West Asheville History Projcet

The West Asheville History Project began at West Asheville Branch Library in November of 1998, in response to students' requests for information about the history of our community.

To address this need, librarians Millie Jones and Karen Loughmiller, and Dr. Phyllis Lang of UNCA, collaborating with local scholars and community historians, offered a series of programs about various aspects of West Asheville's past.

Working with community volunteers and the NC Humanities Council, in 2001 the project has created a series of West Asheville History products:

2000: The West Asheville t-shirt, printed locally. Available at the library.

2001: Booklets, Haywood Road and The French Broad River. 1,000 copies of each booklet were printed locally and given away. Copies may be viewed at the library.

2003: The Story of West Asheville, a CD-ROM, created with the assistance of Dr. Phyllis Lang. Copies were pressed locally. A copy is available for checkout at the branch.

2003: Booklet, Mountain Thunder: Stock Car Racing in Buncombe County, created with the assistance of Dr. Dan Pierce. Printed locally, copies available at West Branch Library. A portion of proceeds go to the Asheville Motor Speedway memorial.

The project has collected 50 notebooks of historical information about the community, including newspaper articles from 1837 to the present, photographs, maps, church and civic group histories. In 2009, the project will begin the process of getting these materials bound, and will create a special West Asheville section in our reference area. In addition, the project looks forward to participating in the new West Asheville ning. The project is still seeking photographs, personal memories, maps, and other memorabilia of West Asheville. (Materials can be scanned, so that owners can retain their originals while also sharing with the community.) Call 250-4750 for more information, or to contribute to the archive.