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Madison County and
the Blue Ridge National
Heritage Area
The Blue Ridge National Heritage Area was designated by Congress and the President in November, 2003 in recognition of the unique character, culture, and natural beauty of Western North Carolina and their significance to the history of our nation.
The federal legislation that created the Blue Ridge National Heritage Area also created a nine-member board of directors. The board has since created a 501(c) 3 nonprofit organization, which operates under the name Blue Ridge National Heritage Area, Inc., to develop a management plan, build partnerships in the region, attract matching funds, and implement projects.
The mission of the Blue Ridge National Heritage Area is to protect, preserve, interpret, and develop the unique natural, historical, and cultural resources of Western North Carolina for the benefit of present and future generations, and in so doing to stimulate improved economic opportunity in the region.
The Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina are among the oldest mountains on Earth. The landscape is full of superlatives: the highest mountain (Mount Mitchell), deepest gorge (Linville Gorge), and highest waterfall (Whitewater Falls) in the eastern United States; the oldest river in North America (the New River); and the two most visited National Park lands in the country (the Blue Ridge Parkway and the Great Smoky Mountains National Park). The region is also blessed with a stunning diversity of plant and animal life; more, in fact, than the whole of Europe.
National Park Service Partnership>
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The guide is available in pdf format,
Click here to get Adobe Acrobat Reader.
A Region of National Significance
But there is more to the Blue Ridge National Heritage Area than just its mountains, for out of those mountains grew a rich cultural heritage as well. The birthplace of the Cherokee's advanced early civilization, the region, is, today, home to the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians who continue to preserve many facets of traditional Cherokee culture. Beginning in the eighteenth century, the mountains received waves of European settlers—primarily Scots-Irish, but also German, English, and French. The relative isolation of mountain life helped the settlers nourish and preserve many traditions, especially music and handmade crafts. The area has become the center of handmade art and craft in America, with a rich legacy of both traditional and contemporary craft schools and over 4,000 working craftspeople.
A land of mountain wilderness, waterfalls, Cherokee tradition, string bands, and craft studios, the Blue Ridge National Heritage Area is truly a region with a "personality" like no other.
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