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Founded 05-05-05

Confederate Veterans and the Banjo Man Come to Life

Watauga County History Day Saturday, May 5

Story by Ron Fitzwater

The history of Watauga County is rich with characters and events that helped define what the county is today. In an effort to save the history of this unique part of the state, author Michael C. Hardy, along with the Watauga County Public Library and the Watauga County Historical Society, will present Watauga County History Day on Saturday, May 5, from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. at the library on Queen Street.

Noted authors and historians including Ralph E. Lentz II, Johnny Graybeal and Michael Hardy will speak on such topics as historic Blowing Rock, the ET&WNC Railroad and Confederate veterans’ reunions. Visitors will also be able to view historic photographs, such as Palmer Blair’s banjo man, and documents donated to the library’s reference section.

When Hardy decided that Watauga County needed a History Day, he started the process of making it happen in much the same way he begins researching a topic for a new book. He “sent out a lot of emails” to contacts asking “would it work, who should be invited, who should speak and so on,” he said. During his search he discovered with pleasure that the Historical Society had reformed last fall and worked out co-sponsorship with the library. Hardy hopes the program will generate interest in the fledgling organization. “I hope that the event will give them a boost in getting new members and setting goals and projects, such as the Watauga County architectural history survey,” now in the works he said. Additionally, Hardy hopes that this event will “be the first step to something long-lasting for Watauga County.

“We are losing our history rapidly here in Watauga County. Either it is being developed out, the old families are dying off and the materials are being disbursed out, or it is being stolen, like at Hickory Ridge Homestead. The development we can do nothing about, but we need to try and document what existed before,” Hardy said.

Hardy is the author of seven books, including A Short History of Watauga County, the first collection of Watauga County history since John Preston Arthur’s 1915 A History of Watauga County North Carolina with Sketches of Prominent Families.

The genesis of Hardy’s book came in 1996-97 while he was working on the history of the 37th Confederate Regiment. During his research, he discovered that two of the companies of the regiment came from Watauga County. Subsequently, while completing his book on the 37th, he gained possession of a collection of locally specific documents and information. Armed with the documentation and Arthur’s 1915 history, he began putting together a short, yet comprehensive, county history picking up where Arthur left off. “The last serious history we had is almost 100 years old,” Hardy said. “There is a lot of stuff that has happened in the last 100 years that needed to be chronicled and written about before we lose it, so I decided to do the book.” Hardy has a personal kinship to the area. His family first settled in the northwest part of North Carolina in 1771. His passion for history—something he readily admits some see as an “obsession,”—began when he was as a young boy attending Civil War reenactments and grew into a lifelong mission to educate people about our area.

Education as well as fun is the goal for Watauga County History Day. “I think people should know the history from the start,” Hardy said. “For example, Daniel Boone was our first tourist. He was here exploiting our natural resources, hunting and fishing and staying in Howard’s cabin. That’s important, because today tourism is a vital part of our economy.”

Early tourism and many other topics will be discussed at Watauga County History Day. There is no cost to attend and the organizers strongly encourage everyone to come out and bring a friend. For additional information call 828-264-8784.

Want To Go?

What: Watauga County History Day
Date: Saturday, May 5
Time: 1:00 to 4:00 p.m.
Location: Watauga County Public Library
Cost: Free