Sign # 13 Tweetsie Railroad

Transcription

1 Sign # 13 Tweetsie Railroad Tweetsie dates to 1882, when the East Tennessee & Western North Carolina Railroad (ET&WNC) began operations in Johnson City, Tenn. In 1919, the railroad extended tracks to Boone, N.C. The ET&WNC added passenger service, and brought lumber out of the mountains opening up a new source for agriculture in the once-remote Blue Ridge Mountains. The railroad was dubbed Tweetsie by mountaineers who became accustomed to the shrill tweet of the train s whistles. Locomotive No. 12, built in 1917 by Philadelphia s Baldwin Locomotive Works, was one of 13 narrow-gauge ET&WNC steam locomotives. Modern roads and severe floods doomed the ET&WNC, and rail service to Boone ended in All steam locomotives were sold or scrapped, except for No. 12. Early 1960s An authentic western town is added to Tweetsie Railroad as the park adopts a Wild West theme Tweetsie s track is expanded to create a 3-mile loop. Movie star Gene Autry briefly owned No. 12 in 1955, intending to take it to California to use in films. However, Grover Robbins, Jr. of Blowing Rock acquired ownership from Autry, deciding Tweetsie needed to return to its home. In 1956, No. 12 was fully restored and brought to Blowing Rock. Tweetsie Railroad opened in July 1957 and evolved into North Carolina s first theme park. Meticulously maintained and listed on the National Register of Historic Places, Tweetsie s No. 12 locomotive operates to this day, continuing to delight rail fans and tourists. North Carolina s first theme park.

2 Sign # 14 The Old Wilkes Jail The Old Wilkes Jail, built in 1859 and used as the county jail until 1915, is one of the best-preserved examples of nineteenth-century penal architecture in North Carolina. Most important is the survival of its primitive security, including the front door which contains nails an inch apart so that a prisoner would not be able to saw his way out of the building. Accesses to the cells are through the original iron and wood doors. The iron bars remain on the windows, as well as the primitive sanitary devices in the upstairs cells. Four rooms on the south side of the building were used as the jailor s living quarters. The four rooms opposite were all used as cells and at least one was used for female prisoners. The photograph on the left shows the restored kitchen on the jailor s side of the building. The photograph on the right shows the inside of Tom Dooley Dula s cell. Courtesy of the Wilkes Heritage Museum Courtesy of the Wilkes Heritage Museum Some of the more infamous prisoners to the old jail included Tom Dooley Dula and Otto Wood. Tom Dula was arrested for the murder of Laura Foster in 1867 and incarcerated at the old jail until his lawyer, former Governor Zebulon B. Vance, had a change of venue and moved the trial to Statesville. Otto Wood was known as an escape artist and had reportedly escaped from 10 prisons by the time he was shot and killed in The Old Wilkes Jail was the only jail from which Wood never escaped. He was imprisoned here at the age of 13 for stealing a bicycle. The Old Wilkes Jail was restored to its original form in the late 1960s by Old Wilkes, Inc. (now Wilkes Heritage Museum, Inc.) and opened as an historic site in the mid-1970s. Today the Old Wilkes Jail is part of the Wilkes Heritage Museum with guided tours offered Monday through Friday beginning at the museum. For more information: or Courtesy of the Wilkes Heritage Museum This image shows the deplorable shape the Old Wilkes Jail was in prior to being restored in the late 1960s. Sponsorship for this sign was provided in part by the Town of Wilkesboro.

3 Sign # 15 Wilkes County Frescoes For more than one hundred and fifty years, St. Paul s Episcopal Church has found a home atop a steep hill in downtown Wilkesboro, North Carolina. St. Paul s Church traces its beginnings to The brick Gothic church was constructed in 1848 and consecrated the following year. A new chapel to accommodate the growing congregation has been built behind the old church and the two buildings connected by the commons area. Being instrumental in bringing international artist, Benjamin F. Long, IV to Wilkes County, the Cultural Arts Council of Wilkes entered into a sound partnership with St. Paul s Episcopal Church for two frescoes to be painted in the commons area of the church. Members of St. Paul s parish, Cultural Arts Council of Wilkes board members and Benjamin Long met to discuss the theme of the frescoes. The group unanimously agreed the frescoes should depict the Apostle Paul. The two frescoes depicting the life of Paul are executed masterfully by artist, Benjamin Long, IV. Long uses the same fresco technique Michelangelo chose when he painted the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. The technique involves mixing sand and lime, placing the mix on a wall and painting while it is still wet. The crew grinds expensive pigments from clays and minerals imported from France and Italy to mix colors used in the frescos. The bonding of the pigment to wet plaster requires meticulous planning and great skill. Unlike oil painting, to correct a mistake, the artist must cut the entire day s work out and start over. The wall tells you what to do, says Long. One of the frescoes depicts Saul s, (later known as Paul) conversion experience on the road to Damascus when he was blinded by the light. Acts Chapter 9 verses The second fresco depicts the Apostle Paul writing his epistles while imprisoned. Philippians Chapter 1 verses 3-8. Wilkes County Frescoes funded by St. Paul s Episcopal Church & the Cultural Arts Council of Wilkes.

