One-Hundred-Fifty, Two-Hundred-Fifty …

The Bailey Mountain Cloggers.

The Bailey Mountain Cloggers.

With a name like Transylvania County, you know the backstory has to be good. The county and its beginnings are all tied up with the history of the short-lived Transylvania Colony, an “extra-legal” enterprise that once also incorporated parts of Tennessee and Kentucky.

But that doesn’t explain where “Transylvania” comes from, exactly, so it’s fun to imagine this still mysteriously beautiful area – encompassing prime municipality Brevard, 250 waterfalls, the 500,000-acre Pisgah National Forest, and 10,000-acre DuPont State Recreation Forest – was named for its ancient rock formations (including natural water slide Sliding Rock), dense canopy of trees, and mountainous terrain, a la Romania.

Dracula wasn’t filmed here, but another horror-ish movie was: The Hunger Games’ first installment, to be exact. The dystopian thriller’s fight-to-the-death scenes were set at various places within DuPont, including at the base of Hooker Falls.

But that’s recent history. Founders Day Fair – at the Transylvania Heritage Museum (189 W. Main St., Brevard) on Saturday, September 5 – has 150 years of pioneer life to cover. Organizers will offer food, crafts, dance, music, a walking tour, and a Civil War encampment. Phil Hullar, who has searched historic sites for years, will display things he found in Transylvania County sites with his metal detector, including Civil War relics. And the much-celebrated Bailey Mountain Cloggers, newly returned from winning their 21st National Championship Title, will assure a thundering good time. 10am-3pm.

www.transylvaniaheritage.org,

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