North Carolina

Did the phrase "That's what I was wondering…" solve a murder?

In the morning hours of July 16, 1936, Helen Clevenger's uncle discovered her bloodied body crumpled on the floor of her small room in Asheville's grand Battery Park Hotel. She had been shot through the chest. Buncombe County Sheriff Laurence Brown, up for reelection, desperately searched for the teenager's killer as the public clamored for answers. Though witnesses reported seeing a white man leave the scene, Brown's focus turned instead to the hotel's Black employees and on August 9 he arrested bell hop Martin Moore. After a frenzied four-day trial that captured the nation's attention, Moore was convicted of Helen's murder on August 22. Though Moore confessed to Sherriff Brown, doubt of his guilt lingers and many Southerners feared that justice had not, in fact, been served.

Author Anne Chesky Smith weaves together varying accounts of the murder and investigation to expose a complex and disturbing chapter in Asheville's history.

For over 400 years, the mystery of Roanoke's "Lost Colony" has puzzled historians and spawned conspiracies--until now.

New discoveries link the lost colony of Roanoke to Hatteras Island.

The legend of the Lost Colony has been captivating imaginations for nearly a century. When they left Roanoke Island, where did they go? What is the meaning of the mysterious word Croatoan? In the sixteenth century, Croatoan was the name of an island to the south now known as Hatteras. Scholars have long considered the island as one of the colonists' possible destinations, but only recently has anyone set out to prove it. Archaeologists from the University of Bristol, working with local residents through the Croatoan Archaeological Society, have uncovered tantalizing clues to the fate of the colony.

Hatteras native and amateur archaeologist Scott Dawson compiles what scholars know about the Lost Colony along with what scholars have found beneath the soil of Hatteras.

In the summer of 1967, 19 year old Brenda Joyce Holland disappeared.

A mountain girl who had come to Manteo to work on The Lost Colony, Brenda's body was found three days later, floating in the Sound. This riveting narrative, built on unique access to state investigative files and multiple interviews with insiders, searches for the truth of the unsolved murder. This island odyssey of discovery includes séances, a suicide, and a supposed shallow grave.

Journalist John Railey cuts through the myths and misdirections to finally arrive at the long-hidden truth of what happened to Brenda Holland that summer on Roanoke Island.

Photographer Joseph Bowman engages readers with a visual tour of the railroads of Western North Carolina. Enjoy scenes of busy mainline action on Norfolk Southern and CSX mainlines including unit coal and manifest freight action on the once busy Old Fort Loops. Joseph also documents several short line railroads which play a vital role in the local economies. Steam enthusiasts will not be disappointed, as multiple tourist railroads and mainline steam excursions are covered.

Joseph has been photographing trains since 2005 and has photographed many unique events including the last train to Lenoir, NC, along with the last excursions that Norfolk Southern allowed to be operated to Asheville, NC. The most featured section of railroad covered in the book has also experienced quite a few changes in recent years, and Joseph shares with us many scenes that haven't taken place in years, and as of being published, are not likely to happen any time in the near future, if ever again.

In the Southern Appalachian Mountains, no character was more loved or despised than George W. Kirk.

This inured Union officer led a group of deserters on numerous raids between Tennessee and North Carolina in 1863, terrorizing Confederate soldiers and civilians alike. At Camp Vance in Morganton, Kirk's mounted raiders showcased guerrilla warfare penetrating deep within Confederate territory. As Home Guards struggled to keep Western North Carolina communities safe, Kirk's men brought fear and violence throughout the region for their ability to strike and create havoc without warning. Civil War historian Michael C. Hardy examines the infamous history of George W. Kirk and the Civil War along the Blue Ridge.

At the turn of the twentieth century, railroads meant progress, growth and development.

In the 1890s Southport, North Carolina became the target destination for a major coaling terminal for ships sailing the Atlantic coast. A new terminal would require a railroad to bring in coal and other supplies. More than twenty companies were formed to pursue this idea over the years, with a few actual accomplishments, but most were purely speculative. Wearying the expectant town for more than twenty-five years, the vision for a great port was whittled down until local entrepreneurs finally built a 30-mile rail line to connect the town to Wilmington.

Local author and railroad historian Mark Koenig chronicles the short life of a short line and the long process of making it a reality.

