Explore Asheville’s past with Tombstone Tales, a series uncovering the stories of iconic figures buried in the area. From local legends to unsung heroes, these historical highlights bring history to life—one grave at a time.
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Tombstone Tales: Mystery beneath Biltmore Stone Cutters Monument
At Asheville’s Riverside Cemetery, a Biltmore-linked stonecutters memorial reveals a deeper story of labor, loss and unanswered questions.
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828newsNOW Wrapped: A look back at the news of 2025
As we wrap up our first full calendar year of 828newsNOW, we wanted to take a look back at the stories that mattered to our community most in 2025. From all of us on the 828newsNOW team, thank you for reading, sharing and supporting our local journalism. Here’s to continuing to tell your stories in…
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828newsNOW reflects on the features, series that anchored the year’s coverage
Legends, local history and food took center stage in 2025
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Strangeville: The Flatiron flat iron
Local artist Reed Tood built a giant metal clothing iron in front of the Flatiron Building nearly 30 years ago. The monument remains a fixture of Asheville to this day.
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Tombstone Tales: ‘Mayor of Shiloh’ buried in Asheville
Linwood Crump, known as “the Mayor of Shiloh,” left such an impact on his neighborhood that the community center he served at was renamed to honor him.
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Tombstone Tales: Lewis Trexler, killed over seventy-five cents
A former Blowing Rock police chief was beaten to death in 1888 over a minor debt. More than a century later, his grave tells a story of injustice, outrage and a life cut short.
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Historic Churches of WNC: Mt. Zion Baptist
A century-old church on Eagle Street anchors Asheville’s African-American spiritual and cultural heritage.
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Tombstone Tales: Flat Rock’s Slaves and Freedmen Memorial
Beneath a quiet stand of trees near Flat Rock’s oldest Episcopal church, a granite cross rises above a hillside of small white markers. It is one of the few memorials dedicated to enslaved and freed African Americans in Western North Carolina.
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Tombstone Tales: Riverside grave with bold confession
ASHEVILLE, N.C. — Riverside Cemetery is known for its monuments, the Southern writers who