Funding from the state legislature has boosted an economic development project in western North Carolina centered on outdoor recreation. UNC faculty and students have been providing expertise to the collaborative partnership.

Southern Futures Townsend Fellow Cayla Colclasure is studying the prison labor that built the Western North Carolina Railroad, which weaves through Old Fort in McDowell County, North Carolina.

UNC-Chapel Hill archaeologists are working with a diverse coalition to develop an accessible trail network, uncover the region’s history and spur equitable economic growth in the small western North Carolina town of Old Fort. The project is supported by the Southern Futures initiative.