the road in North Carolina each year. The nonprofit corporation, EnergyXchange, was formed September 13, 1999 and received its tax exempt status in 2000. The EnergyXchange complex includes four greenhouses, three cold frames, a retail craft gallery, visitor center, clay studio and glass studio. EnergyXchange is run by a 15-member Board of Directors, comprised of public officials, business and civic leaders, and representatives of the area. The mission of EnergyXchange is to apply the use of renewable resources and practices for educational opportunities and economic development in the fields of art and horticulture. The “three Es” of EnergyXchange's local impact are: Environment, Education, and Economics. The programs that facilitate this local impact are the craft business incubator program, project branch out, and the landfill gas system itself. Many school groups, civic organizations, governmental agencies, and individuals interested in alternate energy come to EnergyXchange for a guided tour. These tours provide information on landfill gas, wind energy, and solar energy, as well as, horticulture and aquaculture. The craft incubator program supports entrepreneurs in starting, managing and operating new businesses in the crafts of glass blowing and pottery. Craft residencies are available to potters and glass blowers who are competitively selected by media-specific juries for the opportunity to work in group studios on the site at a nominal cost. Participants in the program may stay as long as three years and receive training in business practices from MCC Small Business Center. The artists while at EnergyXchange perfect their craft, develop their businesses, and live in our community. The program supports 2 glass artists and 4 clay artists. The clay kiln and glass furnaces are fired with landfill gas at no additional cost to the residents. In the creation of their pieces of art, the EnergyXchange artists are also helping the environment and the local economy.
Project Branch Out began with the strategy to nurture small agricultural activities in rural western North Carolina. The Appalachian Mountains offer an unequaled array of native ornamentals. Project Branch Out helps diversify local crops and propagates endangered species. While the area has a rich agricultural history found in burley tobacco, Christmas trees, woody and herbaceous ornamentals, beef cattle and vegetable production, these two counties have experienced declining availability of indigenous plants – such as rhododendron and native azaleas – that are a cash crop for local nurseries and export. At EnergyXchange we grow several varieties of evergreen rhododendrons and deciduous azaleas from seeds that have been collected locally, and sell them in containers to local growers. The best selling and best known native plant grown at EnergyXchange is the Flame Azalea. The quilt block at EnergyXchange is titled “Flower of the Woods” and is meant to depict the range of colors possible in the flower of the Flame.
Honeybees in the Garden Location: 8865 NC Hwy 80N, Bakersville Drafted by Barbara Webster, Painted by Lesa Smith and Frank Andrews, installed by Frank Andrews.
Story by Lesa Smith This farm is located in the Rebels Creek Community on Highway 80. The farmhouse was built in the 1930's by the Fred Jarrett family and family members lived there until 2004 when the farm was sold to the current owners.
Travel on out Highway 80 N through a winding scenic road. Eventually you see Rebels Creek on the right and just past that is this barn on your left. The block is on the opposite side of the barn from your approach. If you want to continue on Hwy 80, you will intersect with the Bakersville Trail. This highway has some very intriguing history associated with it. As you travel North on the road you will come to the Kona Cemetery where Charles Silver is buried in two graves. His wife, Frankie Silver, killed him and cut him up into pieces. She was hanged for the crime, but the book, The Untold Story of Frankie Silver by Perry Deane Young, makes a strong case for Frankie as a victim of abuse and implies it was self defense. The cemetery is on the right as you round a curve and the small church is full of history.
