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John C. Campbell Folk School

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Coordinates: 35°02′14″N 83°57′52″W / 35.0372°N 83.9645°W / 35.0372; -83.9645
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John C. Campbell Folk School Historic District
John C. Campbell Folk School is located in North Carolina
John C. Campbell Folk School
John C. Campbell Folk School is located in the United States
John C. Campbell Folk School
LocationOff U.S. Route 64, Brasstown, North Carolina
Coordinates35°02′14″N 83°57′52″W / 35.0372°N 83.9645°W / 35.0372; -83.9645
Area300 acres (120 ha)
Built1925
ArchitectMultiple
NRHP reference No.83001839[1]
Added to NRHPAugust 22, 1983

The John C. Campbell Folk School, also referred to as "The Folk School", is located in Brasstown, North Carolina. It is the oldest and largest folk school in the United States.[2][3] It is a non-profit adult educational organization based on non-competitive learning. The Folk School offers classes year-round in over fifty subject areas including art, craft, music, dance, and nature studies. Established in 1925, the Folk School's motto is "I sing behind the plow".[4]

A contra dance at the Folk School

It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places as a national historic district in 1983.[1] The district encompasses 19 contributing buildings. Notable buildings include the Farm House (pre-1925), Keith House (1926–1928), Log House Museum (19th century, 1926), Mill House (1928), (Former) Milking Barn (now Clay Spencer Blacksmith Shop, c. 1930), Hay Barn (1931), Tower House (1933), Rock House (c. 1932), and Hill House (c. 1932).[5]

The Folk School has more than 850 week-long and weekend classes year-round in traditional and contemporary arts, including blacksmithing, music, dance, cooking, gardening, nature studies, photography, storytelling, and writing.[6][7] The 300-acre campus includes a history museum, craft shop, nature trails, lodging, campground, and cafeteria.[8] The school also holds more than 300 performance events annually, including a regular concert series and community dances.[6] The Folk School engages the community through a variety of dance teams including Rapper Magic Sword, StiX in the Mud Border Morris, Dame's Rocket Northwest Clog, Rural Felicity Garland, and the JCCFS Cloggers. The Folk School is considered to have one of the most prestigious folk dance programs in the United States.[9]

The Folk School hosts more than 6,000 adult students and 100,000 visitors per year.[10] As of 2017, the school's endowment was $4.4 million and its annual operating budget was $7 million.[11]

History of the Folk School

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Formation

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After spending eighteen months traveling between Denmark, Norway, Sweden, and Finland, visiting local schools along the way, Olive Dame Campbell and her colleague Marguerite Butler, began forming the John C. Campbell Folk School in 1925 in Brasstown, North Carolina, along the Cherokee County and Clay line.[12] This folk high school, or folkehøjskole, was dedicated to her late husband John C. Campbell, and was based on the Danish Folk School style of non competitive education, where no grades were given. Instead, students and teachers formed a community that worked together to help each other advance in various crafts such as blacksmithing. It was originally founded with an emphasis on agriculture and "the doing of life's work."

John C. Campbell, (1867–1919) was an American educator and reformer noted for his survey of social conditions in the southern Appalachia. He was born in Indiana and raised in Wisconsin; he studied education and theology in New England.

At the turn of the century, the Southern Appalachian region of the United States was viewed as being in need of educational and social missions. Recently married to Olive Dame of Massachusetts, John undertook a fact-finding survey of social conditions in the mountains in 1908–1909. The Campbells outfitted a wagon as a traveling home and studied mountain life from Georgia to West Virginia.

While John interviewed farmers about their agricultural practices, Olive collected Appalachian ballads and studied the handicrafts of the mountain people. Both were hopeful that the quality of life could be improved by education, and in turn, wanted to preserve and share with the rest of the world the crafts, techniques and tools that the people of the area used in everyday life.

The Folkehøjskole had long been a force in the rural life of Denmark. These schools for life helped transform the Danish countryside into a vibrant, creative force. The Campbells talked of establishing such a school in the rural southern United States as an alternative to the higher-education facilities that drew young people away from the family farm.

