Old is a relative term, particularly in
a European sense ... this is unfortunate old. The downtown area dates to the 1890s, and
it doesn't look like much has changed since.
The urban renewal push that's been
popular in recent decades hasn't seemed to reach Asheville yet. Facades are showing
age from dirt and grit ... streets and sidewalks aren't especially clean.
At the suggestion of
my mentor, I went to the
Asheville public library today to research major regional employers. At the library,
the most recent directory was 1999, so I walked around town to the local Chamber of
Commerce to obtain the current version.
I felt uneasy, as if I was in the wrong
part of town. You know the feeling ... not a good one to have right in the heart of
a city's downtown area ... if that city wants to attract visitors.
Asheville has a lot to offer ... but not
in the center of town. If I have success with my new employers directory, it will be
in the outlying zones.
On this day we celebrate the birth of a
nation and the freedoms we enjoy, I thought to myself, why not learn a little more. So
I went searching for tidbits of info you probably won't find in many American history
text books.
Did you know?
The
Battle of Bunker Hill never took place. The
colonials were supposed to dig in on Bunker Hill, but for some reason chose Breeds
Hill instead, a smaller hill about 2000 feet away. Although the British succeeded in
taking the hill, they lost over 1000 men doing it. The colonials lost about 400. Later
to avoid confusion, they renamed Breeds Hill.
John Chapman is best known by his
famous nickname and his
life long passion for planting apple trees. But his horticulture skills were aptly
applied during the War of 1812 where his knowledge of herbal medicines became of
great use. Retiring a hero, he set out across the Ohio Valley planting apple trees
and preaching the Bible.
The top of the
Washington
Monument is not stone at all, but a 100-ounce solid aluminum pyramid, constructed
as part of the monument's lightning protection system. In the 1880s, aluminum was a
rare metal used primarily for jewelry. It was the largest piece of aluminum of its
day and was such a novelty that it was displayed at Tiffany's jewelry store before it
was placed at the top of the monument.
The
Trail of Tears refers to the
forced exile of the Cherokee Indians under the Indian Removal Act of 1830. It forced
17,000 Cherokee's from their lands in Georgia to reservations in Oklahoma, many having
to walk barefoot. 4000 died of disease, hunger, and cold along the way.
In 1891 Thomas Edison installed
electricity and
lighting in the White House. President William Henry Harrison was so afraid of the
new devices, he refused to touch the switches and slept with all the lights burning
through the night. The White House engineer would come on duty in the morning and
turn them off.
Congress budgeted $2500 for the
Lewis and Clark expedition. Meriwether
Lewis accumulated almost two tons of goods for the journey using this allocation.
Included among the cargo were 4600 sewing needles to be used as gifts for Native
Americans.
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