Founded in 1989, the Swannanoa Valley Museum & History Center is the primary museum of general local history in Buncombe County. We are a 501c3 non-profit organization governed by an 18-member board of directors and funded primarily by generous donations from our members and our extensive special event program. We are located in the Town of Black Mountain’s 1921 fire house, which was designed by Richard Sharp Smith, supervising architect on the Biltmore Estate. 

We mount at least one major temporary exhibition annually in our first floor gallery and continually enhance our second floor permanent exhibit exploring the general history of the Swannanoa Valley. We also maintain an active archive of original primary source materials – including photographs, oral histories, ledgers, and ephemera – as well as vertical files of research materials and a local history library. 

We offer school programs and traveling trunks tailored to North Carolina’s educational standards that can be used in the museum or in the classroom. Every month we organize hikes to historic locations throughout the valley as well as events that take place inside and outside the museum.

MISSION
The Swannanoa Valley Museum preserves and interprets the social, cultural, and natural history of the Swannanoa Valley, a pathway to western North Carolina, by developing dynamic programs and engaging exhibitions for the education and enrichment of the community, its children, and future generations.

HOURS

March – December

Thursday – Saturday from 10:00 am – 5:00 pm. 

Please click here to reserve your self guided tour. Masks are required for entry into the museum.  

January – February 

Saturdays 10:00 am – 5:00 pm

Please click here to reserve your self guided tour. Masks are required for entry into the museum. 

 

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Sara Akin

Bill Alexander

Mary Begley

Sally Biggers

John Buckner

Amelia Davidson

John Corkran

Peter Crawford

Benjamin Ford

Cindy Medlock, Secretary

Bonnie Nache

Sam Shirey, Chair

Yolanda Smith, Treasurer

Joe Standaert

Carol Tyson

Bob Watts

Sally Withers

STAFF
K. LeAnne Johnson, Director
Saro Lynch-Thomason, Assistant Director

CONTACT
Swannanoa Valley Museum & History Center
223 West State Street (physical)
PO Box 306 (mailing)
Black Mountain, NC 28711
phone: (828) 669-9566
email: info@swannanoavalleymuseum.org
website: www.swannanoavalleymuseum.org