Serving Boone, Blowing Rock, Banner Elk, and other towns of the North Carolina High Country | Founded 05-05-05

Orchard at Altapass Celebrates Centennial August 2

Story by Celeste von Mangan

Altapass Centennial Logo In the Appalachian Mountains, people who find traditional stories are called story gatherers and those who find songs are called song catchers. For the centennial celebration at the Orchard at Altapass, Bill and Judy Carson and Bill’s sister Kit Carson Trubey have organized an event called Memories Are For Keeping where stories will be collected and songs will be caught. The event is Saturday August 2, beginning at 5:00 and ending at 8:00 p.m.

“The event is being held to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Orchard at Altapass,” said Gretchen Mosier, store manager at the orchard. “Everyone is invited to attend the event to help save the memories of families, songs and traditions of the mountains. We’re looking for folks whose families are deeply rooted in the local mountain life to come and share their family stories and early ways of mountain living.

“Several story gatherers will be available to record stories in private, and the interviews will be kept forever in the local library. Folks who want to share old photos can bring the pictures and they will be scanned in here and returned to the owners that evening, and copies of theses photos will be kept in orchard memory books at the local library so that everyone can enjoy them,” Mosier explained.

People who would like to share their memories of local families and communities are invited to come to the centennial celebration and to bring a traditional mountain dish.

“Fried apple pie, stack cakes—these are examples of traditional food,” said Mosier. “Miss Charlotte, a pillar of the community around here, will be serving her special, old-timey cornbread, and Miss Linda is fixing beans and old-fashioned lemonade. Both of these women are from the Altapass community.

“Miss Charlotte tells some wonderful stories—though she does not think she has any stories to tell—and a lot of folks do not think they have any stories to tell, but you would be surprised how much they have to say once they start talking. Some people may remember working in the orchard or hearing about the orchard work from their family. The theme for the centennial and the logo is Saving the Good Stuff.”

An Appalachian celebration could not possibly take place in Appalachia without traditional music, and the Memories Are For Keeping event has two musicians lined up: Bruce Greene and Rhonda Gouge are going to play old-time Appalachian songs. You may want to brush up on your knowledge of traditional songs because the duo intends to hold a Can You Stump Them? performance. The audience is invited to try and come up with songs Greene and Gouge do not know.

Clinchfield railroad workers named Altapass; the word means high pass. The orchard was developed in 1908 after the railroad work was completed and Clinchfield Railroad employees turned the land above the tracks—near the Blue Ridge Tunnel—into an orchard. The acreage proved to be well suited for apple growing because it is a frost-free zone. At the orchard’s peak production, 125,000 bushels of apples were picked, packed and shipped on the Clinchfield, and the Orchard at Altapass became the center of employment for the community.
In 1994, after the orchard lay fallow for a number of years, Bill, Judy and Kit purchased the land as a preservation project.

Located at Milepost 328.3 on the Blue Ridge Parkway, the Orchard at Altapass is 14 miles south of Linville Falls. The Memories Are For Keeping celebration is free and open to the public. For more information, call 1-888-765-9531.

Want To Go?

Date: Saturday, August 2
Time: 5:00 to 8:00 p.m.
Location: Orchard at Altapass
Cost: Free