After a short break, slogan-based “Where the Heel?”s are back! The image above is the cover of a general tourist brochure with a blank line replacing the name of the location being advertised. Do you know which locality not only had dig-’em-yourself gemstones, but also used the activity as the highlight of their tourism campaign? If you think you know, leave your guess as a comment.
Hiddenite? Or, if that’s too specific, then Alexander County?
A good guess, but both Hiddenite and Alexander County are wrong.
Franklin, NC
Another good guess, but no. (Obviously) the western part of the state is correct, but…
Going out on a limb here . . . Haywood County?? I think there are sapphire mines there.
Sorry, Kevin, its not Haywood either. However, the community’s county does border Tennessee.
How about Spruce Pine?
We have a winner! Congratulations, Charles!
The Spruce Pine Chamber of Commerce (in Mitchell County) used the slogan “Spruce Pine, North Carolina. Where you can dig your own gemstones” for a 1950s-era brochure that we have in our local ephemera collection. The pamphlet also features other Spruce Pine/Mitchell County places of interest, including Roan Mountain (site of an annual Rhododendron Festival), Penland School of Handicrafts, Museum of North Carolina Minerals, North Carolina Gem and Mineral Festival, and the Woodlawn Lanes bowling alley.
Interestingly, Spruce Pine has taken on a new slogan in the past several years: Home of the Perfect Christmas Tree. After author and North Carolina-native Gloria Houston gave the town the rights to her classic children’s holiday book, the town began the Home of the Perfect Christmas Tree Project, an entrepreneurial development and scholarship tool for the town.
Oh, and I meant to ask…Does anyone know if there’s anywhere where you can still “dig your own gemstones?” I’ve only been to places where you purchase a bucket or bag that has been “pre-dug.”
I think you can still dig your own at Hiddenite.
Very interesting. Would Macon county been an alternative correct answer at all? Both ruby and sapphire were mined there in the 1870’s and even today rockhounds can try their luck in such mines as the Cherokee Mine. This may be an answer to Jenny McElroy’s question above regarding somewhere to go to dig your own gemstones.