The 30 acre farm has been a dairy farm and a tobacco farm. Its lands are located on both sides of the highway. Rebels Creek runs the length of the lower lands. Currently, the pasture lands are being replanted in trees and are part of the Forest Stewardship program. An orchard has recently been planted just north of the old farmhouse. A climb to the top of the orchard allows one to enjoy the beautiful views of the Black Mountains. And near the orchard, cold spring water is gravity fed down the mountain into the house. Many of the farm's old structures still exist. There is a "Can House" located beside the main house where canned goods were stored. Old sheds and the chicken coop still stand beside the road. Across from the chicken coop is the main barn where the quilt square is located. The quilt square hangs on the west side of the barn. Its bright colors are quite visible against the barn's weathered red stain. The quilt square pattern, Honeybees in the Garden was chosen because of the current owners' love of the honeybee and of gardening. The owner's father and grandfather were beekeepers and helped to instill a love of bees. The bee hives on the farm are located just west of the orchard. The hives are courtesy of a beekeeper neighbor (thanks Roy and Jean!) who also have bee hives at other locations including the historic Altapass Apple Orchards. On hot summer days, the hard working honey bees can be seen and heard flying all about the farm collecting pollen from the farm's flower gardens. Flying from flower to flower, they return to their hive with their small legs loaded with bright yellow packets of pollen. And later in the season, on a cold winter's evening, a spoonful of the honey that the bees produced certainly warms the belly and cheers the spirits. It has recently been in the news about bees' "colony collapse" and the possible disappearance of this wonderful little creature. Our world would be a sad place without the bee. And so this farm honors the bee and the timeless tradition of beekeeping. We honor the bee with the quilt square, Honeybees in the Garden . Thank you to the hardworking bee and to the beekeepers everywhere.
Doctor’s Day Off Location: 270 Grace Way, Green Mtn. (Take Double Island Rd. off of Hwy 197, Turn left onto Ridge Rd., Left onto Old Log Rd., Right onto Grace Way - this block is difficult to find but a fun adventure) Painted by Cheryl Hughes, installed by Jeff Phillips and Wade Whitson.
By Teaky Tollison One Christmas, Dr. and Mrs. Vincent Molina’s family surprised them with a gift certificate for a quilt square for their home. Barbara Webster sent examples of some basic designs which Dr. Molina then turned into one of his own. As he describes what he created, it is clear that Vince Molina the artist invented the design, not Vincent Molina the physician, even though he and his wife Jeanie named their square Doctor’s Day Off. He points out that in the center is a circle of white. When white light bursts, it breaks into all the colors of the rainbow; thus, radiating from the circle are red, orange, yellow, and green on a blue field framed by violet. Later, a daughter, who does traditional quilting, made a cloth square of the same design for their door in Fort Pierce, Florida. Dr. and Mrs. Molina are a loving couple who live near the top of Green Mountain. They have been a team a long time going back to Vince’s days as an intern. When they first saw the property, they already owned land in North Carolina, but they immediately felt an affinity for the mountain. Jeanie Molina even did something she never does: she made a bargain with God in a quick prayer. “God, if we’re meant to build a house here, let me see a deer.” Suddenly, Vincent said, “Look! There’s a deer!” The rest is history. They bought the acreage fifteen years ago and built a cabin. It is part of a colony of Floridians, all friends who have known each other for thirty years. While they were still working as doctor and nurse-practitioner, the developer of Grace Way called and said that he was ready to start their house. At the time, they hesitated because they felt that they were no place near ready to retire, but they went ahead. After their house was completed, friends and family gave furniture so that the Molinas would have things with a history, such as the dining room table from a dear friend. Jeanie likes to tell visitors that their house was furnished with love. As they began coming to the cabin, and especially after they cleared away part of the trees and discovered they hada view of the Roan, the Molinas questioned why they were still working. Vincent brought his collection of old medical instruments and started experimenting with them. He began welding and cutting, and the sturdy instruments became delicate birds. His whimsical sculpture of conception is the perfect collaboration of the artist and physician in Dr. Molina. Soon, an apartment and workshop, where Vince can
often be found working, were added to the home. Jeanie is both his biggest fan and critic. She confesses that she cannot see a sculpture in a pile of instruments, but she knows when it looks right. Their cabin, now home, has been the sight of weddings and reunions. The visitor is immediately made welcome when the Molinas are there. Unlike many native Floridians, who winter in Florida, the Molinas go when one of their five children needs them or simply grows lonesome for their parents. hey are liable to find themselves in Florida in the hottest part of the summer and East Tennessee in the winter. Vincent and Jeanie formed a hard-working medical team for many years. Nowadays, up on Green Mountain, they are a new team of artist and muse.
