Swain County

The following articles are part of a series written for the Swain County, NC, Chamber of Commerce.

Trains are alive and chugging in the Smoky Mountains

Working on the railroad

It was December of 1883 and Anderson Drake shivered as the makeshift flatboat bobbed and groaned its way across the rain-swollen Tuckasegee River. Drake and his fellow convicts were on their way to another day of hard labor digging the Cowee Tunnel for the Western North Carolina Railroad. Without warning, the shaky vessel capsized, dumping the 20 prisoners and a guard into the icy waters. Nineteen shackled prisoners sank to their deaths, but Drake, who was not in irons, managed to save not only himself, but prison guard Fleet Foster as well. Visions of a pardon danced in his head as he heroically dragged the guard to the shore. Unfortunately, it was later discovered that the slippery prisoner had stolen Foster’s wallet during the rescue. The next day, Drake was back working on the railroad…with an extra 30 years tacked onto his sentence.

The train whistles still echo in the valleys

Laying tracks in the rugged terrain of the Smoky Mountains was difficult and dangerous, but the benefits were immeasurable. “The railroad brought needed goods and transportation to settlers who were virtually cut off from civilization,” says Roxanne Marshall, Marketing Manager of the Great Smoky Mountains Railroad. “However,” she adds, “with the coming of roads and automobiles, the once vibrant passenger train service ceased in the mountains…that is, until 1988.” That year marked the return to the glory days of railroading in the Smokies. Today the Great Smoky Mountains Railroad regularly pulls out of the old Bryson City depot, taking visitors along the Tuckasegee River, through the Cowee Tunnel, across Fontana Lake and into the spectacular Nantahala Gorge. Railroading in Swain County, North Carolina is back!

Dining, mystery and the Polar Express

In addition to its regular Nantahala Gorge run, the GSMR offers seasonal excursions for young and old. “Our mission is to introduce children to trains,” says Marshall. “Kids love Thomas the Tank Engine™, Peanuts™ - The Great Pumpkin Patch Express and The Polar Express™,” she adds. The Railroad has also offered special fare for those with grown-up palates, including the Mystery Dinner Train and the Gourmet Train. And railroad enthusiasts of all ages will enjoy a visit to Smoky Mountain Trains in Bryson City. The model railroad museum features Lionel trains (6,000 pieces) and would-be engineers are invited to push the buttons that operate the trains and accessories.

Taking the green line

Swain County is an ideal place for railroading. With 87% of the county composed of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and national forest lands, the scenery is breathtaking. (A favorite excursion drops passengers off for whitewater rafting at the Nantahala River—one of the finest paddling rivers in the Southeast). Not surprisingly, the stunning views inspire residents and visitors alike to employ green practices, including energy conservation. “Just parking your car and riding the train is a step in the right direction,” says Marshall.

To ride the rails in the Smoky Mountains is to step back in time. Some say you can hear a turn-of-the century conductor cry out, “All aboard!” as you pull out of the Bryson City Depot. And some say, when you pass through the darkness of the Cowee Tunnel, you can still hear the screams and clanging shackles of 19 prisoners who never made it to work on a cold day in 1883.

For more information on touring the Smokies, contact the Swain County  Chamber of Commerce, 210 Main Street, P.O. Box 509, Bryson City, NC  28713  HYPERLINK "mailto:chamber@greatsmokies.com"  chamber@greatsmokies.com, 800-867-9246.

You can still go “up yan” in the Smoky Mountains

Walking the mountain trails with Horace Kephart

On a winter’s day in 1904, an erstwhile Pennsylvania librarian named Horace Kephart happened upon a “shock of fodder” walking down a narrow path in the Great Smoky Mountains. “Howdy,” greeted Kephart, prompting the bundled corn stalks to fall to the ground, thus revealing a sturdy mountain woman who harbored a distrustful glint in her eye. “My name’s Kephart and…” Before he could complete his sentence, the woman unleashed a piercing yodel/war whoop that Kephart surmised “would nearly carry half a mile.” The strange behavior puzzled the scholarly adventurer until it was later explained that the woman was undoubtedly warning her husband who was “up yan” tending his moonshine still.

Horace Kephart spent the next 9 years of his life observing and recording the lives of the independent, hardworking mountain people of Swain County, North Carolina. The culmination of his work, Our Southern Highlanders, is regarded by many as “the finest regional study ever written by an American,” One of the more memorable characters of that book is Granville Calhoun, a legendary hunter/fisher/storyteller who, in later years, bought a hotel in Bryson City and dubbed it the Calhoun House Hotel. It’s one of many present day connections to the famed writer.

Connecting with Kephart

“You can still sense the presence of Horace Kephart,” says Luke D. Hyde, current owner of the Calhoun House. “Visitors can take a pontoon ride across Fontana Lake and visit the site of Kephart’s cabin near Hazel Creek, now part of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. In later years, Kephart rented a room above the old Bennet Drugs, one of the many historic buildings preserved in downtown Bryson City. And if you go up near Deep Creek you’ll find a stone monument that marks Kephart’s last permanent camp.” Surprisingly, Horace Kephart’s greatest legacy may not be his outdoor articles, books on camp craft or even Our Southern Highlanders, but rather the Great Smoky Mountains National Park itself. “Kephart was a leading literary figure of the times,’ says Hyde. “His was a very persuasive voice in support of the establishment of the Park.”

Preserving the legacy

With 87% of their county composed of the Park and national forest lands, the people of Swain County are ever mindful of the need to preserve and protect their pristine environment. They’re active in recycling, conserving energy and maintaining the trails that Horace Kephart once walked. Efforts have also been made to preserve the mountain culture that Kephart so loved. There are 19th century cabins, barns and mills still standing in the Park, and every Saturday night in the summer, authentic mountain music rings from the platform of the old train station in Bryson City.

Horace Kephart didn’t live to see his dream of a Great Smoky Mountains National Park become a reality, but he died knowing it was assured. “Kephart was killed in a car crash in 1931,’ says Luke Hyde. “Though he wasn’t born in the Southern Highlands, he’ll forever be a part of them. He’s buried in a cemetery overlooking Bryson City.”