The breathtaking Biltmore Estate in Asheville, North Carolina, has captured the fascination of people everywhere for over 100 years.

Created in the 1890s by George Washington Vanderbilt, a member of one of America's wealthiest families, the estate combined a 250-room French Renaissance-style chateau with 125,000 acres of gardens, forests, and working farms. Biltmore House served as Vanderbilt's primary residence for almost 20 years. After Mr. Vanderbilt's death in 1914, life at Biltmore continued for his wife Edith and daughter Cornelia. In 1930, Cornelia Vanderbilt Cecil and her husband, Hon. John Francis Amherst Cecil, opened Biltmore House - the largest private home in the United States - to the public, firmly establishing the Asheville area as a major tourist destination.

The history of the Western North Carolina Railroad is a tale like no other, filled with tragedy, heroism, brains, blood, sweat, tears, nitroglycerin and humor.

Now a tourist mecca, the Great Smoky Mountains were a remote and inaccessible place until well after the Civil War. Using first enslaved and later convict labor the Western North Carolina Railroad and Murphy Branch connected the mountains with the remainder of the state by rail for the first time in 1891. The railroad brought commerce and tourism. Though its vital role was eventually eclipsed by the automobile, tourists and rail buffs continue to come to Bryson City to experience travel by steam train on the Great Smoky Mountains Railroad.

Local authors Jacob Morgan Plott and Bob Plott tell the story of a line that refused to die.

North Carolina holds a special place in the history of moonshine. For more than three centuries, the illicit home-brew was a way of life.

NASCAR emerged from the illegal moonshine tradeas drivers such as Junior Johnson, accustomed to running from the law, moved to the racetrack. A host of colorful characters populated the state's bootlegging arena, like Marvin "Popcorn" Sutton, known as the Paul Bunyan of moonshine, and Alvin Sawyer, considered the moonshine king of the Great Dismal Swamp. Some law enforcement played a constant cat-and-mouse game to shut down illegal stills, while some just looked the other way. Authors Frank Stephenson and Barbara Mulder reveal the gritty history of moonshine in the Tar Heel State.

Explore the international headlines and the little-known crimes, the solved and the wrongly solved, in these tales of the North Carolina mountains.

Western North Carolina is known for mountain vistas and wild, rocky rivers, but remote wilderness and quaint small towns can have a dark side. Learn the truth behind the famous murder ballad Tom Dooley. Delve into the criminal history of moonshine, and the tales of two unexpected bombers in idyllic Mayberry.

Crime writer Cathy Pickens brings a novelist's eye to Western North Carolina's crime stories that define the sinister--and quirky--side of the mountains.

Tour the Old North State's famous--and not-so-famous--historic sites.

"First in Freedom," "First in Flight," and "First, Farthest and Last" are all honorifics that have been used to describe North Carolina's well-known history. Learn the truth behind each of these epithets and other tales from the sands of the Outer Banks to the bustling cities of the Piedmont and the western mountains. Tour the state's famous historic homes, gardens and cemeteries. Dive deep into its military conflicts, from the golden age of piracy to the Second World War.

"Join North Carolina's veteran historian, Michael C. Hardy, for an exploration of the many sites, monuments, museums, and public spaces that tell story of North Carolina's history.

Ever since ships began navigating the coast of North Carolina, the area has maintained a reputation for being dangerous. Weather, geography, war, piracy, and human error have all contributed to this dense shipwreck zone.

Today, the region that stretches from the Currituck Outer Banks south to Bogue Banks is referred to as the "Graveyard of the Atlantic." From the 1585 grounding of the English ship Tiger off the Outer Banks to the 2012 loss of the Bounty, more than 2,000 shipwrecks have occurred in the Graveyard of the Atlantic. The stories behind the shipwrecks illustrate the best and worst of mankind, showing courage and compassion as well as the atrocities of war. This history informs readers about commerce, technology, war, environment, maritime life, and the complexity of the human element.

A destination for many tourists eager for sun, sand, and a simpler way of life, and a far distant cry from the glitter and neon of more traditional, commercial oriented beaches, the Outer Banks of North Carolina is a natural wonder sheltering and buffering Eastern North Carolina from the volatile temperament of the Atlantic Ocean.

