Mountain Views – History in Front of Us.
There's a lot of cool history around Tryon. Still in front of our eyes and under our feet. This 'back yard' has a spectacular view of Warrior Mountain and Tryon Peak. A few bumps west is Warrior Mountain - which got its name because it was on the Cherokee side of the boundary. In fact, many of my own friends, whose families have been here since that time, are part Cherokee and part Northern European.
In 1767, NC Colonial Governor William Tryon rode all the way out here to negotiate a peaceful boundary with Cherokee Warriors between their hunting grounds and European settlements. The boundary ran straight down Tryon Peak down to South Carolina.
By 1776, however, settlers were encroaching onto those lands. In March of that year a family in what is today Lynn, just outside of Tryon, was massacred except for three children who escaped. By May, the Cherokee had planned another attack and gathered on Round Mountain. Skyuka, faithful friend and guide to Capt. Thomas Howard, divulged the plan and led Howard’s militia along a secret trail to a successful surprise attack on the Cherokee.
A rustic monument was erected to Captain Howard in 1908 along the old Howard Gap trail and later relocated to Stearns Park in Columbus in 2007.
The recently restored Mimosa Inn was originally part of a colonial land grant to Ambrose Mills. In the 1800’s the Mills plantation was converted into a celebrated tourist destination as the Mimosa Hotel. The current inn, built in 1903 as a recreation hall for the hotel, became the Mimosa Inn after a fire burned down the hotel in 1916.
These beautiful mountains provide Polk County with unusually temperate weather due to its location in the "thermal belt." The Saluda Grade, the steepest standard-gauge railway, connected the towns of Tryon and Saluda to the nation in 1878. The railway, a rich viticulture history and the weather made these towns a popular tourist and retirement destination giving rise to resort and vacation properties.
In the late 1800s and early 1900s, railway travelers were delighted to discover Tryon well known for its table and wine grapes. Due to prohibition, family businesses related to wine dried up over time. Beginning in the early 1990s, this interesting part of Tryon's history was revived. Today, there are five award winning vineyards within Polk County, an exciting way to spend a day to visit and taste all and get to know the vintners!