Maggie Valley is a town in

Haywood County, North Carolina Haywood County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 62,089. The county seat and its largest community is Waynesville, North Carolina, Waynesville. Haywood ...

, United States. The population was 1,687 at the 2020 census. A popular tourist destination, it is home to Cataloochee Ski Area and the former Ghost Town in the Sky amusement park. Maggie Valley is part of the

Asheville metropolitan area The Asheville metropolitan area is a metropolitan area centered on the principal city of Asheville, North Carolina. The U.S. Office of Management and Budget defines the Asheville, NC Metropolitan Statistical Area, a metropolitan statistical area ...

. The community gets its name from Maggie Mae Setzer; her father John "Jack" Sidney Setzer founded the area's first post office and named it after one of his daughters.

History

Before European colonization, what is now Maggie Valley was inhabited by the

Cherokee The Cherokee (; , or ) people are one of the Indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands of the United States. Prior to the 18th century, they were concentrated in their homelands, in towns along river valleys of what is now southwestern ...

people and other indigenous peoples for thousands of years. The Cherokee in

western North Carolina Western North Carolina (often abbreviated as WNC) is the region of North Carolina which includes the Appalachian Mountains; it is often known geographically as the state's Mountain Region. It contains the highest mountains in the Eastern United S ...

are known as the

Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians (EBCI), (Cherokee language, Cherokee: ᏣᎳᎩᏱ ᏕᏣᏓᏂᎸᎩ, ''Tsalagiyi Detsadanilvgi'') is a List of federally recognized tribes in the contiguous United States, federally recognized Indian Tribe, ...

, a federally recognized tribe. Maggie Valley was officially incorporated as a town on May 10, 1904.

Geography

Maggie Valley is in west-central Haywood County.

U.S. Route 19 U.S. Route 19 or U.S. Highway 19 (US 19) is a north–south United States Numbered Highway in the Eastern United States. Despite encroaching Interstate Highways, the route has remained a long-haul road, connecting the Gulf of Mex ...

is the main road through the town, leading east to

Asheville Asheville ( ) is a city in Buncombe County, North Carolina, United States. Located at the confluence of the French Broad and Swannanoa rivers, it is the county seat of Buncombe County. It is the most populous city in Western North Carolina a ...

and west over

Soco Gap Soco Gap (el. ) is a mountain pass between the Plott Balsams to the south and the Great Balsam Mountains to the north. The gap is the eastern point of the Qualla Boundary, which marks the territory held as a land trust for the federally recogniz ...

. According to the

U.S. Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The U.S. Census Bureau is part of the U ...

, the town has an area of , all land.

Wildlife

Elk The elk (: ''elk'' or ''elks''; ''Cervus canadensis'') or wapiti, is the second largest species within the deer family, Cervidae, and one of the largest terrestrial mammals in its native range of North America and Central and East Asia. ...

were copious throughout the United States, but numbers decreased in the mid-19th century because of overhunting and habitat loss. In 2001, the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, the

National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an List of federal agencies in the United States, agency of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government, within the US Department of the Interior. The service manages all List ...

and other partners joined to restore wild elk to the

Great Smoky Mountains The Great Smoky Mountains (, ''Equa Dutsusdu Dodalv'') are a mountain range rising along the Tennessee–North Carolina border in the southeastern United States. They are a subrange of the Appalachian Mountains and form part of the Blue Ridg ...

in the Cataloochee Valley near Maggie Valley. Most elk are found in Cataloochee Valley, which is a perfect viewing area in the southeastern section of the

Great Smoky Mountains National Park Great Smoky Mountains National Park is a List of national parks of the United States, national park of the United States in the southeastern United States, southeast, with parts in North Carolina and Tennessee. The park straddles the ridgeline o ...

. But the elk have been known to wander out of the park and walk toward Maggie Valley. There are an estimated 200 elk in the Maggie Valley area currently. Black bears are occasionally seen in and around Maggie Valley. During winter, the black bears are inactive for a short amount of time and exhibit some physiological responses to low food storage and temperatures. But a result of their brief hibernation is that there are more bear sightings. This is risky because they can be looking for food in neighborhoods or killed on roads. Locals strongly suggest never approaching a bear to photograph it, or leaving food or garbage out, and taking in any bird feeders that are not monitored (especially at night).

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 1,687 people, 833 households, and 562 families residing in the town.

2000 census

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2000, there were 607 people, 297 households, and 179 families residing in the town. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geog ...

was . There were 565 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 96.38%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 1.32%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.66% Native American, 0.66% Asian, 0.16% from other races, and 0.82% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 0.16% of the population. There were 297 households, of which 16.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.2% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 6.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.7% were non-families. 33.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.04 and the average family size was 2.56. In the town, the population was spread out, with 14.0% under age 18, 5.1% from 18 to 24, 23.2% from 25 to 44, 33.8% from 45 to 64, and 23.9% who were 65 or older. The median age was 49. For every 100 females, there were 92.1 males. For every 100 females 18 and over, there were 89.8 males. The median income for a household in the town was $29,808, and the median income for a family was $40,417. Males had a median income of $27,813 versus $20,865 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the town was $17,211. About 9.8% of families and 11.7% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 15.2% of those under age 18 and 10.7% of those age 65 or over.

Notable people and events

* Raymond Fairchild, Society for the Preservation of Bluegrass Music in America “Hall of Greats" member. * Moonshiner Marvin "Popcorn" Sutton.Carol Motsinger,
New Movie Focuses on WNC Moonshiner Popcorn Sutton
" ''Citizen-Times'', November 10, 2014. * Wheels Through Time motorcycle museum.

References

External links

Town of Maggie Valley official website

Haywood County visitors website

Maggie Valley Chamber of Commerce
{{authority control Asheville metropolitan area 1904 establishments in North Carolina Communities of the Great Smoky Mountains Towns in Haywood County, North Carolina Towns in North Carolina