The illiteracy rate among adults in North Carolina was significantly higher than the national average during the early 20th century.  According to the Bureau of the Census the national percentage

The Blue Ridge Parkway, originally called the Appalachian Scenic Highway, was planned as part of Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal program to help put Americans back to work during the Great

Postcards had their heyday in popularity from about 1890 to 1915.  There were several factors that contributed to this, including easing of government restrictions, advances in photography, printing and mass

Victory Gardens were first grown in Canada and the United States during World War I to offset food shortages brought about by lack of manpower and transportation.  During World War

Kim Miller was a typical mountain farmer with an unusual second job—rattlesnake hunter.  He was one of 22 children of Henry Miller.  Following the Civil War, Henry Miller operated a

The first Summer Bible School in the U.S., held in 1894, consisted of daily classes in Bible instruction for children.  By the 1920s the concept was popular with churches across

The story of traveling Dollar Bill, Sylvan Valley News, December 20, 1907. The idea of local retailers competing with outside businesses is not unique to the era of online shopping,

During the second decade of the 20th century North Carolina enacted a Quarantine Law requiring physicians, parents and teachers report every case of whooping cough, measles, diphtheria, smallpox, scarlet fever

The first official air mail service in the U.S. took place on May 15, 1918.  Twenty years later Postmaster General James. A. Farley came up with an idea to promote

A May 8, 1903 Sylvan Valley News article titled, “A Visit to Lake Toxaway” provides a vivid picture of scenery, both natural and man-made, surrounding Transylvania’s Toxaway Inn in the