Montford is one of Buncombe County’s most iconic historic neighborhoods. In this installment of 52 Weeks, 52 Communities, we could take almost any angle on Montford; there is just so much to talk about. So instead of trying to pick just one thesis, I decided that this would be a great opportunity to put together
Tempie Avery was a young girl purchased in Charleston in 1840 by Nicholas Woodfin. During her time on his plantation she became a midwife delivering both black and white babies in Asheville. After the Civil War, Mr. Woodfin deeded property to Tempie at 26 Pearson Drive, the current site of the Montford Community Center. On
“On The Front Porch” A porch is a passage into a home. It’s where we comfortably pause before entering as well as when leaving. Porches link the private interior with the outdoors, the public sidewalk and street. Porches are where we rest, are silent, or talk quietly with family or friends. We sometimes gather on porches
It is common for local historians to say of the Asheville, Loan, Construction & Improvement Company, that the “enterprise languished until it was taken over by George Willis Pack.” (Quote from Asheville’s Historic Montford District, edited by Michael T. Southern, 1985.) What the Asheville, Loan, Construction & Improvement Company did do needs to be on record. After the company
Asheville was the first city in North Carolina to have an electric streetcar system, with the first run on February 1, 1889. Asheville was followed by Winston, Charlotte, Raleigh and then Wilmington (1890-1892). Montford was likely the first electric streetcar suburb in the state. Streetcar suburbs, defined as a planned community built around a street
We now know that Richmond Pearson named the new station Montford Park Station. Why the Name Montford? An article in the Daily Citizen of March 31, 1891, titled “Montford Park Station: Asheville’s New Suburb on the French Broad” reveals that “for the privilege of naming the station, Mr. Richmond Pearson, last summer, agreed to erect
Richmond Pearson’s Little-Known Part in the Creation of Montford [Click here to read Rediscovering Montford’s Early History Part 1 post revealing the first newspaper article announcing the creation of Montford Park and the naming of Montford Park Station.] Richmond Pearson was given the honor in the summer of 1890 of naming the new passenger depot on the Asheville Loan, Construction
- 1
- 2