Black Mountain's Past
The intertwinined fates of Dr. Elisha Mitchell and william Patton
Wendell Begley
Guest contributor
The Valley Echo
May 24, 2024
All of Us at Hole-In-Rock Ridge on what was William Patton’s Upper North Fork Valley Boundary near Potato Knob on the Black Mountain Range. Photo courtesy of the Wendell Begley Collection
Eight years ago, as we were “Rim Hiking” sections of the historic 1838 Mitchell Trail on the crest of the Black Mountain Range, I was reminded of a twist of fate that included Dr. Elisha Mitchell (1793-1857) and his good friend William Patton (1794-1858). Moreover, how the events of 1857 and 1858 played out on the time-worn Mitchell Trail beneath our feet.
As local history goes, June and July of 2016 marked the 159th and 158th anniversary of Dr. Elisha Mitchell having been laid to rest in two very different graves. The second time (1858) was in a very shallow grave atop Eastern America’s highest peak. As a result of Dr. Mitchell’s tragic death in 1857, when he tried to prove he was the first individual to measure the tall peak, the mountaintop was given his name. Interestingly, Dr. Mitchell’s second burial and the naming of the mountain took place almost one year after he sadly fell to his death at Cat-tail Falls in the upper Cane River Valley. Cat-tail Falls, known today as Mitchell Falls, is 11 miles northeast of downtown Black Mountain and across the vast piece of wilderness that envelopes the Black Mountain Range.
Mitchell Falls, once known as Cat-tail Falls, is where Dr. Elisha Mitchell fell to his death on June 27, 1857, Photo courtesy of the Wendell Begley Collection
There is a little known “weaving of providence” surrounding the deaths and interment of Dr. Elisha Mitchell and William Patton. This quirk of fate is not scripted in the history books but was staged against the backdrop of the 1850s when these two gentlemen were most responsible for publicizing the Black Mountain Range as the East’s Highest Mountain Range and creating the initial wave of excursioners (tourists) that came to the Swannanoa Valley.
Dr. Elisha Mitchell Photo courtesy of the Wendell Begley Collection
William Patton was born in Wilkes County, North Carolina on December 10, 1794. He was the son of Thomas Patton (1751-1815), an Irish immigrant and a member of what would become one of Buncombe County’s most prominent early families. Though a native of North Carolina, William Patton spent most of his life in Charleston, South Carolina. Locally, he was best known for his ownership of 4,740 acres of rugged mountain scenery, which is a portion of today’s Asheville Watershed, and a Lodge—The Mountain House—situated at approximately 5,230 feet near the head of the North Fork Valley. Besides owning several of the Florida Keys, Patton’s most significant accomplishment was building the South’s highest overnight lodging facility (The Mountain House) in 1851. The two-story rock and log structure sat on the crest of a spur ridge (Mountain House Ridge) that jutted off the south end of the Black Mountain Range in the upper North Fork Valley. The Mountain House ruins are located 7.25 miles northeast of downtown Black Mountain. As a personal sidebar, our own Rick Patton and Carol Patton Gardner are direct descendants of William Patton.
The famous inn, known as The Black Mountain House or The Mountain House, could only be reached by foot or horseback and was situated along the trail that would later be called the Mitchell Trail, which initially ended at Mitchell’s Peak, present day Clingman’s Peak. It was on this trail above the Mountain House that Dr. Mitchell, attempting to substantiate his measurement of the East’s tallest peak, was last seen alive on Saturday afternoon, June 27, 1857. As events played out, he tragically fell to his death later that evening after trying to cross a rocky, precipitous waterfall located on Cat-tail Fork Creek. At the time, he was on his way to the neighboring Caney River community to visit a couple of guides (William Wilson and Adoniram Allen) from an earlier trip (summer of 1835) into the Black Mountains. As a personal sidebar, our own Bob Glenn is a direct descendent of Adoniram Allen. I will pen a related story in a future series.
When Dr. Mitchell’s body was discovered 10 days later (July 7, 1857) by Thomas David “Big Tom” Wilson (1823-1908) at the bottom of a remote waterfall, the Yancey County men declared their desire to bury the beloved professor atop the mountain he was believed to have first measured in 1835. On the other hand, the Buncombe men having been led by Frederick T. “Fed” Burnett, Jr. (1800-1886) and Jesse Stepp (1810/11 – 1873), argued the body should be taken back to Asheville for burial. At the request of his family, the professor’s body was taken off the mountain, through the North Fork Valley to Asheville. After a well-attended funeral, Dr. Elisha Mitchell was laid to rest in a small graveyard at First Presbyterian Church in downtown Asheville on July 10, 1857. However, amid local support, almost a year later, Dr. Mitchell’s body was exhumed and reinterred on June 16, 1858, in a very shallow grave atop the summit of today’s Mount Mitchell. As another personal sidebar, Van Burnette and Robert Goodson are direct descendants of “Fed” Burnett and Jesse Stepp, respectively.
David Thomas “Big Tom” Wilson (1823-1908) at Dr. Mitchell’s grave, circa 1900. Photo courtesy of the Wendell Begley Collection
Now, for the irony. It was exactly one year later (June 27, 1858) on the anniversary of Dr. Mitchell’s death that William Patton, the Doctor’s old friend and owner of The Mountain House died unexpectedly at the Warm Springs Hotel near Asheville. Interestingly, since Patton also had strong ties to Asheville’s First Presbyterian Church and since Dr. Mitchell’s body had just been exhumed (June 15, 1858), he (Patton) was buried in the same grave where Dr. Mitchell’s body had rested since July 10, 1857.
Dr. Elisha Mitchell’s grave on the summit of Mount Mitchell, circa late 1910s. Photo courtesy of the Wendell Begley Collection
So, there you have it … Two men joined in life had also been joined in death. Cheers to Our Valley’s Incredible Heritage and History!
Black Mountain Savings Bank
P.O. Box 729 • 200 East State Street • Black Mountain, NC 28711 • 1.828.669.7991
“Established in 1908, We are One of the 47 Oldest FDIC Insured Banks in America” (that’s Out of 4,620 FDIC Insured Banks) …Too, We are the Town’s Oldest Continuing Business and the Only “Community Owned Bank.” We Have Been Taking Savings Deposits and Making “Local Home Loans” for 116 Years”
Copyright: M. Wendell Begley, series 877, VE15, May 24, 2024