Starlight Location: 200 Dewberry Lane, Burnsville. Drafted by Barbara Webster, Painted by Sam and Barbara McKinney, Installed by Sam McKinney.
Story by Sam and Barbara McKinney “Flower Garden,” “Double Wedding Ring,” “Turkey Tracks,” “Bowtie” are all products of a craft passed from generation to generation in my family and Sam’s family. Our mothers were quilters; my grandmother Wilson was a quilter; and my greatgrandmother Cox, her mother, was a quilter, as was her mother before her. It is an art typically handed from mother to daughter, so I too know how to quilt, but so does my husband. However, I must admit that my greatest quilting pleasure comes from displaying our heirloom quilts and from simply examining them to marvel at the ingenious use of colors and fabrics, and the tiniest of stitches—all so neatly and evenly hand done right down to the edge binding. During the winter of 1942-43 when Mother was carrying me, she and Dad were still living with his parents until I came and our house was finished. When the winters were harsh, as this one was, and Mother and Grandmother Wilson and other female relatives close by did not have gardens to tend or canning to do and the November hog butchering and meat curing and storing had taken place, my grandmother orchestrated an old-fashioned quilting bee. She would move the furniture against the living room walls, then in the center of the room she would suspend her wooden quilting frames (which Granddad had made) from small ropes attached to quilting hooks in the tongue and groove pine ceiling, and call my mother to help her “lay out” the quilt. First, she and Mother tacked down the quilt lining by slipping the fabric over tiny, sharp nails rowed around the quilting frame edges, then the cotton batting or filler followed, and finally, the quilt top itself. Then the quilting began. Every small piece and every square were stitched around, as was every design pencil drawn in the “blank” squares. They began after the breakfast dishes were done, quilted until time to prepare lunch, then quilted until suppertime, and then after supper until bedtime. Mother says she
and my grandmother Wilson and my great aunt Lizzie made eleven quilts during the winter of 1942-43. I still remember playing under suspended quilts in Grandma’s living room when I was four or five and getting the “honor” of taking a stitch or two while sitting in my mother’s lap. All the stitching was done by hand. My grandmother had what she called her “quilt box” in which she kept her cloth scraps, her scissors, her white thread, her needle and thimble, and her quilt patterns. AT night, she would sit until bedtime cutting and stitching the best fabric from old clothes or “remnants” or feed and flour sacks into quilt squares or blocks. When all the blocks were finished, she pieced them together according to the quilt design, much like putting a puzzle together. When I was old enough to notice, I remember lying on Grandmother’s bed for afternoon naps, and instead of sleeping, I would examine the quilt squares to pick out my favorite piece of fabric or color in each square. Granny’s quilts came to me when she died in 1986. We would have liked one of Granny’s old patterns for our quilt square, but others had wisely chosen them before we became involved with “Quilt Trails,” so Sam and I finally settled on “Starlight” for our barn in Newdale. At “public sale at the Courthouse door in the town of Burnsville” August 6, 1894, John S. Wilson purchased an 88-acre farm in Newdale for $188; Commissioner W.B. Banks officiated, and L.H. Hutchins, Justice of the Peace for Yancey County signed the deed July 8, 1895. The farm was deeded to my great grandfather P.A. Wilson and his wife Martha in 1899 and eventually came to his sons Martin Wilson and Newon L. Wilson, my grandfather. In 1962, Grandpa’s half of the Wilson farm was deeded to his only child Leroy and Wilma Presnell Wilson, my parents. What remained for his part of the Wilson farm came to Sam and me in 1990. When I was growing up, all the original buildings on the farm were still in good shape and put to good use except the main house, which burned from a chimney fire when Dad was small. I’m still amazed at the self-sufficiency of those small family farms. We had a large smokehouse, a log cabin can house built over a root cellar, a pigpen, a chicken house, a washhouse, a springhouse with running cold mountain water, a woodshed, and a barn. My parents and grandparents raised cows, chickens, and pigs for our use, so we had our own pork for the smokehouse and eggs, milk, and butter for the springhouse. They also gardened, and the farm had an abundance of apple trees and grapes, so the root cellar was always full, as were the apple bins under the Wolf Rivers. I can still remember how good (and how cold) a Wolf River apple was in the