Photo by Stephanie MacLeod
By Gina Malone
The historic cabin and secluded acreage where peace eluded Asheville’s literary son in the summer of 1937 may soon become a writers’ conference center.
The cabin has been known for years as the ‘Wolfe Cabin,’ although Thomas Wolfe worked there only briefly. It was built around 1924 by the family of cartoonist Max Whitson, a college friend of Wolfe’s. Whitson offered use of the rustic place to Wolfe when he returned to Asheville after publishing two novels. So many people wanted to visit the famous novelist, however, that he was unable to get much writing done. It would be his final visit to Asheville.
The City of Asheville owns the Oteen property on which the dilapidated cabin and another 1970s structure sit, and had plans to tear down both. As the project’s website proclaims, the cabin was “literally rotting into the ground.”
The Preservation Society of Asheville and Buncombe County (PSABC), in 2012, partnered with the Parks and Recreation Department and the Historic Resources Commission (HRC) to preserve this historic site. PSABC recently allotted $10,000 for restoration work.
Craig Cline, a retired architect with HRC and PSABC, has overseen much of the work so far including water mitigation and roof stabilization. Contractor Brian Sineath of Sineath Construction is working to tear off an addition not in place in Wolfe’s day.
“We’re doing a good job because of volunteers who’ve been making the money go as far as possible,” Cline says. Many are on board with the plan, he adds, now that work has begun. “I liken it to volleyball where you set the ball up and the next person spikes it.”
A proposal prepared by David Nutter, a retired city planner with PSABC, envisions the two cabins and almost 40 acres as a future writers’ conference center that, with the addition of other small cabins, Cline says, might also provide accommodations for campers at the nearby Western North Carolina Nature Center and the City’s John B. Lewis Soccer Fields. “We’re keeping in mind,” Cline says, “the best use to serve the public.”
Cline hopes interest shown so far will ensure the cabin’s survival and contribution to the parks system. “Momentum’s everything,” he says. “We want to keep it going.”
On October 15, at 2 p.m., PSABC will hold the Riverside Cemetery History and Walking Tour. Admission is free, but a suggested $10 donation will help support local preservation. For more information about this project or to donate, visit thomaswolfecabin.com or psabc.org.
