Haywood County was formed around 1810 in the western part of North Carolina between Buncombe and Tennessee. Haywood County was named after John Haywood who had been the North Carolina treasurer from 1787 to 1827. Some of the earliest settlers in the area were soldiers who had passed through in 1776 during the American Revolution. This very beautiful mountain community is known for its 18 peaks over 6000 feet which is more than any county east of the Mississippi River. The original growth of this area was very slow. In 1869 the area was divided into six precincts (townships) by the NC General Assembly. These townships were Waynesville, Fines Creek, Crabtree, Pigeon, Cataloochee, and Beaverdam. As the population of Haywood County grew other townships were added. The population for the Haywood County as of 1900 was still only 1307. A brief history and description of many of these communities in Haywood County is included below. Canton, Clyde, Maggie Valley, Waynesville which are the four largest communities in Haywood County have their own individual web pages. North Carolina's official state dog, Plott hound, has been bred in Haywood County since the 18th century. This dog named after the Plott family has been a favorite for bear hunting for over two hundred years. The Pressley Sapphire Mine was the place where the world's largest blue star sapphire "Southern Star" was found. Folkmoot USA is patterned after European folk festivals is held each year in Waynesville and is the largest of its kind in the USA. A 2500 acre tract of land bought by the Methodist in 1913 (now Lake Junaluska) has been a vacation resort and religious retreat for hundreds of thousands of Methodist ever since. Haywood County, NC is served by several forms of media including television from South Carolina. The Mountaineer, the Smoky Mountain News, along with the Asheville Citizens Times are the more popular news papers. Asheville television station WLOS 13 (ABC) is where the local television news and events are found. Haywood County, NC is part of the National Forest Scenic Byway with the Pisgah National Forest. Haywood County is also the location of one of the last battles in the civil war with Kirk's Raid in 1865. Western North Carolina temperatures average 54 degrees with around 38 degree average in January and 71 degree average in June. Haywood County averages 48 inches of rain a year and 12 inches of snow. The four seasons all have their beauty with fall being the most popular for visitors who come to see the spectacular colors of the leaves. Haywood County Real Estate For Sale is found on the MLS listing search page. |