WNC Mountain State Fair winners bring home hardware
The following are winners in the N.C. Mountain State Fair’s opening weekend poultry, rabbit, sheep, goat and beef cattle categories from the Smoky Mountain News coverage area:
Angling for the podium: How Michael Bradley has taken the fly fishing world by storm
Most folks who get into fly fishing do it despite the fish, which seldom cooperate and sometimes get in the way of an otherwise perfectly enjoyable morning standing out in the creek.
Bringing in the feds: EPA agreement mandates elements of Canton mill cleanup
Pactiv Evergreen, owner of the shuttered papermill in Canton, has been working to clean up two separate seeps leaking toxic substances into the Pigeon River under an administrative order of consent (AOC) with the Environmental Protection Agency.
Help for mill workers
The economic impact of Pactiv Evergreen’s decision to close the Canton paper mill will be substantial. It is estimated that about 1,000 employees will be out of work by the summer, the majority of whom are Haywood County residents.
Real (estate) problems: Concerns emerge over what Pactiv Evergreen might leave behind
The 185-acre paper mill at the heart of Canton is the most visible sign of Pactiv Evergreen’s corporate presence in Haywood County, but they also own dozens of other parcels worth tens of millions of dollars.
‘Papertown’ through the eyes of a lifelong resident, historian
The whistle at Canton’s paper mill talked to me daily, sending the reassuring message that the mill was producing paper and employees were busy at their jobs. Security. Dependability. Reliable employment. Income. Pride.
‘It means everything’: Former worker reflects on career amid Canton mill closure
At 94 years young, Ben Best is proud of several things in his long, bountiful life — a marriage of 67 years and counting, raising three healthy sons, being a grandfather, a loyal friend to many, and a hard-scrabble Haywood County farmer.
Eating an elephant: Canton, county will solve huge mill problems by taking small bites
No one living can remember a time when there wasn’t a paper mill at the heart of Canton. Now, after 115 years in operation, it all comes down to three months.
After the final whistle: Papertown stands strong in the face of an identity crisis
To visitors, the noise seems strange and maybe even concerning. To folks in Canton, it sounds like home.
This must be the place: Ode to Canton, ode to Small Town America
On Aug. 10, 2012, I took on my first assignment for The Smoky Mountain News. It was the “Papertown” album release show by Haywood County bluegrass sensation Balsam Range.