Driving through Rutherfordton, North Carolina
Rutherfordton is a town in Rutherford County, North Carolina, United States.
The town has many historical places that have been registered on the National Register of Historic Places.
The Bechtler Mint Site, Carrier Houses, Fox Haven Plantation, Gilbert Town Historic District, George W. Logan House, Main Street Historic District, Rutherford County Courthouse, Rutherfordton-Spindale Central High School, St. Luke's Chapel, and Trinity Lutheran Church are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
PAC/WCP Program - Gold in our foothills
On March 21, 2015, Lynn Padgett presented “Gold in our Foothills” to a large group at the Anne Elizabeth Suratt Nature Center at Walnut Creek Preserve.
In her presentation, Lynn Padgett talked about the history of gold in Western North Carolina, specifically Rutherfordton, NC and the Bechtler Mint.
Beginning in the 1500s, European explorers searched for gold in the Appalachian Mountains. Not until three centuries later, was gold was finally discovered in North Carolina – not in the mountains, but in the piedmont and the foothills. “Gold Fever” brought thousands of would-be miners and speculators to the foothills, fueling a real estate boom, spurring invention, and transforming the landscape.
The gold frenzy eventually attracted German immigrant Christopher Bechtler to Rutherfordton on his own quest for gold. A jeweler and gunsmith, he had the metalworking skills to establish a private mint, and during the 1820s and 30s, North Carolina was the major source of gold for the U.S. Mint.
The North Carolina Gold Rush is a fascinating, but little known chapter in North Carolina history. Padgett’s presentation will conclude with a screening of the 2012 UNC-TV documentary “Gold Fever and the Bechtler Mint.” (this can be viewed by visiting the PAC website,
Lynn Padgett has been collecting information about the North Carolina foothills gold rush since 2006. She is currently creating exhibits on North Carolina Gold and Christopher Bechtler for the Bechtler House Museum in Rutherfordton. With excerpts from first person accounts, old newspapers, and old maps, she goes beyond chronology and geology to the stories of those who were there. She was featured in the 2012 UNC-TV documentary, “Gold Fever and the Bechtler Mint.”
This program was made possible, in part, by a grant from Delores Lastinger.
PAC is a 501(c)(3) non-profit conservation organization (land trust) founded in 1989 to protect and conserve natural resources with emphasis on the lands and waterways with scenic, ecological, and agricultural significance in the North Pacolet and Green River watersheds (PAC’s mission). PAC works with area landowners to ensure the long-term protection of their property through voluntary conservation easements (agreements) which enable landowners to maintain ownership of their property, preserving precious natural resources (open lands, forests, wildlife habitat, scenic vistas, farmland, stream banks, etc.), and potentially obtain significant federal, state, and local tax benefits. PACs vision is a community living and growing in harmony with our natural resources and or goal is to provide a legacy that will endure and be valued by generations to come. PAC works diligently to provide leadership to encourage conservation and provide education programs emphasizing native species appreciation and responsible land use practices to help -- save the places you love.
Pacolet Area Conservancy
850 North Trade Street
Tryon, NC 28782
(828)859-5060
e-mail: info@pacolet.org
pacolet.org
Walnut Creek Preserve is an equestrian and nature preserve community outside of Lake Lure, North Carolina, offering for sale large tract acreage (10-35 acres) horse farms. WCP is an exceptionally large tract of over 2,100 acres of land whose development has been designed with horseback riding, hiking and nature study in mind. The Preserve's 2,100 acres of forest and pasture land shelter a tremendous variety of indigenous plant life, including several rare and one threatened species, as well as a wealth of wild animal life. To assure their survival, only 25 wooded and equestrian home sites averaging 20 acres each will be offered for sale on the 2,100 acres, and the remaining, over 1,500 acres of wilderness are protected in perpetuity by deeded conservation easement held by the Pacolet Area Conservancy.
Walnut Creek Preserve
(828) 625-1122
walnutcreekpreserve.com
e-mail: RideandHike@bellsouth.net
PAC/WCP Program - Gold in our foothills
On Saturday, March 21st, Lynn Padgett presented “Gold in our Foothills” to a large group at the Anne Elizabeth Suratt Nature Center at Walnut Creek Preserve.
In her presentation, Lynn Padgett talked about the history of gold in Western North Carolina, specifically Rutherfordton, NC and the Bechtler Mint.
Beginning in the 1500s, European explorers searched for gold in the Appalachian Mountains. Not until three centuries later, was gold was finally discovered in North Carolina – not in the mountains, but in the piedmont and the foothills. “Gold Fever” brought thousands of would-be miners and speculators to the foothills, fueling a real estate boom, spurring invention, and transforming the landscape.
The gold frenzy eventually attracted German immigrant Christopher Bechtler to Rutherfordton on his own quest for gold. A jeweler and gunsmith, he had the metalworking skills to establish a private mint, and during the 1820s and 30s, North Carolina was the major source of gold for the U.S. Mint.
The North Carolina Gold Rush is a fascinating, but little known chapter in North Carolina history. Padgett’s presentation will conclude with a screening of the 2012 UNC-TV documentary “Gold Fever and the Bechtler Mint.” (this can be viewed by visiting the PAC website,
Lynn Padgett has been collecting information about the North Carolina foothills gold rush since 2006. She is currently creating exhibits on North Carolina Gold and Christopher Bechtler for the Bechtler House Museum in Rutherfordton. With excerpts from first person accounts, old newspapers, and old maps, she goes beyond chronology and geology to the stories of those who were there. She was featured in the 2012 UNC-TV documentary, “Gold Fever and the Bechtler Mint.”
This program was made possible, in part, by a grant from Delores Lastinger.
PAC is a 501(c)(3) non-profit conservation organization (land trust) founded in 1989 to protect and conserve natural resources with emphasis on the lands and waterways with scenic, ecological, and agricultural significance in the North Pacolet and Green River watersheds (PAC’s mission). PAC works with area landowners to ensure the long-term protection of their property through voluntary conservation easements (agreements) which enable landowners to maintain ownership of their property, preserving precious natural resources (open lands, forests, wildlife habitat, scenic vistas, farmland, stream banks, etc.), and potentially obtain significant federal, state, and local tax benefits. PACs vision is a community living and growing in harmony with our natural resources and or goal is to provide a legacy that will endure and be valued by generations to come. PAC works diligently to provide leadership to encourage conservation and provide education programs emphasizing native species appreciation and responsible land use practices to help -- save the places you love.
Pacolet Area Conservancy
850 North Trade Street
Tryon, NC 28782
(828)859-5060
e-mail: info@pacolet.org
pacolet.org
Walnut Creek Preserve is an equestrian and nature preserve community outside of Lake Lure, North Carolina, offering for sale large tract acreage (10-35 acres) horse farms. WCP is an exceptionally large tract of over 2,100 acres of land whose development has been designed with horseback riding, hiking and nature study in mind. The Preserve's 2,100 acres of forest and pasture land shelter a tremendous variety of indigenous plant life, including several rare and one threatened species, as well as a wealth of wild animal life. To assure their survival, only 25 wooded and equestrian home sites averaging 20 acres each will be offered for sale on the 2,100 acres, and the remaining, over 1,500 acres of wilderness are protected in perpetuity by deeded conservation easement held by the Pacolet Area Conservancy.
Walnut Creek Preserve
(828) 625-1122
walnutcreekpreserve.com
e-mail: RideandHike@bellsouth.net
CAMPUS CONNECTION 03262015
Find out what's happening around the Campus and Community. This show was produced by Isothermal Broadcasting students Adam Buchanan and Ben Worthington.