The Wilson Creek area is located in the Grandfather District of the

Pisgah National Forest Pisgah National Forest is a National Forest in the Appalachian Mountains of western North Carolina. It is administered by the United States Forest Service, part of the United States Department of Agriculture. The Pisgah National Forest is complet ...

, in the northwestern section of

Caldwell County, North Carolina Caldwell County is a county in the U.S. state of North Carolina. It is located in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains. As of the 2020 census, the population was 80,652. Its county seat is Lenoir. Caldwell County is part of the Hickory–L ...

. Wilson Creek has a water system that originates near Calloway Peak and stretches for 23 miles before joining with John's River. It was added to the

Wild and Scenic River The National Wild and Scenic Rivers System was created by the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act of 1968 (Public Law 90-542), enacted by the U.S. Congress to preserve certain rivers with outstanding natural, cultural, and recreational values in a free- ...

System on August 18, 2000.

History

The Wilson Creek

Wilderness area Wilderness or wildlands (usually in the plural), are natural environments on Earth that have not been significantly modified by human activity or any nonurbanized land not under extensive agricultural cultivation. The term has traditionally re ...

was once used by the

Cherokee The Cherokee (; chr, ᎠᏂᏴᏫᏯᎢ, translit=Aniyvwiyaʔi or Anigiduwagi, or chr, ᏣᎳᎩ, links=no, translit=Tsalagi) are one of the indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands of the United States. Prior to the 18th century, t ...

Native Americans as a summer hunting ground. The area was settled in 1750, and at this time logging began in the dense forest.

Mortimer Mortimer () is an English surname, and occasionally a given name. Norman origins The surname Mortimer has a Norman origin, deriving from the village of Mortemer, Seine-Maritime, Normandy. A Norman castle existed at Mortemer from an early point; ...

, once the largest community in the Wilson Creek area, was the site of the Ritter Lumber Company sawmill which was destroyed by a storm that produced over 20 inches of rain in 24 hours in July 1916. The week before, a soaking rain had already saturated the ground and heavy lumbering aggravated the speed of the water rushing through the gorge. After a year, efforts to rebuild brought back the sawmill and a

textile mill Textile Manufacturing or Textile Engineering is a major industry. It is largely based on the conversion of fibre into yarn, then yarn into fabric. These are then dyed or printed, fabricated into cloth which is then converted into useful goods ...

with the community also served by a new railroad line. The mills provided enough jobs to sustain 800 residents. If still in existence, Mortimer would be the

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US st ...

(now

Lenoir, North Carolina Lenoir is a city in and the county seat of Caldwell County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 18,263 at the 2020 census. Lenoir is located in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains. To the northeast are the Brushy Mountains, ...

). However, it flooded again on August 13, 1940, with Wilson Creek reaching over a 90-foot flood stage. This event ended all efforts to bring in industry and left the area virtually deserted. The concrete shells of the old facilities are visible in a park area. Only a few residents and homes remain upstream at Edgemont, with most of the downstream area maintained for public use by the US Forestry Service.

Recreation

The Wilson Creek area is frequented by hikers and recreation enthusiasts and also contains places to fish, hike, and camp. Dispersed camping is allowed throughout the forest area, but sites must be set up at least 100 ft. from any water. The Wilson Creek Gorge area is available for day use but there is limited parking. Allowed activities include: Camping, swimming, fishing, hiking, canoeing, kayaking, geocaching, and mountain biking

References

External links

{{authority control Rivers of North Carolina Protected areas established in 2000 Pisgah National Forest Protected areas of Caldwell County, North Carolina Rivers of Caldwell County, North Carolina Wild and Scenic Rivers of the United States Tributaries of the Catawba River