THE first preachers having charge of churches in Asheville were: For the Presbyterians, George Newton mentioned above; for the Methodists, the first circuit rider of "Swanino Circuit" was Samuel Edney in 1792-1793, while Samuel Lowe was its presiding elder; and the first station preacher at Asheville was J. S. Burnett (in 1848); for the Episcopalians, the first preacher was Jarvis Buxton; for the Baptists, the first regular preacher was Thomas Stradlev, an Englishman who came to America and lived on Beaver-dam in Buncombe County. The first Episcopalian in Buncombe County was Mrs. William Coleman (born Miss Evelina Baird). Dr. Jarvis Buxton was born February 27, 1820, near Washington, North Carolina; came to Asheville in 1846, where he established the first Episcopal Church; and died March 11, 1902.

The first physician in Asheville seems to have been R. B. Vance, who became a member of Congress from the district and was killed in a duel by S. P. Carson; and the first drug store was built and opened in 1850 and thence conducted by P. C. Lester, a physician, on the western side of South Main Street, in a frame building where is now Milliard Hall, and in the second story of which was Asheville's first photograph gallery kept by an itinerant photographer about 1866.

Apparently the first hotel in the place was that of Colonel James M. Alexander on South Main Street in what became the Hilliard Residence that occupied a site now within the street. Opposite that house and just south of the "Henrietta" was a hitching lot where horseback riders from the country visiting the town hitched their horses; but later the hitching lot was on the western side of Haywood Street opposite the present Citizen Building; and later still every merchant had his own hitching lot. The next hotel was the Eagle Hotel on the eastern side of South Main Street between the present streets called Eagle and Sycamore. It was kept by James Patton. Then, at an early day, came the Buck Hotel on the site of the present Langren and kept by James M. Smith. Next came the brick house at the southwestern corner of North Main and Cherry streets kept by

[In Picture] - Top—Bank Hotel looking north, site of T. C. Smith Drug Store Bottom—North Public Square, Buck Hotel, left background—1888

Israel Baird and later the Brand residence. The Carolina House, built by John Reynolds on the western side of North Main Street a little the south of Woodfin Street, was next. The Battery Park Hotel was built by Frank Coxe and opened in the summer of 1886 to visitors. It occupied the site of the old Battery Porter, so called from a Confederate battery stationed there; and when the hotel was built the name was change to "Battery Park." For many years, extending back to the time of its origin, Asheville had been visited by many strangers in the summer months of every year; but about the time this hotel was first opened, the town began to be an all-the-year resort for the pleasure-seekers and tourists. In the year 1912 on July 4th, the Langren Hotel, occupying the site of the old Buck Hotel, began business, chiefly patronized by commercial travel. Then in the summer of 1913 Grove Park Inn first threw open its door for public entertainment.

Before the war on the South the advantages offered by Asheville climate for the treatment of persons afflicted with consumption had been well known. In 1871 two physicians of the name of Gatchell established a sanatarium at Forest Hill then just without Asheville's corporate limits. After some while this enterprise was abandoned but later revived by one of them at the northeastern corner of Haywood and College Streets. In 1876 a physician named Gleitzman began to conduct in the old Carolina House on North Main Street a sanatorium for tubercular patients and continued it for some years.

During the war there had been a Confederate hospital where the Central Bank is now. After that Asheville had no hospital until 1892 when the Mission Hospital was built on Charlotte and Woodfin streets, after the Supreme Court of the State had declared void an ordinance of the city under which the city authorities attempted to prevent its erection. (See State vs. J. A. Tenant, 110 N. C. 609.)

Before 1884 Asheville had no waterworks. The need of its inhabitants for water was met by wells and springs. A public well stood about thirty feet north of the present Central Bank and another one was on the other side of the Public Square about seventy-five feet north from the former. Many homes had private wells and a few had springs. Many of the physical features of Asheville had changed since it became a town. Some of these physical features of the place are no longer recognizable, even to people yet living who had known it years

[In Picture]- Asheville, 1883—Eastern side of French Broad River near (earlier) site of Smith's Bridge

ago. The streams have ceased to rise and flow where they once rose and flowed. On the west side of Water Street immediately south of Walnut Street once stood a famous spring called for in the old deeds, hut now not to be found. Below it, on both sides of the stre'et, springs have disappeared in the last half of a century. Even subsequent to the late war, horses have been seen to mire up to the body in the blue mud of Water Street (Lexington Avenue) just south of Woodfin Street. Almost the same state of affairs has existed, and the same changes taken place in Central Avenue since 1865, when it was a narrow lane ending at a private residence now opposite the entrance of Orange Street. I was informed by the late Mr. R. B. Justice, that at the time of his first visit to Asheville in 1846, a spring of good water, much used, existed on the spot where now stands the postoffice or Federal Building. Until within the last two years there stood on the northern border of South Beaumont Street about fifty yards west from its junction with College Street a large old chestnut tree in which the late Colonel E. H. Cunningham used to relate that he had seen killed at one time three black bears, an old one and her two young.

