About the Author

Author Lynn Hotaling is the editor of the Sylva Herald, Jackson County's oldest newspaper. She moved to the area in 1970 to attend Western Carolina University, where she majored in history. While at the Herald, Hotaling has edited award-winning Sylva Centennial and Jackson County Sesquicentennial special sections. She authors the newspaper's popular "Ruralite Café" column, which is often based on historical topics, and was instrumental in the 2006 launch of the Herald's Jackson County magazine, Across the Mountains.