Descriptive Summary

Administrative Information

Access Restrictions

An appointment for research is required. No restrictions to access. No Interlibrary Loan. Photographs are stored in a cold storage unit and need additional time to return to room temperature.

Copyright Notice

Standard federal copyright laws apply.

Preferred Citation

[Identification of item], Blue Ridge Garden Club Records, W. L. Eury Appalachian Collection, Appalachian State University, Boone, North Carolina, NC, USA.

Acquisitions Information

The Blue Ridge Garden Club donated this collection to the Appalachian Cultural Museum in 1996, having transferred them from Worthwhile Woman's Club Office. Museum director Charles Watkins transferred the materials to the W.L. Eury Appalachian Collection. The accession number is 02-02. This collection was opened to the public in August 2005. Additional materials were donated by the Blue Ridge Garden Club in August 2005 and November 2007.

Processing Information

Processed by Kathryn Staley, Ian Cotter, Rachel Critzer, 2005, 2008.

Encoded by Kathryn Staley, Rachel Critzer, Rosemary Ulrey, 2005, 2008.

Historical Note

In 1949, the Blue Ridge Garden Club was founded in Boone, North Carolina with sixteen members. It was a spin-off of the Worthwile Woman's Club, which created Boone's first garden between First Baptist Church of Boone and the former Boone United Methodist Church (now the Turchin Center for the Visual Arts). The Blue Ridge Garden Club's objectives are "to promote horticulture and floriculture in the community, to cooperate in the program of town and roadside beautification, and to aid in the protection and conservation of our natural resources." The by-laws limited membership to 18 members initally; however, this increased to 24 and expanded to include associate and honorary members.

Beginning in 1951, the club co-sponsored an annual flower show with the Worthwhile Woman's Club. In 1959, the North Carolina Garden Club Convention proposed to create the Daniel Boone Botanical Garden, stressing education and the conservation of native Appalachian plants, and the Blue Ridge Garden Club took an active role in its creation. In 1960, the Council of Boone Garden Clubs formed with the Blue Ridge Garden Club, the Gardenerettes, and the Junior Woman's Club. Subsequently, the Blowing Rock Garden Club and Rhododendron Garden Club formed in 1960, the Mountaineer Garden Club in 1961. In 1964, the Colonial Garden Club organized.

The club's projects, such as participation in the Clean Up Boone, illustrate its dedication to its local community. Deceased members are memorialized with biographical entries in their annual yearbooks and historical works. Club projects often take a civic and environmental appeal. For example, the club has maintained multiple flowerbeds throughout Boone, sponsored arrangements at the hospital and visitors centers, financially supported public school teachers who incorporate gardening into their curricula, assisted a recycling project, wrote letters supporting sustainable development for the preservation of wildlife habitats, an annual clean-up week in May, the landscaping of the Tatum Cabin and the Squire Boone Cabin, displaying Christmas decorations, promoting planting dogwoods, and sponsoring the Blue Bonnet Junior Garden Club.

The Blue Ridge Garden Club is a member of the National Council of State Garden Clubs, the Garden Club of North Carolina, and Watauga Council of Garden Clubs.

Chronology List

Collection Overview

The Blue Ridge Garden Club generated and collected materials primarily about beautification projects in Watauga and the garden club movement on a statewide level. Included are club papers such as correspondence and minutes; scrapbooks constructed by members; photographs of flowers, club functions, and members; awards given to the club; and the club's annual yearbooks, which lists members, officers, club song, and each meeting's activity.

Collection Arrangement

The Blue Ridge Garden Club Records is organized into thirteen series: Treasurer Series, Minutes Series, Correspondence Series, Project Series, Awards Series, Historical Papers Series, Programs Series, Fliers and Brochures Series, Certificate Series, Newspapers Series, Photographs Series, Scrapbook Series, Miscellaneous Series, and the 2007 Addendum. The 2007 Addendum is divided into series using the relevant series. Periodicals were bound and shelved onto the Appalachian Collection's main stacks.

Online Catalog Headings

Container List