The Broadside

Just a few miles from the tallest concrete dam east of the Mississippi River, there's a paved road that ends at a mysterious tunnel. This unfinished roadway, deep inside the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, is a stark reminder of a broken promise to people who once lived there and the sacrifices they made in the name of progress at all costs. But it's also just a small part of a fascinating and bittersweet story about remembrance and tradition in this isolated corner of Appalachia.

Featuring:

• Lance Holland, owner of Appalachian Mercantile and local historian (also author of “The Little Tennessee River” and “Fontana: A Pocket History of Appalachia”)
• Henry Chambers, North Shore descendant and co-organizer of North Shore Cemetery Association 
• James Calhoun, North Shore descendant
• Chris Chandler, North Shore descendant 
• Katie Liming, Chief of Staff for the Great Smoky Mountains National Park
• Jessica Gunter, North Shore descendant

Cover image: Lakeview Drive road tunnel on the Road to Nowhere located in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park near Bryson City, North Carolina. Credit: Charlie Shelton-Ormond

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This year marks the 30th anniversary of the 1996 Summer Olympic Games in Atlanta, Georgia. The mood in the US at the time was very similar to the World Cup fever we're experiencing right now. But halfway through those games, that festive vibe shifted when a bomb went off in Centennial Olympic Park. 111 people were injured, 1 person was killed and overnight the Olympics became part of a criminal terrorism investigation.

This week we're looking back at those events. But this episode isn't about Richard Jewell, the hero security guard who was wrongly accused of planting the bomb. Nor is it about Eric Rudolph, the domestic terrorist and survivalist who fled the scene and was later the subject of one of the longest manhunts in American history.

This episode is about the life of the small town cop from North Carolina who ended it all. And how being a footnote to history is sometimes just the beginning of a life well-lived.

"The Rookie" originally published in 2019 and was produced for Away Message, a podcast from Our State Magazine. It features host and reporter Jeremy Markovich who is an occasional guest on The Broadside. Markovich now runs the North Carolina Rabbit Hole newsletter, where he explores the strange and quirky corners of his home state.

Links:

• Our State Magazine: https://www.ourstate.com/
• North Carolina Rabbit Hole: https://www.ncrabbithole.com/

Credits:

• Jeremy Markovich: producer, mixer, host
• James Mieczkowski: producer
• Elizabeth Hudson: editor-in-chief
• Music: "Bright Direction (You're A Dark Star Now)" by Hiss Golden Messenger

Special Thanks to Matthew Yates, Katie Killen, Bill Evans and the Boston College Police Department, and Charles Winokoor of the Taunton Daily Gazette.

Some archival audio courtesy of WLOS-TV.

Cover Image: Shrapnel imprinted into a sculpture from the bomb set off by Eric Rudolph on the morning of July 27, 1996, at the Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, Georgia. Credit: Darth-Wiki-Man / Wikipedia

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Marriage is a deep and powerful bond. But for politicians, those relationships are often far more complicated. In addition to being a husband or wife, many spouses of elected officials take on strange and demanding roles. And on the campaign trail and at home their lives increasingly mirror our deepening political divide, which means dealing with intense criticism and even the threat of political violence.

Featuring:

• Billy Warden, freelance journalist and former political spouse
• Susan Tillis, wife of US Senator Thom Tillis of North Carolina

Links:

• The Assembly: The ‘Surreal’ World of Political Spouses

Cover Image: US Senator Thom Tillis (R, NC) and his wife Susan Tillis during a campaign victory speech in 2020. Credit: WFMY / YouTube

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For centuries, the Great Dismal Swamp on the border of North Carolina and Virginia served as a sanctuary for escaped slaves known as maroons. Today, the same harsh conditions that shielded those self-emancipated people from slavery make it difficult for historians and archeologists to understand the extent of their settlements. But that secret world is slowly being uncovered.

