The times-news., 1935-12-17
lost COLONY
CLOSE TOCITY
N. Buckner Tells of Little
Known Community East
~ of Hendersonville
By N. BUCKNER

ASHEVILLE, Dec. 17.-Betol
the completion of North Carr
ina's matchless system OF hlgl
ways a section of northwest Mort
Carolina was known as the "Lo,
Colony because of its inacceSS!!
bility. but it has lost that uneny'
able title since the paved nigh
wavs now make it as accessible a
anv other section of the state.
Yet within twenty miles ar me
of Asheville is another lost co.
ony''-as lost as the one ABOVE
referred to, and even more mac
cessible. This "lost colony is en-
braced in an area of about TWO
SQUARE miles of rolling plateau
well wooded except small acreagsS
here and there cultivated by me
sturdy mountain folk that i've
there, II is located atop Chimney
Rock mountain, under the Shaoo"
of Sugar Loaf dome. and entirely
within the bounds OF Rutherford
comfy. and adjoining the Hender-
SON county line. Driving along the
famous Chimney Rock highway 10
Gastonia. Shelby and Charlotte'
occupants of cars looking up at
the SOO-foot Hickory Nut falls mn
mediately west of Chimney RocN
would never imagine such an m
habited area could exist beyond
the heights of this rocky steep.
There are but two ways of IN
gress and egreSs to this mountain
top and the cabin homes OF the
sturdy moutaineers who live there;
and the one most used is the 1888
step stairway fastened into the
precipitous granite face OF the
mountain with iron hooks and STIR
rups sunk deep into the solid
rock. with ballustrades on both
sides of sturdy locust sapEngS,
with renewals made each spring
where needed. Although used
daily for many years by thousands
of visitors to the famous Chimney
Rock, as we'll as the inhabitants
of the ''loSt colony" of the noun
tain top. no accident has ever oc-
Cured. Those visitors to the IA
nous mcnolith who climb the
stairway to the top of the precipi-
tous granite cliff thousand feet
above the highway and river, at
Exclamation Point, so named by
B. c., Forbes, nationally known
financial commentator, are Splen-
didly repaid for the extra effort
by the extraordinary scenic view
spread out far below them, ex-
tending west to little Pisgah and
Hickory Nut Gap a dozen miles,
and to the east to a rugged noun
tain horizon, with beautiful Lake
Lure spread out in the eastern
foreground. -.
From Exclamation Point there
is a narrow footpath cut into the
mountainside, zigzagging its tor,
tuous way to the top of the noun
tain, and the Lost Colony, passing
the doorway of Roscoe Warren'S
modest cabin home in the shadow
of a giant spreading oak from the
base of which flows a generous
springof clear sparkling ice water
during the hottest summer days.
sPhe only other entrance to the
Lost Colony is from the Hender.
son county side, at Edneyville, or
the HenderSonyille-Ba Cave paved
highway, where a macadam-Sand,
clay road winds a tortuous route
up the side of Point Lookout, a
great mountain bench on the lower
slopes of Sugar Loaf, whose top
is above 1000 feet elevation. From
thetop of Lookout the road winds
about the face of Sugar Loaf, and
with each quarter mile upward the
road grows narrower, sleeper,
rocker and finally fades into lit
tie more than a mountain sled
road as it enters the borders of
the Lost Colony's empire.
There are nine families, As Deo-
pie, living in this area. The land,
most of it, is owned by the Chin
Rey Rock company, of which DR..
L. B. Morse is manager. The
cabin of Roscoe Warren is desig-
mated the Ticket Office" for
Chimney Rock for those who
struggle up the mountain from
the Henderson county side. OF
those living there many of them
seldom leave the mountain top
There is but one horse on the
mountain, and but one mule, and
II is 18 years old. Such farming
as is done, is by oxen, though they
are referred to by the noun
taineers as cattle" and there il
but one OK wagon on the noun
tain and it. is not in running con
dition. There are two sewing ma
chimes in the community, one o