middle of winter when Grandpa would go to the apple bins, dig through the straw, and bring back those treats. Better than candy any day. After the main house burned, my grandparents built across the road, and my father, born in 1914, grew up there. Since my parents built a few yards away in 1944, I spent almost as much time at my grandparents’ as I did at home. Granny’s L-shaped porch was a favorite of mine on rainy days or late in the evenings when she and Mother were still canning on Granny’s old Home Comfort stove. I would lie for hours on the porch floorboards still warm from the afternoon sun and watch the stars twinkle. Bigger and brighter, the “Evening Star” would appear about dusk, and then later I could spot the “Little Dipper’ and the “Big Dipper” and the Milky Way, and I would try to count as many stars as possible. In warm weather, we were porch sitters in the evenings when all the work was done. So I also remember sitting on the steps of my parents’ house listening to the Bull Frogs and the Peepers calling from the old feldspar mine which Dad and Grandpa had worked just below my grandparents’ home. When the mine “played out,” Dad turned the mine hole into a wonderful fishpond, which got all our catches after he and I went fishing. In 1975, Sam and I returned to Newdale and built our home on the mountain behind my parents’ house. At a little higher vantage point now, I appreciate the stars more, I believe, than I did as a child. In the evenings when we sit on the porch or when we come up the driveway on a clear night and get out of the car and I look up, the stars seem almost close enough to touch. The land carries so many memories from so many generations; the stars are testaments in a midnight sky, so Sam and I chose “Starlight” as our quilt square to grace our barn, the only structure remaining of the original 1800’s farm.
Arbuckle Coffee Pot Location: 30 Wanna B Lane. Designed by Martin Webster, drafted by Deborah Palmer and Dot Gibbs, painted by Cheryl Hughes, Carolyn Bareford, Dot Gibbs, and Katherine Hancock. Installed by Jeff Phillips and Wade Whitson.
Story by Rebecca Warner
E
dna Boone didn't always live on Arbuckle Road. She lived about three miles from there, just below the Liberty Hill Baptist Church, but the man she married lived on Arbuckle Road. As a homesick bride, Edna didn't like it much in the beginning, and went to see her mother two to three times a day. However, she and her husband built a home on Arbuckle Road in the late 1950s, and Edna eventually grew to love it. Jeff Boone, Edna's son, wanted to give his mother a quilt block as a birthday gift. Edna had begun noticing the quilt blocks hanging throughout the area, and she would comment, “Oh, that's so pretty!” He wanted to give his mother a quilt block that represented something meaningful to her, and Arbuckle Road, where she has lived for so many years, seemed ideal. He also considered that for others in the community, it could be somewhat of a history lesson. Over the years, he and so many others were curious about how Arbuckle got its name. Now that question can be answered--thanks to Jeff's research and the resulting Arbuckle Coffee Pot quilt square. Jeff's informal inquiries over the years yielded the same explanation: Arbuckle Coffee. He went on the internet and found that the Arbuckle Coffee Company was still in existence. Searching further, Jeff found a link through the Yancey County Chamber of Commerce's website, which gave him the information he sought: “Arbuckle Road was named after Samuel Howell. Samuel was nicknamed "Arbuckle" because he drank so much "Arbuckle Coffee". Thus when the road was built and named after Samuel it became Arbuckle Road.” Further research uncovered some other interesting Arbuckle facts. Traveling salesmen came through the western North Carolina area selling Raleigh products and Stanley products, and also Arbuckle coffee. **In 1896, North Carolina granted a charter to the Linville River Rail Road Company to build and operate a railroad from Cranberry to some point on the Linville River and from there to points on the Catawba River and the Watauga River. The line was surveyed from Cranberry to Saginaw (now Pineola) North Carolina, home of the small Dolliver and Nagel sawmill. Like many other small circle mills, it cut mine timbers, lumber for local use, pulpwood and tanbark. The Camps acquired timber rights in the area and planned to build a large sawmill at Saginaw. Grading for the logging line began in late 1896. During construction a local bootlegger supplied many of the laborers
