The winners of Jackson County’s 2026 “I Voted” sticker contest were recognized Tuesday, Sept. 1, during the Jackson County Board of Elections meeting. Naomi Pratt, 7, took first place with a design featuring an eagle and red, white and blue lettering that reads “I VOTED.” “I chose the eagle because there is an eagle at East Laporte,” […]
Music On The Porch Festival this Saturday in Dillsboro
September 2, 2026 by
Story originally published in The Sylva Herald, Sept. 2 edition. The Appalachian Women’s Museum will host its seventh annual Music on the Porch festival from 2 to 8 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 5, at Monteith Farmstead Park in Dillsboro. The annual event celebrates Appalachia’s musical culture. live performances, local food and artisans will bring the community […]
Early voting returns to WCU campus
September 2, 2026 by
Western Carolina University students will have access to an early voting site with the approval of the Health and Human Sciences building as a polling location for the November midterm election. The State Board voted Thursday, Aug. 20, to approve HHS as one of five early voting sites in Jackson County. The Cullowhee Recreation Center […]
School board votes to assess Smoky Mountain High turf field
August 26, 2026 by
Story originally published in The Sylva Herald, Aug. 26 edition The Jackson County Board of Education voted Tuesday, Aug. 25, to bring in an engineering consultant to evaluate the artificial turf at Smoky Mountain High School and determine whether it needs to be replaced. The board voted unanimously to authorize Superintendent Dr. Dana Ayers to negotiate an agreement with Fit […]
State board of elections approves Cullowhee voting plan, bringing back 2 polling locations
August 21, 2026 by
Republished by Deanna Sipe, WLOS The North Carolina State Board of Elections has made its decision on the controversial discussion on where an early voting site should be in Cullowhee. The board unanimously agreed on the majority plan for the Health and Human Services building, while also asking that the Jackson County Board of Elections […]
What the FLOCK?
August 7, 2026 by
A version of this story was published in The Sylva Herald At the Board of Commissioners work session Tuesday night, Jackson County Sheriff Doug Farmer gave a presentation on the JCSO’s use of Flock cameras, aiming to answer residents’ questions and address what he called misconceptions. During the meeting, Farmer discussed what Flock cameras are […]
