West Jefferson History
The first ownership of the valley that would become West Jefferson
began in 1779 when North Carolina's Governor Richard Caswell granted
three hundred twenty acres to Colonel Ben Cleveland, who battled the
British at King's Mountain.
One hundred twenty years after
Colonel Cleveland's land grant, the West Jefferson Land Company surveyed
the new town and fixed its limits as a square one-half mile north,
south, east and west of the Virginia-Carolina Depot. The North Carolina
General Assembly chartered the Town of West Jefferson in 1915.
West
Jefferson developed around the Virginia-Carolina Railroad depot in the
early 1900s. Before the railroad and the resulting town, a few families
lived in the valley known for its cherry tree orchards. The valley is
located between Mount Jefferson to the east and Paddy Mountain to the
west.
For many decades West Jefferson was served by the
Northwestern Railroad, better known as the "Virginia Creeper". The
railroad was the primary reason for the creation of West Jefferson, as
the town became a major stop on the railway. The railroad carried mostly
freight, which brought West Jefferson's initial commercial growth.
Another prime factor in West Jefferson's early development occurred with
the opening of the First National Bank of West Jefferson in 1915. West
Jefferson's Town Hall occupies the bank's branch office built in 1962.
Article by Visit West Jefferson. To find out more information on West Jefferson visit:
http://visitwestjefferson.org/