moonshine (sic). The cash-strapped workers often bartered Arbuckle Coffee for illegal whiskey. The bootlegger preferred this brand because the paper wrappers contained “signatures”, coupons that could be sent to Arbuckle Brothers in exchange for a variety of merchandise. It was several decades before the mountain folks stopped referring to the Linville River as the Arbuckle Coffee Line.** Jeff decided to use Arbuckle Coffee Company's logo in planning the design and colors to be used for his mother's birthday gift. He forwarded the web site address to Martin Webster, about whom Jeff says, “He is such a talented artist.” Martin took it from there, coming up with the unique design for the Arbuckle Coffee Pot. Jeff is very happy with the resulting quilt block. As he explained, “It resembles a pinwheel, but once you back off and see the four blocks, you see four coffee pots!” **Source: The Blue Ridge Stemwinder by John R Waite and Chris Ford
You can go to Arbucklecoffe.com and order Arbuckle coffee. Arbuckle is the first roaster in Arizona to qualify for organic certification by the USDA. They are also a licensed Fair Trade roaster by TransFair. They are the first coffee roaster in the state of Arizona to be a part of this program.
Mariner's Compass Quilt Block Location: 327 Rebels Creek Rd., Bakersville. Painted by Sheryl Davis, Miriam Savaard, Margot Parker, Dot Gibbs, Fayma Childs, Carole Pearson, and Kay Williams. Installed by Billy Shade.
Story by Carol Owens If this were a children's rhyme, it might begin “On Rebels Creek there stands a house where lives a Captain and his spouse.” Indeed, the house is the home of CAPT Robert L. Owens (USMS) and his wife, Carol, and their choice of the Mariner's Compass quilt block represents the duality of their love of their Mitchell County home and an unending affection for the sea. Built in the early 1900's, this box constructed house was first the home of a large, closely-knit branch of the Howell family. Indeed, to this day Howell family members gather from the four corners of the country for the annual Decoration Day ceremony at Rebels Creek Cemetery. The home originally consisted of only two rooms where the Howell family lived and loved and worked and played. It has been added on to over the years, first to house the original family and more recently to accommodate Capt. Bob and Carol and their expanding family of children, grandchildren and their four-legged “babies,” Brandy and Bailey (a couple of smart and comely Golden Retrievers). Inside the split rail locust post fence, beside the mailbox, grows a towering American boxwood, brought by sled from the head of the creek as a housewarming gift for a young Howell bride by her loving husband, while on the barn hangs a signal bell made from an old diving tank. “As dive instructors, we've been blessed to travel the world and have enjoyed some incredibly beautiful places. But we are always thankful to return home to our beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains and the Rebels Creek Community. Our choice of the Mariner's Compass pays tribute to the fact that no matter where we roam, there's always a steady course set for home and the family and friends we cherish.” What better reminder than this beautiful quilt block so reminiscent of the nautical instrument sailors still rely on to bring them safely home.
Wintergreene Location: 38 Stonewall Lane, Bakersville. Designed by Martin Webster, Painted by Jane Greene, installed by Keith Beam.
Story by E. Jane Greene We came to the mountains of Mitchell County to be a part of a new community called High Cove, a community of people coming together as neighbors in the best sense, sharing a deeply felt respect for the environment. As we have built our home and begun to connect with others here, we find that we also share with our neighbors and neighbors-to-be a love of music, fine art and craft, and the traditions deeply rooted here. As this is the place we intend to stay for the rest of our lives, we have chosen the name Wintergreene for our house and have given the same name to our block. The design of the Wintergreene block draws upon the black birch trees which are numerous on our land and on a low growing evergreen ground cover which is native here. Both of these plants have strong wintergreen scents, and both have been processed in the past as sources of wintergreen oil. Native people used the wintergreen herb to treat pain and inflammation as it is also a potent source of salycilic acid, the active ingredient in asprin. Early settlers reportedly used black (also called sweet) birch twigs as toothbrushes. The pointed leaves in the design represent the trees. The red berries depicted in the design represent the native herb. Bringing together the leaves and berries with subtle colors in harmony with our home's wooded setting, the design of the block symbolizes our commitment to preserving the environment, living lightly and sustainably on the land in our gold certified green home, and our respect for traditional wisdom. It may or may not be a coincidence that our family name is Greene.