At a time not long antecedent to the war, some gentlemen had conceived the idea of having a waterworks for the town and, under the supervision of the late Hosea Lindsey, had excavated, at the present site of the "Old Reservoir," a place in the mountains -near where College Street begins to ascend and had dug a trench for pipes from it some distance in the direction of the town's centre; but the project had been abandoned. About 1884 the City, at the suggestion of the late Captain Thomas W. Patton, completed that reservoir and pipe line bringing into them the water collected from the branches running west out of the mountain for a distance of about a mile to the north. Then in 1886 the City constructed a pumping station on Swannanoa River at the place where the road to Oteen leaves the river, now called the "Old Waterworks," but formerly the site of the late Montraville Patton's grist mill. This water supply was pumped across Beaucatcher Gap into the "Old Reservoir" and later also into the metal standpipe on College Street and the old supply of water from the branches was abandoned. Then, in 1902-1903, the city built a gravity line by which water from "the intake" on the North Fork of Swannanoa River was

[In Picture] - Asheville—Patton Avenue—Public Square looking west—About 1885

carried in, pipes from its superior altitude, across Beaucatcher Gap, into the "Old Reservoir" and this standpipe. The filter station on the southern side of College Street was built in 1890. In 1907 the City constructed the "New Reservoir" near the standpipe on the eastern side of College Street a little to the north of Beaucatcher Gap. Then in 1920 was added to the existing source of water supply another "gravity line" by which water from Bee Tree Creek is carried over Beaucatcher Gap into the same reservoirs.

As long as Asheville had no waterworks it had, of course, no fire department or sewer lines. When a fire occurred crowds assembled and organized an extemporary "bucket brigade." A Hook and Ladder Company was organized as early as 1882 to assist at fires. But when waterworks had been established, voluntary "hook and ladder" and "hose-reel" companies were formed, the first in 1884; and, since the reservoirs were higher than the part of the City then built up, no fire-engine was needed or has been used. Sewers came in 1888.

Asheville's altitude above sea-level is 2,200 feet according to some or 2,250 feet according to Guyot, at the Public Square. Most of the City is built on hills elevated far above the French Broad and Swannanoa rivers, while parts of the City are much lower than these. For many years there had occurred, at very rare intervals, floods of considerable size in these streams; but no one apprehended danger to any part of the place from such a source. It is said that there had been a heavy freshet in April, 1791 and another in May, 1845. On August 28-30, 1852, a freshet had done considerable damage in the valleys of these rivers and washed away on the French Broad the bridge at Captain Wiley Jones's near the mouth of Hominy Creek, Smith's Bridge at Asheville, Gannon's Bridge at what is now Craggy, Alexander's Bridge at French Broad (now Alexander) and Chunn's Bridge and the Warm Springs Bridge in. Madison County, and on the Swannanoa Patton's Bridge about half a mile above the mouth of that stream. It has been said that in about 1810 or 1811 there had been a famous freshet in the Swannanoa River, but the injury from it was not great; but this is probably an exaggerated statement. Then in June, 1876, a freshet in both rivers had done much damage, especially in the valley of the French Broad. But on July 16, 1916, occurred a flood in both

rivers which exceeded any of these and caused ravages parts ofare yet to be seen. The streets of Biltmore and the lower parts of .ville were flooded to considerable depths until in both places men were drowned inthem, while much property and manybridges disappeared or were ruined or greatly injured.

Patton Avenue is Asheville's principal business street. The part of it from the Public Square to the Federal Building, with much narrower width, was part of the old Haywood Road. Beyond that part to the west until it comes to Haywood Street about three-quarters of a miles from the Public Square had been opened, under the name of Patton Street, as a rough country road through the woods before the war, but the large fills where three hollows were crossed had washed out in great part, and it was rare that wagons attempted to pass over it by driving around the fills. In 1876 this part of the street was rebuilt and widened under the supervision of E. Clayton.

Ephraim Clayton was born in that part of Buncombe County which is now Transylvania County, on Davidson River, in 1805. In early life he became a contractor for building houses and in that business built probably more houses in North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia than any other two men. Among the buildings erected by him were Wofford College at Spartanburg, South Carolina, and the Buncombe Courthouse which was burned in 1865 and the present

Newton Academy and (in 1840) the house in Asheville which gave place to the Drhumor Building and the houses of the Everett (formerly Ward and then Lowndes) Place on French Broad River in Transylvania County. His home for the greater part of his life was in Asheville on what is now the eastern side of Spruce Street opposite the eastern end of Walnut Street. He brought to Asheville the first planing machine ever in Western North Carolina. During the war on the South he headed a company which manufactured in that town guns of the Enfield rifle type for the use of Confederate soldiers with which to protect their country from an invading foe. One of those guns is now owned by the writer. These guns were made at Colonel Clayton's shop adjoining his home on the north, where is now the residence of Doctor R. H. Reeves, and the company which made them was composed of Ephraim Clayton, R. W. Pulliam and G. W. Whitson. The guns, however, could not be made satisfactory at first for want of proper machinery, but later were by improved machinery superior rifles, the best in the Confederate army. Iron for their manufacture was obtained at Cranberry. After the war Colonel Clayton went into railroad contracting. A large contract on the Spartanburg and Asheville Railroad was worked out by him; and, when, by the failure of the railroad company, he lost all that was due to him for this work his property was greatly reduced. He died at his home near Asheville on the western side of French Broad River on August 9, 1892, the day before that on which Buncombe County's centennial was celebrated at the northeastern corner of Flint and Magnolia streets and with various displays and ceremonies throughout the City.

[In Picutre] -Asheville, 1866—Right centre, Roberts House—Stable above, site of Elks Building on Haywood Street—Walnut Street between—House above that stable, site of Haywood Building—Lower left corner, stable on Lexington Avenue—Penland Street now crosses centre from left to right