Keeping Watauga County History Alive

Founded in 1977, the Watauga County Historical Society has been committed for nearly forty years to preserving and fostering community interest in the history and literature of Watauga County, North Carolina.

During that time, the WCHS has worked individually and in partnership with various other like-minded groups to sponsor and present lectures, serial publications, and books that document our county's rich and multifaceted history. Our current major project is the Digital Watauga Project, which digitizes the historic images and documents of the county and presents them online, for free, to the public at large.

The Watauga County Historical Society is a registered 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation operating in the State of North Carolina.

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Our Philosophy

The Watauga County Historical Society is committed to seven primary goals:

* To foster interest in the history and literature of Watauga County;

* To promote activity in the field of local history;

* To participate in the preservation of historic sites, landmarks and heritage of the county;

* To serve as a medium for the exchange of ideas among persons concerned with preserving the history of Watauga County;

* To sponsor awards, certificates and other recognitions for outstanding achievement;

* To cooperate with other organizations in North Carolina having similar purposes;

* To consider and sponsor grant requests to appropriate agencies.

Digital Watauga Project

This important local effort, sponsored by the Watauga County Historical Society in partnership with the Watauga County Public Library, is the culmination of discussions in 2014 among numerous Watauga County constituents to determine the most efficient means for creating a digital clearinghouse for locally-owned historical materials. By encouraging and assisting with the digital preservation of images, documents, and other materials, the Watauga County Digital Project aims to make the rich history of Watauga County more widely known and easily accessible to the public.

You can help. The Watauga County Digital Project seeks individuals, organizations, and institutions that may possess materials that contribute to the public's understanding of Watauga County's history, then works with these donors to safely digitize their materials for storage on the Digital Watauga website. Access to Digital Watauga is free for everyone. All original materials are then returned to their owners, and all rights (including copyright, reproduction rights, and publication rights)--aside from a license agreement allowing for the use of the material by Digital Watauga--are retained by the owners of the materials.