Jackson
County, North Carolina was formed in 1851 from parts of Haywood and
Macon counties in western North Carolina.
Located where the Blue Ridge, Great Smoky and Balsam Mountains come together,
it was once part of Cherokee Indian lands but there is evidence that some
of the area was settled by whites prior to 1796. These people received
title to lands west of the Meigs-Freeman line in what is now Jackson County
after an Indian treaty of cession in 1819. By 1828 thousands of settlers
had moved into the area. It is known that the following people occupied
lands in present day Jackson County before 1820: Nathan Ledbetter, Hugh
Brown, Frederick Canuppe, Jacob Tramel, Andrew Bryson, William Buchanan,
Thomas Gribble, William Underwood, Barak Norton, John Galloway, Robert
Fox, Jesse Reid, William Patterson, John Akin, William Welch, Robert Gillespey,
William Fullbright, Benjamin Hide, Samuel Denton, Edward Chastain, Holliman
Battle, John Dobson, John Stiles, William Avery, William Bryson, Richard
Morrow, William Cathey, John Bryson and John Underwood. By the middle of
the 19th century there were several thriving communities located
in the area. Jackson County covers 499 square miles and remains today a
beautiful rural county in a scenic mountain area. I spent several summer
vacations at my grandparent's old house in Jackson County and have many
great memories: the old feather mattresses on the beds, waking up to the
smell of the fire in the old wood cooking stove and my grandmother's biscuits
baking in the oven, walking to the mailbox with my grandmother (it was
a mile walk!), visiting Hess Phillip's country store, eating moon pies
and drinking R.C. colas. My cousins and I spent long, carefree days exploring
the countryside and making wonderful discoveries; finding old Indian artifacts,
catching crawdads in the creek and playing in the hayloft of the old barn.
We had a freedom that is unfortunately impossible for children today.
The old homeplace in Jackson County was bought by my Great-grandmother
in 1912 and it's 50 acres still remain in the family today. I inherited
2 acres when my mother passed away and in June we finally put a mobile
home on our land in hopes of spending more time there. Although I
grew up and have lived in Michigan for the past 40 years, whenever I visit
Jackson County I still get an overwhelming feeling of peace and tranquility,
a feeling that I am home.The Jackson County Genealogical Society can be contacted at P.O. Box 2108, Cullowhee, North Carolina, 28723