Davidson Hall at the Folk School

Several locations were under consideration for the experimental school. On an exploratory trip, Miss Butler discussed the idea with Fred O. Scroggs, Brasstown's local storekeeper, saying that she would be back in a few weeks to determine if area residents had any interest in the idea. When she returned, it was to a meeting of over 200 people at the local church. The people of far west North Carolina enthusiastically pledged labor, land, building materials and other support.[13]

Growth, events, and campus development

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The school was initially geared to students aged 17 to 35 who would study for a year or two at a time. The campus included men's and women's dormitories, a dairy barn, poultry houses, and a saving and loan association.[14] Early classes included gymnastics, public health, history, geography, literature, and folk dancing.[15] The Brasstown Carvers formed at the Folk School in 1929.[16] A wood-carved mule from the Folk School stood on President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s Oval Office desk in the 1930s.[17][18] The Folk School also operated a creamery in the 1930s. It was equipped to churn 6,000 pounds of butter a week, one-third of which was sold to businesses in Atlanta.[17] The creamery produced ice cream and whole milk as well.[19]

As late as 1934 the Folk School and Brasstown operated in its own time zone. At that time Cherokee County operated on Central time and Clay County ran on Eastern time. Due to frequent gatherings at the Folk School, Brasstown clocks were set half-way in-between to avoid confusion. When it was 1 p.m. in Murphy and 2 p.m. in Hayesville, it was 1:30 p.m. in Brasstown.[17]

Since 1937, the Folk School has also hosted an annual summer arts program for youth called Little Middle.[15] In the early 1940s, the Folk School became one of the first places in the area to receive electricity following the construction of Hiwassee Dam.[20] A dramatic reading of A Christmas Carol has been performed on campus each December since 1949.[21][22] In 1973, the Brasstown Concert Association was founded, hosting its performances at the Folk School's Keith House.[23]

The Fall Festival is the Folk School's largest annual event, attracting thousands of people to the campus for crafts, food, and folk demonstrations. The festival has been held every year since 1974, except for 2020 and 2021 during the COVID-19 pandemic.[24] The Folk School has hosted its annual Winter Dance Week between Christmas and New Year's Day since 1979.[25] When the Francis Whitaker Blacksmith Shop opened in 1980, it was the largest teaching blacksmith shop in the United States.[20] During the 1980s, the Folk School had its own theatre guild performing plays on campus.[26] The Brasstown Follies, a community variety show, has been produced on campus every December since at least the early 1990s, hosted by Carl Dreher.[27]

During the tenure of the Folk School's longest-serving director, Jan Davidson, the school changed to a year-round schedule, annual enrollment soared from 2,500 to 6,000 students, and the number of classes offered each year surged from 150 to more than 850. Seven new studios for blacksmithing, cooking, book and paper arts, painting, woodturning, spinning, and music, were constructed during his tenure, along with new student housing. Davidson established the history center and led efforts to restore four historic campus buildings. He also established the institution's endowment.[28] Jan's wife, Nanette, founded the Folk School's cooking program.[29]

In 2003, the Folk School started its Junior Appalachian Musician program, teaching local students how to play folk music throughout the year.[20] Little Brasstown Creek Park opened on the Folk School campus in 2006 next to Brasstown Creek. The park includes multiple nature trails, the Rivercane Walk, and Cherokee history and artwork exhibits.[20][30] The Folk School launched its annual Friends & Family Day in 2022 for the community to tour studios and see demonstrations.[31] In early 2022 the Folk School opened Olive's Porch, a studio space and retail shop, in downtown Murphy.[32]

Class types offered

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Craft classes include: Basketry; Carpentry; Glass beadmaking; Blacksmithing; Bookbinding; Broom Making; Dollmaking; Dyeing; Felt Making; Furniture Making; Lace; Leather; Metalwork; Needlework; Quilting; Rugs; Sewing; Soap Making; Spinning; Weaving; Woodturning; and Woodworking[citation needed]

Art classes include: Calligraphy; Clay; Drawing; Enameling; Glass; Jewelry; Kaleidoscopes; Knitting; Marbling; Mosaics; Painting; Paper Arts; Photography; Printmaking; Sculpture; and Woodcarving.[citation needed]

Other types of classes include: Baking; Cooking; Dance; Folklore; Gardening; Music; Nature Studies; Storytelling; and Writing.[33]

Accolades

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The Folk School was named one of “100 Best Vacations to Enrich Your Life” by National Geographic magazine in 2007 and named “Best of the Road” by Rand McNally Atlas in 2005.[10]

Campus buildings

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Note: Dates of construction given when known

