NORTH CAROLINA STATE HISTORIC PRESERVATION OFFICE Office of Archives and History Department of Cultural Resources NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES Foster’s Log Cabin Court Woodfin, Buncombe County, BN1406, Listed 5/1/2017 Nomination by Clay Griffith Photographs by Clay Griffith, June and December, 2016, January 2017 Row of Cabins Dining Lodge NPS Form 10-900 OMB No. 1024-0018 United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Registration Form This form is for use in nominating or requesting determinations for individual properties and districts. See instructions in National Register Bulletin, How to Complete the National Register of Historic Places Registration Form. If any item does not apply to the property being documented, enter "N/A" for "not applicable." For functions, architectural classification, materials, and areas of significance, enter only categories and subcategories from the instructions. 1. Name of Property Historic name: ____Foster’s Log Cabin Court Other names/site number: _Log Cabin Motor Court Name of related multiple property listing: ______N/A__________________________________________________ (Enter "N/A" if property is not part of a multiple property listing ____________________________________________________________________________ 2. Location Street & number: ___330 and 332 Weaverville Road ___________________________ City or town: _Woodfin ___ State: ___NC_________ County: __Buncombe_ Not For Publication: N/A Vicinity: N/A ____________________________________________________________________________ 3. State/Federal Agency Certification As the designated authority under the National Historic Preservation Act, as amended, I hereby certify that this X nomination ___ request for determination of eligibility meets the documentation standards for registering properties in the National Register of Historic Places and meets the procedural and professional requirements set forth in 36 CFR Part 60. In my opinion, the property _X_ meets ___ does not meet the National Register Criteria. I recommend that this property be considered significant at the following level(s) of significance: ___national ___statewide _X_local Applicable National Register Criteria: _X_A ___B _X_C ___D Signature of certifying official/Title: Date Department of Natural and Cultural Resources __________________________________ State or Federal agency/bureau or Tribal Government In my opinion, the property meets does not meet the National Register criteria. Signature of commenting official: Date Title : State or Federal agency/bureau or Tribal Government 1 United States Department of the Interior National Park Service / National Register of Historic Places Registration Form NPS Form 10-900 OMB No. 1024-0018 Foster’s Log Cabin Court Buncombe County, NC Name of Property County and State ______________________________________________________________________________ 4. National Park Service Certification I hereby certify that this property is: entered in the National Register determined eligible for the National Register determined not eligible for the National Register removed from the National Register other (explain:) _____________________ ______________________________________________________________________ Signature of the Keeper Date of Action ____________________________________________________________________________ 5. Classification Ownership of Property (Check as many boxes as apply.) Private: X Public – Local X Public – State x Public – Federal Category of Property (Check only one box.) Building(s) X District Site Structure Object Sections 1-6 page 2 United States Department of the Interior National Park Service / National Register of Historic Places Registration Form NPS Form 10-900 OMB No. 1024-0018 Foster’s Log Cabin Court Buncombe County, NC Name of Property County and State Number of Resources within Property (Do not include previously listed resources in the count) Contributing Noncontributing 22 3 buildings 0 0 sites 0 0 structures 0 1 objects 22 4 Total Number of contributing resources previously listed in the National Register __N/A______ 6. Function or Use Historic Functions (Enter categories from instructions.) DOMESTIC/hotel DOMESTIC/single dwelling DOMESTIC/secondary structure COMMERCE/restaurant TRANSPORTATION/road-related Current Functions (Enter categories from instructions.) DOMESTIC/hotel DOMESTIC/single dwelling DOMESTIC/secondary structure COMMERCE/restaurant TRANSPORTATION/road-related Sections 1-6 page 3 United States Department of the Interior National Park Service / National Register of Historic Places Registration Form NPS Form 10-900 OMB No. 1024-0018 Foster’s Log Cabin Court Buncombe County, NC Name of Property County and State _____________________________________________________________________________ 7. Description Architectural Classification (Enter categories from instructions.) Rustic Revival Bungalow/Craftsman Materials: (enter categories from instructions.) Principal exterior materials of the property: Wood/log Wood/shingle Wood/weatherboard Wood/board-and-batten Wood/plywood Asphalt Metal Stone Brick Narrative Description (Describe the historic and current physical appearance and condition of the property. Describe contributing and noncontributing resources if applicable. Begin with a summary paragraph that briefly describes the general characteristics of the property, such as its location, type, style, method of construction, setting, size, and significant features. Indicate whether the property has historic integrity.) ______________________________________________________________________________ Summary Paragraph Foster’s Log Cabin Court is a collection of tourism-related resources located in Woodfin, approximately five miles north of Asheville, on the old Weaverville Highway (present-day Weaverville Road, US 19 Business). Begun around 1931, the court features an intact collection of one-story Rustic Revival-style saddle-notched log cabins, a dining lodge, and associated structures that was one of the earliest tourist courts located around Asheville. Zeb and Audrey Foster built and operated the court, which was located on their property in the Pine Burr Park subdivision. The thirteen one-room and five two-room cabins are loosely arranged in two lines that extend westward from Weaverville Road and lie beneath a thick canopy of pine trees. The dining lodge sits close to Weaverville Road, on the east side of a remaining section of the old Dixie Highway that passes through the property. ______________________________________________________________________________ Section 7 page 4 United States Department of the Interior National Park Service / National Register of Historic Places Registration Form NPS Form 10-900 OMB No. 1024-0018 Foster’s Log Cabin Court Buncombe County, NC Name of Property County and State Narrative Description Foster’s Log Cabin Court is a Rustic Revival-style tourist court located on the west side of Weaverville Road in the community of Woodfin in central Buncombe County. Situated among tall pine trees at the end of a short asphalt and gravel lane, the court consists of log cabins and related buildings dating from ca. 1917 to 2016, with the majority of the cabins constructed in the early 1930s. Zebulon H. and Audrey Foster erected the first cabins and opened the court in 1931, after allowing motorists to camp beneath the pines on their property for a season or two. Enhancing the setting of the court is a relatively undisturbed natural landscape that contributes to the character and integrity of the property. Tall white and yellow pines, as well as dogwood trees, cover the property in much the same manner as when the cabins were built. In addition, a remnant of the old Weaverville Highway, once part of the early-twentieth-century Dixie Highway system, still runs through the eastern portion of the property in its original location. These landscape features together with the rustic log cabins and dining lodge convey the property’s rural setting and character, which were part of the tourist court’s appeal to passing motorists during its period of significance (ca. 1931 – 1967). In addition to the small, one-story, pole-log cabins and dining lodge, the Rustic Revival style of Foster’s Log Cabin Court manifests itself in the informal arrangement of individual cabins scattered among the tall pine trees, creating a private, wooded setting. The arrangement accommodates the motor tourist, allowing each driver to park conveniently in front of their cabin. The earliest cabins are distributed in a linear pattern on relatively flat land in the eastern portion of the property near the Weaverville Highway. The first set of cabins were built along the northern edge of the property facing south. The second set of cabins built a year later formed a line that generally faced north toward the original group. Later cabins are informally arranged on the hillside that slopes up toward the west side of the property. An unpaved gravel drive winds through the court, following the distribution of cabins and providing vehicle access to each cabin throughout the property. The entrance portion of the driveway, extending between Weaverville Road and the court’s office, is paved with asphalt. Owners of the property have had the challenge of maintaining facilities and providing amenities that meet customers’ expectations, while preserving the court’s architectural integrity. Initially, the Fosters built seven rustic log cabins around 1931 and six