The Pierce Moore Hotel, date unknown

Built 1926 by Grace Timanda Piercy in 1926, the Pierce
Moore hotel was on the corner of West Main and Oaklawn and originally had 21
rooms. Piercy was originally from Yancey County but moved to Transylvania
County in the early 1920s and worked for the Silversteen family. There are
differing accounts of what her job duties were, including being a seamstress
and a cook; it’s possible she did whatever domestic tasks were needed. She
struck out on her own to build and run the Pierce Moore Hotel in 1926, and
Joseph Silversteen is said to have visited the dining room frequently for her
home-cooked meals. When Piercy, who never married, was naming the hotel, she
chose to combine her mother’s maiden name, Moore, with her own last name,
Piercy, but dropped the “y” because she thought it sounded better. The endeavor
was successful enough to justify a fifteen-room addition to the building in
1939.

Guest rules from the Pierce Moore Hotel

In February of 1945, a serious fire caused $25,000
worth of damage (equivalent to $391,000 in 2022) on the second floor and attic
area. The blaze resulted in the death of one man, the hospitalization of
another, and the arrest of two others pending an investigation of foul play.
All four men were from Providence, RI and were staying at the hotel while they
did contract work for the Ecusta Paper Corporation. The four had been having a late-night
party in the room of the man who perished. Although his body was found in the fire-damaged
hotel, the cause of death was a cut artery in his arm, a wound supposedly
inflicted as he tried to escape. In the end, the two suspects were released,
and all of the Rhode Islanders returned home. It was the first serious fire in the
area since the 1918 Tannery fire, and it prompted the Brevard Fire Department
to invest in upgrading equipment and training additional volunteers.

Miraculously, the Pierce Moore Hotel underwent repairs
and reopened a mere six months later. In the height of its popularity, it was a
known social center with dances and Sunday dinners. It hosted long term
tenants, including families who stayed there through the summer to escape the
heat of cities. It closed in 1965 when Piercy moved across the street to a
smaller residence on Oaklawn which she operated as a seven-room boarding house
until her death in 1979. After Grace Piercy’s passing, the majority of the original
hotel was demolished. What is left now is the back part of the hotel, which is
in disrepair and is scheduled to be demolished, along with other buildings on
the property, in mid-April of this year.

Photographs and information
for this column are provided by the Rowell Bosse North Carolina Room,
Transylvania County Library. This article was written by Local History
Librarian Laura Gardner. For more information, comments, or suggestions,
contact NC Room staff at [email protected] or 828-884-1820.