Tar Heel Towns
By Regina Hill
Burnsville
The statue cf founder Otway Burns at Burnsville's square.
With its slow mountain pace, the seat of Yancey County
makes you feel like you've stepped back into the 1950s.
Just beneath the highest mountain
peak east of the Mississippi, Mount
Mitchell, you’ll find Burnsville.
With a population of approximately
2.000. the seat of Yancey County hasn't
changed much in the past 100 years.
Named for Captain Otway Bums, a priva¬
teer who was famous for building the
fastest-sailing vessels during the War of
1812. Burnsville was established in 1833.
As you enter Burnsville's Main Street,
you'll sec a variety of country shops and
stores, windows decorated with hand¬
made quilts in vivid colors, crafts, general
merchandise and a variety of antiques. At
the town square there's a statue erected
in honor of founder Burns. During the
Revolutionary War. Burns so harrassed
the British fleet in his ship, the Snap Drag¬
on. that King George put a $50,000 price
on his head.
You'll be greeted by passersby as you
view the novelty of the town's old court¬
house. the old library, its post office and
a variety of other monuments to the
town's historic past. The Nu-Wray Inn,
located on the town square, has been in
operation since 18.33. The three-story
clapboard structure is one of the more
inviting hed-and-hreakfast inns in the
state. Open May through Noveml>er. the
inn's restaurant is also top-notch, serving
up family-style country cuisine.
Feeling as if you've stepped back into
the 1 950s. you'll lx- relieved to know there
are a few modem conveniences available
these days in Burnsville. Although it’s rel¬
atively underdeveloped compared to
other like-si/e mountain towns, there's a
shopping center, a variety of fast food
restaurants and some quick-stop gas sta¬
tions.
There aren't a lot of last-paced things
П»*.
by R<|mi Hill
to do in Burnsville on the average day. yet
throughout the year this little town has a
nice variety of festivals, craft fairs and
other interesting undertakings for the
more simplistic soul. People from all
across the country, eager to purchase
mountain crafts, quilts and preserves, visit
Burnsville during the annual Mount
Mitchell Crafts Fair in August.
When you get tired of life in town, vis¬
iting the1 shops and talking al>ou( crafts or
antiques with the merchants, then maybe
it's time you discovered the other inviting
destinations in and around Yancey Coun¬
ty.
The Black Mountains are predominant
in these parts, with their most famous
peak. Mount Mitchell, drawing visitors
from all along the Eastern Seaboard.
Close by. Mount Mitchell Stale Park has
few peers when it comes to scenic beauty.
Golf, whitewater rafting, tubing, swim¬
ming. tennis, fishing, hunting, skiing,
horseback riding and mining for gems in
neighboring; Spruce Pine are but a few of
the local activities that draw people to the
area. If none of these seem quite right for
you, try hiking the Appalachian Trail just
north of Burnsville. The spectacular
sceneiy along this National Scenic Trail is
guaranteed to conquer any boredom you
might feel for a long, long while.
In Burnsville, with its altitude of 2.817
feet, there are many changing seasonal
views amid rural mountain beauties. In
the spring, there arc a wide array of wild-
flowers. including trilliums. rhododen¬
dron. dogwood and Jack-in-thc-Pulpits.
Also in spring, there are ramps to dig. If
you've never heard of these, ramps are a
small, garlic-type onion that sprout up in
the mountains every spring. They arc a
tantalizing delicacy in this area.
Summer competes easily with
spring, as the Black-Eyed
Susans, hydrangeas and tall
bellflowers make their colorful
appearance along trails and
back roads. The warmer months
also herald the arrival of one of
the most popular summer-stock
theaters in the state, the Park¬
way Playhouse. The summer
theater of the University of
North Carolina at Greensboro
Theatre Department, produc¬
tions here are staged by a com¬
bination of professional and
amateur actors.
Autumn in Burnsville, of course, has lit¬
tle competition. The mountains are glo¬
rious when golds, oranges and reds begin
to overwhelm the trees, brightening the
mountain peaks and giving a feeling of
serenity.
As always, winter brings the white flakes
of snow that dutifully start around mid-
December and cover the higher peaks
until spring. Winter here is truly the won¬
derland that everyone speaks of so roman¬
tically.
Burnsville's gentler life has drawn more
than a few to this region of the Blue Ridge.
We have in our communities and along
our back roads hundreds of summer
homes that people from all over the coun¬
try have chosen for their vacation homes
and places of retreat. Any of these part-
time residents will tell you that Burnsville
is. really, a modem day '50s sort of town,
a little bit of heaven right here on earth.
^ ?
Regina Hill is a freelance writer living in
Micaville. which is a short drive from
Burnsville on l!.S. Highway 1911
The Slale/J.iniiJiy 1995
12
Я
