Saving the place he loves
Tuesday, June 29, 2010

Lifelong affection for Parkway landscape drives gift

Joe Arrington has loved the mountains of Haywood County since he was a boy.

Joe Arrington on Richland Creek Headwaters property

The Arrington family bought 188 acres of mountain land in 1936. About 170 miles to the northeast, construction had begun the previous year - Sept. 11, 1935 - on a scenic highway that would eventually leave its mark on the Arringtons' land and Joe's heart: the Blue Ridge Parkway.

Joe Arrington recently completed the combined donation and sale of 110 acres of his family's land to the Conservation Trust for North Carolina, which will convey the property to the National Park Service - hopefully in time for the Parkway's 75th anniversary celebration this fall.

Arrington sold 64 acres to CTNC in April and donated another 46 acres in June. The Parkway already had taken a bite out of the family's holdings; in the late 1950s, 30 acres were condemned and taken for the original construction and now house the Pinnacle Ridge Tunnel.

Arrington’s father and grandfather bought their land in 1936 for $4 per acre - a risk in the midst of the Great Depression. Arrington’s father built a house, and the property boasted a small apple orchard, a few acres of pastureland and a wealth of forests for youngsters to enjoy. Joe Arrington lived on the farm for the first 13 years of his life, spending ample time outdoors hiking and fishing.

At the news that a highway was going to be built in his backyard, the young Arrington was disbelieving.“We could barely get a vehicle up on the road we had,” Arrington says now. “I was amazed they were going to get a highway on a mountain like that.”

As construction continued through Arrington’s late teens and young adult life, he enjoyed exploring the partially finished road and surrounding woods with friends on horseback.

Later, younger Arringtons enjoyed the mountain land as well. After marrying in 1963, Arrington and his wife would frequently bring their children to one of their favorite spots during the summer. At one of the highest points on the Parkway, the Arringtons would rest beneath the evergreens by a cool stream. 

“My son had a snorkel toy and would stick his face in the stream. He’d tell us he saw sharks. Only a three year old can see sharks in a stream,” Arrington jokes. 

When asked why he decided to sell his land for conservation instead of commercial development, Arrington said it was so it would always be protected, particularly the Waynesville Overlook. “The Waynesville Overlook is one of the most beautiful overlooks near Balsam Gap. You look at the whole hillside and [if the land had been sold to developers,] it would probably be covered with houses.”

Though it wasn't intentional, Arrington appreciates the "nice coincidence" of completing the land deal with CTNC so soon before the Parkway's 75th anniversary. And he knows that the happy memories his family created here will now be shared by generations of visitors.

“Even the locals appreciate it and enjoy the place where you get away from the hustle and bustle and enjoy the cool mountain air," he says. “It isn’t something you see once and say, ‘Been there, done that.' We still enjoy it regularly."