Little Red Schoolhouse Location: 435 River Walk Drive., Burnsville. Painted by Kathy Rose, Ruth Peake and Barbara Webster. Installed by Keith Beam.
Story by June Pearson Ruth Peake grew up in Yancey County but lived in Maryland and Virginia for many years before retiring back in this area. The Little Red School House Quilt Square which she chose for her home in the Micaville, South Toe Valley area is reminiscent of the simpler school days she remembers from her youth and as a teacher of Home Economics teacher. Ruth was the youngest of 11 children of Mary Loucretia Young Banks and Plato Banks of the Windom Community. Her father was a deputy Sheriff for many years. She and other family members attended Burnsville Elementary School (the building that is now going to become the new library) which was grades 1-6 and then went to Burnsville High where she played Basketball in the building that is now the Parkway Playhouse. She graduated from there in 1948 in the same class with Ruth and Mary Ellen Banks Hensley. The old Burnsville High is now the School District’s offices. Ruth loved school enough to choose teaching as a profession and went off to Mars Hill and Furman Colleges to get her degree in Home Economics. Today she enjoys reading for a pastime and communicating with her grandchildren in Connecticut and South Carolina. She has also traveled farther away from Yancey County than most folks. She has become a regular visitor to one of the farther off former Soviet Republics, Kazakhstan, where one of her daughters lives as a missionary.
Going Postal Location: 4815 Hwy 80 South, (on a stone chimney that stands alone) Bakersville. Designed by Peggy Watson, Painted by Kathy Rose, Matthew Mims, Lana Brennan, Carole Pearson, Jackie Meyer, Edye Rollins, Carole Moore, Valerie Harvard, Jane Greene, Margot Parker and Fayma Childs. Installed by Keith Beam.
Story by Teleia Tollison Everyday as soon as the train went through Bandana, Marsh Putman got on his big white horse, picked the mail off the hook by the tracks, and carried it a mile to Retta Gibson's store and US Post Office. After Retta collected and bagged the outgoing mail, Marsh took the mailbag back to the hook where a trainman would scoop it off. The engineer barely slowed the train down. One of the legends about the name of the community of Bandana is that folks would hang a red bandana on the hook if the train needed to stop for freight or passengers.
This block is in an unusual spot - on the chimney of a house no longer standing.
Retta Gibson did not have children of her own, but she loved everyone else's in the community. There was always a piece of stick candy or other goodie for any child who ventured into her store. More importantly, she provided an example to the girls of what a woman could do. She was Postmistress at a time when women rarely worked outside of the home. Today, there is little left of the store and Retta Gibson's home as both were torn down, the store about 2005 and the home in 2009. Peggy Watson has chosen to honor this pioneer woman with a quilt block she designed herself incorporating mail envelopes into the square. The block hangs from the old home-place chimney with the support of wooden beams. It sits opposite the concrete pad that was once the store, de facto community center, and post office for Bandana. When she needed to purchase a right of way to her property, the silver Chapel Baptist Church sold them Retta Gibson's old home site. After learning about this pioneer professional woman, Peggy decided to honor Retta's memory with a uniquely designed quilt block. Peggy Watson is a native North Carolinian, but she is originally from the coastal plain. Watson was born in Greenville and graduated from UNC Chapel Hill. She has worked with Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina for 32 years. She currently lives in Cary. Friends introduced Peggy to the mountains. When she ventured into Bandana, she fell in love with the community and the land. Like many others, she bought property and started making plans to retire. In the future, Peggy hopes to pursue her love for fused glass art, pottery, and gardening.
