Native American tribes, including Cherokee, Creek, and Shawano, passed through Asheville and Western North Carolina, building towns and villages along the banks of the Swannanoa and French Broad Rivers for more than 1,000 years. The first white settlers arrived in the Swannanoa Valley in October of 1784. After the Civil War, Asheville became a haven for the wealthy elite of Charleston and Philadelphia; as the resort era blossomed, so too did Asheville. Second only to Miami in its treasure trove of Art Deco landmarks, Asheville is an architectural and historical time capsule of national significance. It is a community with a rich heritage and history in the arts, including textiles, pottery, and modernist art. Today Asheville is at a crossroads; attempting to balance the environmental and natural attractions of the area with commercial development is and will be one of Asheville's greatest challenges.

Historic Oakwood and Lincoln Park is a book about families, and about neighbors. It offers joy and memories, sadness, sacrifice, loss, achievement, and prominence. It is a testament not only to the resilience of people who have lived here for almost 200 years, it is also a testament to the strength of Oakwood-Lincoln Park, a modern-day, urban, working class neighborhood in Knoxville, Tennessee that has seen good times and bad times. Through this book, the people of Oakwood-Lincoln Park will again know a more complete and storied history of their community and be able to use this knowledge to strengthen the bonds of neighborhood and influence new generations of families who will continue to find a well-planned community, with tree-lined sidewalks, historic Victorian and bungalow homes with sweeping front porches and gracious parlors. In it, you will learn about such characters as the pre-Civil War George Wellington Churchwell, his wife Sophia Moody Park Churchwell and George's son, Congressman William Montgomery Churchwell; Washington L. Ledgerwood, Speaker of the Tenneseee House from Oakwood; industrialists and business leaders like Clay Brown Atkin and his wife Mary Burwell Atkin, who developed Oakwood; Daniel Dewine, who sought a new hospital for his sick daughter; heroes like Mick Weisner, the son of a fireman with the Southern Railway from Burwell Avenue who would become Admiral Maurice Weisner, Commander of the U.S. Pacific Command and Vice Chief of U.S. Naval Operations; Lieutenant Morris Epps, shot down over Germany during WWII, of the support he received from Emerald Avenue Methodist Church, and of the support his family now gives back to the Emerald Youth Foundation; and Anderson Henderson Stephens, a humble postal clerk who previously taught school to famed lawyer Ray Jenkins and future Senator Estes Kefauver, just to name a few. This book has long been the dream of Paul and Norma Kelley. For over 10 years, Paul and Norma carefully researched the area at the Knox County Library's McClung Historical Collection, and author Doug McDaniel is pleased to help them finish the project. A noted writer and educator himself, Dr. Kelley previously wrote Education, chapter five of the book Heart of the Valley: A History of Knoxville, Tennessee (1976) by the East Tennessee Historical Society, edited by Lucile Deaderick. The Kelleys wanted very much to get the Oakwood-Lincoln Park book finished for the benefit of many residents and former residents of the area. Because of their tireless efforts, it is a privilege to dedicate this book to them in honor of their many years of service to Oakwood-Lincoln Park and to the greater Knoxville community. Author Doug McDaniel, his wife Faith Andes McDaniel, and their 12-year-old son Jacob live at Marble Hill, their historic home on East Glenwood Avenue. This is Doug's third book, and Jacob's first. Park City Press is a Knoxville publisher of local history and genealogy. For more information, visit www.parkcitypress.biz.