Brasstown, North Carolina

Brasstown is an unincorporated community located mostly within Clay County, North Carolina, United States, though roughly one third of Brasstown is within the adjacent Cherokee County.

Brasstown, North Carolina
Unincorporated community
Downtown Brasstown
Downtown Brasstown
Brasstown is located in North Carolina
Brasstown
Brasstown
Location within the state of North Carolina
Coordinates: 35°02′22″N 83°57′25″W
CountryUnited States
StateNorth Carolina
CountyClay
Area
 • Total12.21 sq mi (31.63 km2)
 • Land12.17 sq mi (31.52 km2)
 • Water0.04 sq mi (0.11 km2)
Elevation
1,736 ft (529 m)
Time zoneUTC-5 (Eastern (EST))
 • Summer (DST)UTC-4 (EDT)
ZIP codes
28902
Area code828
GNIS feature ID1019281 [1]

Etymology

The name, "Brasstown," was given to several historic towns in the Cherokee region, including this one. The name resulted from confusion in translating the Cherokee name, "Itse'yĭ" (meaning 'New Green Place' or 'Place of Fresh Green') with "Ûňtsaiyĭ" (meaning "brass").[2]

Annual opossum drop
Clay's Corner, home of the Possum Drop, in Brasstown, N.C.

The Possum Drop was an annual event at Clay's Corner convenience store organized by Clay and Judy Logan.[3] At midnight on New Year's Eve, instead of dropping an object, a plexiglass box containing a living opossum was lowered from the roof of the store.[4] At midnight the animal was lowered to the ground while a small crowd of local residents sometimes shot fireworks.[5] The opossum was released afterward.[6]

The Possum Drop started in 1990 with twenty people, a covered dish supper, jam music, and a ceramic possum lowered in a fish bowl.[7] The next year Logan used a real opossum that had been trapped for the occasion.[8] Hours before the Dec. 31, 2003, Possum Drop People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals called Logan and threatened to sue if a live opossum was used, so Logan used roadkill instead. The New York Times reported on the event in 2004.[9] In September 2013, PETA filed a petition to stop the event from taking place, calling it "cruel."[10]

The event moved to nearby Andrews, North Carolina, for 2018-2019 upon Clay and Judy Logan's retirement. However, one of the opossums there was injured and used with a broken leg that was later amputated. After lawsuits by PETA and appeals to state officials by concerned citizens,[11] the town opted not to continue the Possum Drop and it has not been held since.[12]

Clay’s Corner got its start as a produce stand in the 1940s owned by the Caldwell family. Clay Logan purchased the Citgo station in 1998. In 2019, Clay's Corner reopened under the management of the Logan Family.[7]

Brasstown, N.C. on Aug. 28, 2022

Education

The John C. Campbell Folk School, dedicated to preserving and encouraging the folk arts of the Appalachian Mountains, is located in Brasstown. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983.[13] The land for the Folk School was donated by Fred O. Scroggs, who wanted to preserve the folk teachings of mountain culture.

Tri-County Race Track
The Brasstown sign across from Clay's Corner

The Tri-County Race Track is a 1/4-mile banked dirt oval race track located in Brasstown, it often hosts races Friday evenings. Jack Wimpey built the track on property he owned in 1968 and its first event was held the following year. VIP suites were constructed in 2018.[14] Wimpey died in February 2023 and the track was listed for sale seven months later in September.[15][16]

References
  1. Feature Detail Report for: Brasstown, Geographic Names Information System, December 31, 1981, retrieved July 26, 2013
  2. NOTE: the area surrounding Brasstown Bald in Georgia was also settled by the Cherokee people. English-speaking settlers to the area derived the word Brasstown from a translation error of the Cherokee word for its village place. Settlers confused the Cherokee locative name, Itse'yĭ" (meaning 'New Green Place' or 'Place of Fresh Green'), with Ûňtsaiyĭ (Brass), and referred to the settlement as Brasstown.
  3. Clay's Corner - Opossum Capital of the World - Clay & Judy Logan Proprietors http://www.clayscorner.com
  4. "New Years Eve at Clay's Corner * Brasstown, North Carolina * Opossum Capital of the World". www.clayscorner.com. Retrieved April 12, 2019.
  5. "Clay's Corner * Brasstown, North Carolina * Opossum Capital of the World". www.clayscorner.com. Retrieved April 12, 2019.
  6. Horne, Robert (2006). "PETA amazed Possum Drop continues". Cherokee Scout. Murphy, N.C.: Community Newspapers, Inc. Archived from the original on July 23, 2011. Retrieved September 22, 2023.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  7. Keely, Harrison; Keely, Marcus (August 8, 2007). "Eleven questions for Clay Logan". Smoky Mountain Sentinel. Hayesville, N.C.: Sentinel Newspapers. p. 4A.
  8. Gettleman, Jeffrey (December 31, 2003). "Keep Your Ball. We've Got the Possum". The New York Times. p. A13.
  9. Gettleman, Jeffrey (January 2, 2004). "A New Year's Tradition Lives, But the 4-Legged Star Doesn't". The New York Times. p. A12.
  10. Brown, David (September 13, 2023). "This Week in Local History". Cherokee Scout. Murphy, N.C.: Community Newspapers, Inc. p. 8A.
  11. Elassar, Alaa (December 31, 2019). "North Carolina town ends New Year's Eve Possum Drop tradition". CNN. Retrieved September 2, 2022.
  12. "North Carolina town ends New Year's Eve Possum Drop tradition". CNN. December 31, 2019.
  13. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  14. "Tri County Race Track". Welcome to Clay County, N.C. – information guide. Hayesville, N.C.: Clay County Progress. 2023. p. 53.
  15. "James William "Jack" Wimpey". Legacy.com.
  16. Hoerner, Alisa (September 12, 2023). "Just passed Tri County racetrack. For Sale signs posted on both sides of their driveway". Facebook.
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