  • Book & Paper Arts Studio (2019)
    Book & Paper Arts Studio (2019)
  • Field House (2008)
    Field House (2008)
  • Willard Baxter Woodturning Studio (2006)
    Willard Baxter Woodturning Studio (2006)
  • Painting Studio (2005)
    Painting Studio (2005)
  • Davidson Hall (1999)
    Davidson Hall (1999)
  • Olive D Campbell Dining Hall and Craft Shop (1992)
    Olive D Campbell Dining Hall and Craft Shop (1992)
  • Log House (1988)
    Log House (1988)
  • Pitman Fiber Arts Building (1983)
    Pitman Fiber Arts Building (1983)
  • Little Rock (1981)
    Little Rock (1981)
  • Hubbell House (1972, renovated 2007)
    Hubbell House (1972, renovated 2007)
  • Festival Barn (1971)
    Festival Barn (1971)
  • D. X. Ross jewelry & Metals Studio (1970, expanded 2011)
    D. X. Ross jewelry & Metals Studio (1970, expanded 2011)
  • Clay and Enameling Studio (Bef. 1969)
    Clay and Enameling Studio (Bef. 1969)
  • Orchard House (1954)
    Orchard House (1954)
  • Open House (1947)
    Open House (1947)
  • Ironwood Forge (1933–1946)
    Ironwood Forge (1933–1946)
  • Woodworking Studio (1945, expanded 1997)
    Woodworking Studio (1945, expanded 1997)
  • Rock House (C. 1932, remodeled in 1990s)
    Rock House (C. 1932, remodeled in 1990s)
  • Hill House (C. 1932, renovated 2011)
    Hill House (C. 1932, renovated 2011)
  • Woodcarving Studio (1932)
    Woodcarving Studio (1932)
  • Big Barn (1931)
    Big Barn (1931)
  • Francis Whitaker Blacksmith Shop (1930, expanded 2010)
    Francis Whitaker Blacksmith Shop (1930, expanded 2010)
  • Mill House (1928)
    Mill House (1928)
  • Keith House (1927, expanded 1929)
    Keith House (1927, expanded 1929)
  • Farm House (Bef.1925, renovated 2002)
    Farm House (Bef.1925, renovated 2002)

Other buildings

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  • Maintenance Building (2004)
  • Bidstrup House (1982)
  • Little House (1981)
  • Campground (1970s)
  • Log Barn (1970)
  • The Cottage (1960s)
  • History Center (1939, renovated 2018)
  • Log Cabin Museum (1897, reconstructed 1926)

Directors

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  1. Olive Dame Campbell (1925–1946)
  2. Dagnall Folger (1946–1950)
  3. Howard Kester (1950–1951)
  4. George Bidstrup (1952–1967)
  5. John Ramsey (1967–1973)
  6. Wayne Kniffen (1973–1974)
  7. Gus and Maggie Masters (1974–1976)
  8. Esther Manchester (1976–1980)
  9. Bob Fink (1980–1985)
  10. Bob Grove (Interim) (1985)
  11. Ron Hill (1985–1991)
  12. Perry Kelley (Interim) (1991–1992)
  13. Jan Davidson (1992–2017)
  14. Phil Mattox (Interim) (2017)
  15. Jerry Jackson (2017–2023)
  16. Bethany Chaney (2023–present)[34]