Featuring:

• Dan Sayers, archaeologist, anthropologist and professor at American University
• Marcus Nevius, author of City of Refuge and history professor at the University of Missouri
• Eric Sheppard, tour guide in the Great Dismal Swamp

Cover image: Lake Drummond at Great Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Refuge in Virginia. Credit: Rebecca Wynn/USFWS

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MrBeast, the world's most popular YouTuber, and his billion-dollar business are based in a surprising place: Greenville, North Carolina. So what does it all mean for this small city in eastern North Carolina?

Featuring:

• Jordan Santos, former MrBeast contestant
• Brian Gordon, business and technology reporter for The News & Observer
• Bret Oliverios, business owner in Greenville, NC

Links:

• The News & Observer: MrBeast filmed ‘Beast Games’ in his NC hometown. We were up late to watch.

Cover image: Contestants competing in a MrBeast challenge to win a $300,000 Lamborghini. The winner was the last person to take their hand off the car. Photo by Fidias Panayiotou/YouTube.

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Pimento cheese, aka Carolina caviar, is as synonymous with Southern food culture as sweet tea and fried chicken. But the origin story of this spreadable cheddar cheese and pimento pepper dish is much more complicated and a lot less Southern than you might think.

Featuring:

• Vivian Howard, chef, restauranteur and PBS host

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The late 1960s and 1970s were marked by the emergence of radical and revolutionary political movements in America. The common narrative places much of the action in major urban centers like Chicago, New York and the San Francisco Bay Area. But a new documentary film is challenging that story by highlighting the incredible history of the first Black Panther Party chapter in the South, which was located in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.

Featuring:

• Tressie McMillan Cottom, professor at UNC-Chapel Hill, opinion columnist at The New York Times, and director of the documentary film Power to the People, Y'all

Link:

• For screening info and announcements about Power to the People, Y'all visit the film's official Instagram page.

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The game of cricket is rapidly gaining popularity across the US. But if you want to see what the future of the sport in America might look like, you need to visit a field next to an airport in the town of Morrisville, North Carolina.

This episode originally published on June 27, 2024 during the 2024 Cricket T20 World Cup which was co-hosted by the United States.

Featuring:

• Hasham Malik, captain of Morrisville Warriors Cricket Club
• Babar Baig, former president of Triangle Cricket League
• Satish Garimella, Mayor Pro Tem of Morrisville, NC
• Abhiram “Abhi” Bolisetty, former US international player
• Philip Service, head coach for Triangle Cricket League

Cover photo: A cricket batter at Church Street Park in Morrisville, North Carolina.

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Nearly 100 years ago, a radical school called Black Mountain College opened its doors. It featured no grades, very few tests and lots of avante garde art. And although it was a short-lived experiment, this quirky liberal arts college located in the mountains of western North Carolina would become one of the most influential institutions of higher learning in the world.

Featuring:

• Alice Sebrell, Director of Preservation at the Black Mountain College Museum + Arts Center

Links:

• The Black Mountain College Museum + Arts Center

Cover image: Renowned architect and inventor Buckminster Fuller in his studio at Black Mountain College. Fuller taught at the school from 1948-1949, where he developed the geodesic dome. His architectural designs from that era would later feature in buildings around the world.

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Appalachia is Bigfoot territory. In a big way. This week, we look at the mythical beast's legend, lore and sizable economic impact in the region. And we follow one reporter’s journey through the mountains and foothills of western North Carolina in search of Sasquatch.

This episode originally published on July 18, 2024 and features a trip to the Western North Carolina Bigfoot Festival in Marion, NC. The 2026 festival is scheduled for August 29.

Featuring:

• Emily Cataneo, reporter for The Assembly

Links:

• Check out Emily's story on Appalachian Bigfoot culture at The Assembly here.
• You can find a transcript of the episode here.

Cover image: Jerry Millwood walks into the woods in western North Carolina during a Bigfoot hunt with journalist Emily Cataneo. (Cornell Watson for The Assembly)

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