Appalachian History Center

Lance Holland has been collecting information about and studying the history of Western North Carolina for forty years. He and fellow regional historians and authors have collaborated to make their combined knowledge, collections, and books more available to the public. Regional collections include Murphy Branch Railroad, Fontana Copper Mine, North Shore Lumber Companies, Fontana Village and more. We are interested to know about any private historical collections of documents, maps, and photos pertaining to the southern Appalachian region. The Appalachian History Center is the result of that joint effort and is housed within Appalachian Mercantile. The Center features a large selection of regional books and maps including USGS topographical quad maps and custom historic maps, plus free visitor maps.