Notable alumni and educators

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See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
  2. ^ Eiben, Vicky (2015). "A brief history of folk schools". Folk Education Association of America. Folk School Alliance. The John C. Campbell Folk School founded in 1925 in Brasstown, North Carolina is the largest folk school in the U.S. today.
  3. ^ "region: Brasstown, Hayesville". Great Smoky Mountains North Carolina. Nation's oldest folk school founded in 1925.
  4. ^ Fariello, M. Anna. "Making History: John C. Campbell Folk School". Craft Revival: Shaping Western North Carolina Past and Present. Western Carolina University. Retrieved January 11, 2023.
  5. ^ Michael Tesh Southern (September 1982). "John C. Campbell Folk School Historic District" (pdf). National Register of Historic Places - Nomination and Inventory. North Carolina State Historic Preservation Office. Retrieved August 1, 2014.
  6. ^ a b Gresham, E. Lane (March 26, 2025). "Folk School's 100th anniversary campaign". Cherokee Scout. Murphy, NC: Community Newspapers Inc. p. 4A.
  7. ^ "25 Inspiring Folk Schools Rooted in Community and Traditional Know-How". Best Choice Schools. The more than 860 weekend and weeklong class offerings cover 48 subject areas.
  8. ^ "John C. Campbell Folk School, Brasstown NC". Project 543. VisitNC.com. The school's 300-acre campus straddles Cherokee County and Clay County and includes a history center that includes visual art, fine and folk craft, music, historic film footage and photographs.
  9. ^ Benton, Hayley (December 15, 2016). "After 25 years, director of Campbell Folk School retires". Asheville Citizen-Times. Gannett. Retrieved April 18, 2025.
  10. ^ a b "Craft Today: John C. Campbell Folk School". Craft Revival: Shaping Western North Carolina Past and Present. Western Carolina University. 2007. Retrieved July 31, 2023.
  11. ^ "Leadership Profile – John C. Campbell Folk School" (PDF). ArtsNC.org. February 2017. Retrieved April 18, 2025.
  12. ^ [1] Archived July 5, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
  13. ^ "JCCFS Our History". Folkschool.org. Retrieved January 11, 2023.
  14. ^ Nichols, Mary (2017). "John C. Campbell Folk School". Clay County Heritage, North Carolina, Vol. II. Clay County Heritage Book Committee. p. 12.
  15. ^ a b c "Early years of the Folk School". John C. Campbell Folk School 2025 classes. Brasstown, North Carolina: John C. Campbell Folk School. 2025. pp. 12–13.
  16. ^ "Brasstown Carvers – Blue Ridge National Heritage Area". www.blueridgeheritage.com. Retrieved May 5, 2024.
  17. ^ a b c Robertson, Jr., A.T. (September 27, 1934). "TVA Co-operating In Brasstown Program" (PDF). The Cherokee Scout. Murphy, N.C. pp. 8–9.
  18. ^ "Making History: Brasstown Carvers". CRAFT REVIVAL: Shaping Western North Carolina Past and Present. Western Carolina University library. Retrieved October 31, 2023.
  19. ^ Padgett, Guy (1976). A History of Clay County, North Carolina. Clay County Bicentennial Committee.
  20. ^ a b c d "Centennial Celebration". FolkSchool.org. Retrieved April 6, 2025.
  21. ^ "Robert Lynn Gault". WorthPoint. Retrieved November 26, 2024.
  22. ^ Ramsay, John (December 1966). "A letter from John C. Campbell Folk School Director John Ramsay". John C. Campbell Folk School Fain Archives.
  23. ^ "About Brasstown Concert Association". Brasstown Concert Association social media page. Retrieved April 1, 2025.
  24. ^ Grand, Robert (September 6, 2023). "Folk School Fall Festival returning to Brasstown". Cherokee Scout. Murphy, N.C.: Community Newspapers, Inc.
  25. ^ Sibley, Julie (June 2, 2011). "Many Fine Tunes: A Brief History Of Dancing At The Folk School". FolkSchool.org. Retrieved January 22, 2025.
  26. ^ "Community Theater Try-Outs Tonight". Clay County Progress. Hayesville, NC. 1986.
  27. ^ Crittenden, Charlotte (December 15, 2014). "Inteview [sic] with Carl Dreher on Music, Dance, and Brasstown". FolkSchool.org. Retrieved January 22, 2025.
  28. ^ "Jan Davidson Announces Retirement from John C. Campbell Folk School". Blue Ridge Heritage. January 17, 2017. Retrieved April 18, 2025.
  29. ^ Foster, Randy (October 30, 2024). "Downtown Murphy loses part of history". Cherokee Scout. Murphy, NC: Community Newspapers Inc. pp. 1A, 8A. Retrieved April 18, 2025.
  30. ^ Simpson, Nancy (April 1, 2011). "Rivercane Walk at the John C. Campbell Folk School". Living Above the Frost Line. Retrieved March 23, 2025.
  31. ^ Slucher, Morgan (May 1, 2024). "Friends & Family Day Saturday at John C. Campbell Folk School". Cherokee Scout. Murphy, NC: Community Newspapers Inc. p. 9B.
  32. ^ Wilder, Kristin (January 6, 2022). "Olive's Porch Now Open". John C. Campbell Folk School. Retrieved December 10, 2024.
  33. ^ "Find A Class". folkschool.org.
  34. ^ Keely, Harrison (April 5, 2023). "History Center". Google Maps.
  35. ^ "If You Want To Sing Out, Sing Out With Aubrey Atwater". FolkSchool.org. John C. Campbell Folk School. July 2, 2013.
  36. ^ Foster, Sarah (November 7, 2023). "Area blacksmith takes televised 'Forged' contest". Cherokee Scout. Murphy, N.C.: Community Newspapers, Inc. p. A1.
  37. ^ "About Lessonface". Lessonface. Retrieved July 18, 2024.
  38. ^ "Loyal Edward Jones". Asheville Area Alternative Funeral & Cremation Services. 2023. Retrieved January 26, 2025.
  39. ^ Levenson, Dan (2016). Beyond the Waterfall: Extraordinary Tunes for Fiddle and Clawhammer Banjo. Mel Bay Publications. ISBN 978-1619115903. Retrieved April 16, 2024.
  40. ^ Needleman, Deborah (March 22, 2018). "Lessons in the Humble Art of Broom-Making". New York Times.
  41. ^ "Goodbye David Rakoff". FolkSchool.org. John C. Campbell Folk School. August 10, 2012.
  42. ^ "Remembering Jean Ritchie". FolkSchool.org. John C. Campbell Folk School. June 9, 2015.
  43. ^ "Class Registration". FolkSchool.org. Retrieved December 14, 2024.
  44. ^ Martin, Douglas (October 31, 1999). "Francis Whitaker, Blacksmith, Dies at 92". New York Times.
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