Early Education in Ashe County
The museum’s Early Education in Ashe County exhibit follows the history of Ashe County’s school system from the days of one-room school houses, through consolidation, and into the modern era. Inside this recreation of a one-room school house visitors will find displays about Ashe County’s leaders in educations, historic photos of the county’s various school […]
Ashe County Victory Garden
With European farmlands devastated and farmers called into military service during WWI, America’s European allies turned to us for food. Months before entering WWI in 1917, the National War Garden Commission was established to encourage Americans to grow and store our own food so that farm surplus could be sent overseas. Americans were encouraged to […]
Moonshine & Music
The Moonshine & Music exhibit opened April 30, 2016. This room features a life sized diorama of mid twentieth century moonshine production and a formal exhibit of three very special Appalachian musicians. Our dedicated volunteers prioritized historical authenticity while developing the exhibit. The moonshine diorama features a copper pot style still that was confiscated by […]
Ore Knob Mine
Stepping through the door of what used to be the Register of Deeds vault transports the visitor into the historic Ore Knob Copper Mine. The life-sized diorama includes a 19th century miner (pictured above) as well as a 20th century miner drilling to place dynamite. Artifacts from the mine include hard hats, a dynamite blasting […]
Ashe County’s First Century
Ashe County’s First Century of European settlement is located in the Worth Room which previously was home to the Ashe County Register of Deeds. Exhibits feature a portrait of Martin Gambill – the Paul Revere of the South, a beautiful 19th century carriage, and an 1856 Square Grand Piano belonging to the Worth Family. From […]
The Virginia Creeper Train
One of our most popular exhibits, the Virginia Creeper, features a 30′ long HO Scale diorama of Tuckerdale, Lansing, West Jefferson, and Todd. This amazing exhibit pays homage to the Virginia Carolina branch of the Norfolk and Western Railway that ran between Abingdon, Virginia and Todd, North Carolina. The real Virginia Creeper train served Ashe […]
Veterans Hall
The Veterans Hall of Honor lists the names of individuals who went in to the military during war times from WWI to Desert Storm, when a recruiter was stationed in Ashe County. A major part of the exhibit is a new Veterans Kiosk where Ashe County Veterans and/or their families are encouraged to enter and […]
Sports Hall of Fame
The Ashe County Sports Hall of Fame was established to recognize and perpetuate the noteworthy sportsman traditions of Ashe County by honoring and memorializing individuals and teams who have made extraordinary contributions to sportsman traditions in Ashe County. Sports and sportsman include sports such as football, basketball, and baseball as well as other recreational and […]
Local Furniture – The Bare Room
In Ashe County’s earliest years and due to its relative isolation in the Southern Appalachian mountains, it was difficult and dangerous to import large, heavy items from “off the mountain” (at least until the Railroad came to town). As a result, many Ashe County industries developed to help fill the needs for specific products. One […]
Timber Industry
Ashe County was once home to massive stands of virgin timber, including chestnuts, oaks, and maples. Around the turn of the 20th century, these vast stands of timber drew the attention of northern timber barons who were looking for new timber to harvest for the northern industrial machine. The problem these business men had to […]