tour nc

Hickory Nut Gorge extends past the breath taking scenery of Chimney Rock and leads into the man-made Lake Lure. Part of the Blue Ridge Mountain Chain and the Appalachian Mountains, it was created over 680 million years ago. Formed on the super continent of Pangea, it is part of the same chain of the Anti-Atlas Mountains in Morocco.

Biscoe has recently been in the national spotlight due to native son, Larry Kissell, running in the NC 8th against Republican incumbent, Robin Hayes. Biscoe, NC, is definitely Kissell Country!

When I asked for suggestions on BlueNC for towns to tour, Anglico called out "Lumberton". I had been a little leery of touring the town because it really has a bad rap. Remember Eddy Hatcher? In 1988 he and fellow Native American Activist, Timmy Jacobs took over the offices of the Robesonian Newspaper in Lumberton to bring to the attention of the world the corruption within the police and government in the town.

After doing some research on the area, I agree with A, it’s worth a "Tour".

Albemarle is the county seat of Stanly County, recently sharing the spotlight with the American Idol star, Kelly Pickler. Albemarle was formed in 1842 when the Hearne family donated their land and it was divided up into plots for the new town. Too many people only know of the Albemarle along 24/27, the Albemarle Road to Charlotte. Get off the beaten path and go downtown and you will find a pretty little town that seems to have made all the right planning choices. Their streets are wide with minimal traffic. There is plenty of parking and the shops that line the streets are locally owned.

The largest city in Cumberland County, North Carolina is Fayetteville. The butt of bad jokes, the city fathers have been working hard to lose the “Fayette-Nam” designation.

Fayetteville is a military town, and proud of it. It has been the home of Ft. Bragg, one of America’s largest bases since 1918. Col. E.P. King and Dr. T. Wayland Vaughand scouted the area and found it to be a good location for a military base. First named Camp Bragg for Braxton Bragg who served in the U. S. and Confederate armies, the name was later changed to Ft. Bragg.

Seagrove is best known as the Pottery Capital of North Carolina. With over 100 potters,(some 10th generation), located in the surrounding area, the classification is implicit

As a way of contributing to Bluenc, I am going to do a Sunday "insert" and take a look at the towns that make up this wonderful state. The first offering will be about Robbins, NC.

Robbins is probably best known for being the hometown of John Edwards, the senator who ran as VP on the 2004 Kerry/Edwards Democratic ticket. (A smart fellow who knew how to get back into the "hearts & halos" mode with SD.) Edwards kicked off his bid for President in front of a closed mill that his father worked in. The other hometown son was Astronaut, Charles Brady.

This “small town, USA” has a fascinating history, generally forgotten by its inhabitants. It was originally established as Cagels Goldmine Community in the 1700’s. Named after Leonard “Lionheart” Cagle who emigrated from Philadelphia. Then, Alexander Kennedy, a gunsmith also fled Philadelphia and established a gun factory in 1795 on the falls of Bear Creek and supplied Washington’s Continental Forces with firearms. It was then renamed Mechanics Hill, and then changed to Mechanicsville.

When the gun factory closed in 1838, the townspeople cleared the land for agri use and gold was discovered and the town experienced a minor gold rush. In the early 1900’s, John F. Lenning and Associates brought the Durham and Charlotte railroad line through and designed the streets for the town. The new unofficial name of the town became “Elise” after Mr. Lenning’s daughter. When the Post Master, George Horner tried to register this name, the federal authorities rejected it. Instead, he registered the name as Horner’s Hemp; the name was shortened and then begrudgingly accepted in 1915 as Hemp.