Brasstown, North Carolina
Brasstown, North Carolina | |
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Unincorporated community | |
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![]() ![]() Brasstown Location within the state of North Carolina | |
Coordinates: 35°02′22″N 83°57′25″W / 35.03944°N 83.95694°WCoordinates: 35°02′22″N 83°57′25″W / 35.03944°N 83.95694°W | |
Country | United States |
State | North Carolina |
County | Clay |
Area | |
• Total | 12.21 sq mi (31.63 km2) |
• Land | 12.17 sq mi (31.52 km2) |
• Water | 0.04 sq mi (0.11 km2) |
Elevation | 1,736 ft (529 m) |
Time zone | UTC-5 (Eastern (EST)) |
• Summer (DST) | UTC-4 (EDT) |
ZIP codes | 28902 |
Area code(s) | 828 |
GNIS feature ID | 1019281 [1] |
Brasstown is an unincorporated community located mostly within Clay County, North Carolina, United States, though roughly one third of Brasstown is within the adjacent Cherokee County.
Historian and sociologist James W. Loewen has identified Brasstown as one of several possible sundown towns in North Carolina.[2]
Etymology[]
The name, "Brasstown," was given to several historic towns in the Cherokee region, including this one. The name resulted from confusion in translating the Cherokee name, "Itse'yĭ" (meaning 'New Green Place' or 'Place of Fresh Green') with "Ûňtsaiyĭ" (meaning "brass").[3]
Annual opossum drop[]
The Opossum Drop was an annual event at Clay's Corner convenience store organized by Clay and Judy Logan.[4] At midnight on New Year's Eve, instead of dropping an object, a plexiglass box containing a living opossum was lowered from the roof of the store.[5] At midnight the animal was lowered to the ground while a small crowd of local residents sometimes shot fireworks.[6]
For many years the New Year's Eve celebration took place under much protest and with due cause. In 2018, the "Possum Drop" moved from Brasstown to Andrews, NC with Clay Logan remaining the organizer. In 2019, Clay's Corner reopened under the management of the Logan Family. The Opossum Drop will not be held again as the young female opossum was caught in a leg hold trap and badly injured. Her leg was broken and had to be amputated. Animal Help Now and The Opossum's Pouch Sanctuary at going to rally to have the 5 day law omitting the opossum from cruelty amended.[7]
Education[]
The John C. Campbell Folk School, dedicated to preserving and encouraging the folk arts of the Appalachian Mountains, is located in Brasstown. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983.[8]
Tri-County Race Track[]
The Tri-County Race Track[9] is a 1/4-mile banked dirt oval race track located in Brasstown.
References[]
- ^ Feature Detail Report for: Brasstown, Geographic Names Information System, 31 Dec 1981, retrieved 26 Jul 2013
- ^ sundown.tougaloo.edu https://sundown.tougaloo.edu/sundowntownsshow.php?state=NC. Retrieved 2021-03-06. Missing or empty
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(help) - ^ NOTE: the area surrounding Brasstown Bald in Georgia was also settled by the Cherokee people. English-speaking settlers to the area derived the word Brasstown from a translation error of the Cherokee word for its village place. Settlers confused the Cherokee locative name, Itse'yĭ" (meaning 'New Green Place' or 'Place of Fresh Green'), with Ûňtsaiyĭ (Brass), and referred to the settlement as Brasstown.
- ^ Clay's Corner - Opossum Capital of the World - Clay & Judy Logan Proprietors http://www.clayscorner.com
- ^ "New Years Eve at Clay's Corner * Brasstown, North Carolina * Opossum Capital of the World". www.clayscorner.com. Retrieved Apr 12, 2019.
- ^ "Clay's Corner * Brasstown, North Carolina * Opossum Capital of the World". www.clayscorner.com. Retrieved Apr 12, 2019.
- ^ [http://ahnow.org/blog/justice-for-millie-petition/ unfilled/BARE URL
- ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
- ^ Tri-County Race Track info missing
External links[]
- NC HomeTownLocator
- "Brasstown", Roadside Thoughts
- Unincorporated communities in Clay County, North Carolina
- Unincorporated communities in North Carolina
- Unincorporated communities in Cherokee County, North Carolina