The Polk County Historical Association, Inc.
Presents the Historical Museum
One Depot Street
The Rail Road Station
Tryon, North Carolina 28782
USA

Visit our Museum in the Old Tryon Depot

Hours of Operation and / or open to the public:
Tuesday and Thursdays from 10 to Noon
or anytime for a group by Appointment.
There is NO admission charge - it is really free!!!!

Polk County History

The history of what is now Polk County has been shaped by transportation routes. Cherokee Trails have become our highways. Sandy Plains, the first community to be shown on a map, is at the intersection of NC-9 and Landrum Highway / Sandy Plains Road.

Tryon Peak was a marker on a boundary negotiated between Governor Tryon and the Cherokee Indians. Continued violations on the boundary by settlers culminated in the Battle or Round Mountain, in which settlers led by a very young Captain Howard won the night and ended the Cherokee Indian resistance to the white man's relentless advance into their lands. The gap between Round and Miller Mountains bears Howard's name, and Skyuka Creek and Road are named for his Cherokee friend who guided him.

The community of Lynn formed around the original Mimosa Inn which accommodated the many drovers and travelers along the grail which became Howard Gap Road. Saluda formed on the same trail but at the higher elevation favored by low country people seeking cool summers. Mill Springs (a postmaster later dropped both s's) was formed near two springs on what became mills Gap Road and later NC-9.

Polk County was carved from Henderson and Rutherford Counties and named for  the Revolutionary War Hero Colonel William Polk. It has the distinction of having been created twice by the NC legislature. The first effort by Dr. Columbus Mills in 1847 failed due to squabbling over the location of the county seat. The success of his second effort in 1855 was assured by the selection by the legislature of a group of men from outside the new county to find a central location for the sea of the new government. The new town was named for him, but it main street was named for William Mills, one of the new commissioners.

The community later named Tryon began to grow when construction of a railroad ended there in 1877. The route chosen by Captain Charles W Pearson to complete the railroad resulted in the discovery of what is now called Pearson's Falls and in building the famous Saluda Grade, The steepest mainline railroad grade in the country.

The unfortunate routing of I-26 up the face of Miller Mountain to go through Howard Gap greatly increased the cost of the highway and delayed it completion until 1976, but I-26 and the completion of US-74 in 1994 have spurred commercial development of the long dormant town of Columbus.

Wildcat Spur, Visible from Coopers Gap area is the highest mountain in Polk County at 3239 feet above sea level. Other mountain tops are: Hogback Mountain at 3225 ft., Rocky Spur at 3000 ft., Melrose Mountain at 2637 ft., Warrior Mountain at 2466 ft., Tryon Peak at 3231 ft., and White Oak Mountain at 3102 ft.  The Valley is nestled between Melrose Mountain and Warrior Mountain. Howard Gap is located between Warrior Mountain and Tryon Peak.

Polk County abounds in American History. Our Museum "Treasures" include artifacts from the Cherokee Indians, Early settlers, the Revolutionary War, The Civil War,  WW-I and WW-II. Our items include tools and clothing of settlers, railroad treasures, things from Polk County residents, photos and painting of historic places in the county, and a very significant Civil War artifact. Come see what it is!