4 Sign # 16 The Earl Scruggs Center The rich music heritage of Cleveland County stems from European and African traditions that include strains of country, bluegrass, blues and gospel. These deeply rooted music traditions resonated from front porches, country stores, textile mills and villages, family reunions, church sanctuaries, and annual festivals. They still continue today. Image area (1 or 2 images) Image area Two native musicians and Country Music Hall of Fame Inductees have brought international attention to Cleveland County. Photo by Tommy Forney Photo courtesy of the Earl Scruggs Center Earl Scruggs, from the nearby Flint Hill community, pioneered and popularized a three-finger banjo picking style that helped create the distinctive bluegrass sound in the mid-1940s. Earl s Scruggs style banjo playing set the standard for all bluegrass banjo players. Kings Mountain native and international blues musician, Calvin Edwards, plays during Shelby s 2005 Art of Sound Music Festival. Picking Circle at Woods Grocery. Don Gibson, country music singer-songwriter from Shelby, helped to shape the new Nashville sound in the late 1950s. Known as The Sad Poet, Gibson penned the country music standards I Can t Stop Loving You, Sweet Dreams and Oh Lonesome Me. The Earl Scruggs Center, located here on the court square and Don Gibson Theatre, located one block south of this sign, stand as living monuments that celebrate the contributions these native sons have made to American music. These two gathering places also serve to inspire, educate and sustain the important music heritage of Cleveland County. Courtesy of the Shelby Star Earl Scruggs playing in Shelby for the Earl Scruggs Home Again concert, June Courtesy of Horace Scruggs Family The Scruggs family, like many local families, had a tradition of playing music together. Pictured are Earl Scruggs (L) and brother Horace (R).

5 Sign # 17 Welcome to the Blue Ridge National Heritage Area A place unlike any other on Earth, where ancient landscapes enchant the eye and age-old traditions warm the heart. You are now in one of America s most cherished and celebrated natural landscapes, the mountains and foothills of Western North Carolina. The natural heritage of these ancient mountains, some of the oldest in the world, combined with the cultural heritage of the people who have lived here over centuries have created a place so special in our country it has been honored with the designation of National Heritage Area. Photo by Bill Lea Photo by Hugh Morton From high mountaintops to secluded coves, the natural beauty of the Blue Ridge National Heritage Area meets the eye at every turn. Here, you ll find The highest mountain east of the Mississippi Mount Mitchell The deepest gorge in the Eastern United States Linville Gorge The oldest river in North America the New River The most visited National Park lands in the country Great Smoky Mountains National Park and the Blue Ridge Parkway Cherokee heritage more than 10,000 years old America s largest home Biltmore Estate Music born and bred in these mountains bluegrass, old-time, gospel and more that has influenced many styles of American music. Handcraft traditions unmatched anywhere in the country Fresh, delicious food from local farms in restaurants, stores, and farmers markets. Visit our kiosk inside this Welcome Center to learn more, or go to The music born and bred in these ancient mountains has widely influenced the development of other genres of American music. The region was honored as a National Heritage Area for its rich cultural heritage--the 10,000 year old history of the Cherokee, craft traditions, foodways and farms, and music as well as its natural scenic beauty. Top, from L to R, photos taken by or courtesy of: Cherokee Historical Association; Robin Dreyer, Penland School of Crafts; Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture Project; Jerry Nelson Photography, courtesy of the Folk Heritage Committee. Lower photo by Donna Absher.

6 Sign # 18 Images at the Crossroads by artist Ben Long The influence of ancient stories and myths can be detected in much of Statesville s fresco, entitled Images at the Crossroads. Mythology has great respect for the goddess of the crossroads as she has the power of knowing what s ahead. She is usually portrayed with three heads or faces, signifying her ability to know what is going on in every direction. The maiden stands at Left: Hecate, the goddess of the crossroads. Right: The sign marking the crossroads displays the word God in four ancient languages: Hebrew, Latin, Greek and Egyptian. the heart of the fresco in the foreground. Her hand to her breast is an ancient signal of greeting a sign of arrival. It is no coincidence that Ben Long has chosen this image to serve as the inspiration for Statesville s fresco. Statesville is a city that also finds itself at a crossroads, faced with deciding which road is best for its future. All the elements of what happens when paths come together and cross can be found in the medley of vignettes painted as a backdrop to the guardian of the crossroads. No one image is meant to overshadow another. It is hoped that observers will have their own response to the figures and faces in the environs of the maiden. The images have to do with journey and choices; time and the ages, conflict, contrast, the memory of things; superstition, legend, elements of an ageless history; and love, loss, labor, play and an attempt at a meaningful gathering of oppositions, all needed to weave a sense of expectation, hopefully thoughtful and interesting, with reflections of irony. Ben Long

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