The Blue Ridge Parkway began as a dream in the late 1800s and became reality in 1983 when the 469-mile scenic highway was completed. Heavy construction was done by contractors who won bids for the different projects along various sections of the parkway.

Construction of the Blue Ridge Parkway began in September 1935 at Cumberland Knob. Civilian Conservation Corps troops took care of the roadsides, landscaping, and structure building. As part of Franklin Roosevelt's New Deal, this project was intended to provide jobs throughout the region. Images of America: Building the Blue Ridge Parkway contains approximately 200 construction photographs of the Blue Ridge Parkway.

Over 80,000 of woodland acres became the home of America's first forestry school and the heart of the East's first national forest formed under the Weeks Act.

When George Vanderbilt constructed the Biltmore House, he hired forester Gifford Pinchot and, later, Dr. Carl A. Schenck to manage his forests. Now comprising more than 500,000 acres, Pisgah National Forest holds a vast history and breathtaking natural scenery. The forest sits in the heart of the southern Appalachians and includes Linville Gorge, Catawba Falls, Wilson Creek Wild and Scenic River, Roan Mountain, Max Patch, Shining Rock Wilderness and Mount Pisgah. Author and naturalist Marci Spencer treks through the human, political and natural history that has formed Pisgah National Forest.

Ocracoke, a unique part of the Cape Hatteras National Seashore with it's own dialect, captures a unique charm and spirit of community developed from its beginning in the 1580s as Wokokon Inlet.

Wokokon Inlet appeared on maps drawn by Englishman John White as early as the 1580s. The name evolved into Ocracoke, and by 1715, pilots were established on the island in order to safely navigate ships through the dangerous shoals. The village itself, once called Pilot Town, is rich with history that includes pirates, ponies, shipwrecks, hurricanes, and the oldest operating lighthouse in North Carolina. The infamous Blackbeard died here in 1718. Throughout its history, Ocracoke has been accessible only by mail boat, ferry, or private boat or plane. The Navy base established here during World War II and the Coast Guard have both made lasting impressions upon the island. Ocracoke grew into a vibrant fishing village for commercial and sport fishermen as well as a destination for hunters. The people of Ocracoke made this island a true treasure, having a distinctive brogue all their own. Today, the pristine, unspoiled beaches of Ocracoke remain part of the Cape Hatteras National Seashore and are maintained by the National Park Service. The village itself has retained its unique charm and community spirit.

From January to July 1942, more than seventy-five ships sank to North Carolina's "Graveyard of the Atlantic" off the coast of the Outer Banks. A Standard oil tanker sank just sixty miles from Cape Hatteras.

German U-boats sank ships in some of the most harrowing sea fighting close to America's shore. Germany's Operation Drumbeat, led by Admiral Karl Donitz, brought fear to the local communities. The U-85 was the first U-boat sunk by American surface forces, and local divers later discovered a rare Enigma machine aboard. Author Jim Bunch traces the destructive history of world war on the shores of the Outer Banks.

Learn about the real life of beloved actor Andy Griffith.

The world loves Sheriff Andy Taylor. Yet the actor who played him was intensely private. Here, for the first time, is the real Andy Griffith, his career and life defined by the island that made him in the years soon after World War II. He achieved his artistic breakthrough while acting in The Lost Colony drama on Roanoke Island, then spent the rest of his life repaying the island for giving him that start. Here, in unique closeup, is Andy of Manteo, reveling in wild, watery and loving ways with his fellow islanders.

Author and journalist John Railey paints an intimate portrait of Andy, based on interviews with many of those who knew him best on the sand where he lived and died.

Tales from North Carolina's high country.

The Toe River winds its way past the peaks of Mount Mitchell and into the valley that bears its name. Mineral mines go back to the earliest days of Yancey County and encouraged some of the first settlers to come to the region. Mitchell County's Bakersville experienced violent unrest, with a riot and a lynching, in 1892--but did it actually happen? The section of the Blue Ridge Parkway that runs through Avery County was left incomplete for years because of a property dispute with the owner of Grandfather Mountain. Take a journey along forgotten rail lines, through abandoned communities and past sites whose histories have shaped this valley's story just as the river has shaped its landscape.

North Carolina historian and author Michael C. Hardy explores the hidden historical gems of the region.