Brushy Mountains (North Carolina)
Encyclopedia
The Brushy Mountains are a mountain range located in northwestern North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...

. They are an isolated "spur" of the much larger Blue Ridge Mountains
Blue Ridge Mountains
The Blue Ridge Mountains are a physiographic province of the larger Appalachian Mountains range. This province consists of northern and southern physiographic regions, which divide near the Roanoke River gap. The mountain range is located in the eastern United States, starting at its southern-most...

, separated from them by the Yadkin River
Yadkin River
The Yadkin River is one of the longest rivers in North Carolina, flowing . It rises in the northwestern portion of the state near the Blue Ridge Parkway's Thunder Hill Overlook. Several parts of the river are impounded by dams for water, power, and flood control. The river becomes the Pee Dee...

 valley. A deeply eroded range, they move from the southwest to the northeast, and cross five counties in North Carolina: Caldwell
Caldwell County, North Carolina
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 77,415 people, 30,768 households, and 22,399 families residing in the county. The population density was 164 people per square mile . There were 33,430 housing units at an average density of 71 per square mile...

, Alexander
Alexander County, North Carolina
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 33,603 people, 13,137 households, and 9,747 families residing in the county. The population density was 129 people per square mile . There were 14,098 housing units at an average density of 54 per square mile...

, Wilkes
Wilkes County, North Carolina
Wilkes County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. The 2000 U.S. Census listed the county's population at 65,632; the 2010 U.S. Census listed the population at 69,340...

, Iredell
Iredell County, North Carolina
Iredell County, along with Moore County in the eastern Piedmont, are among a very few counties in the United States sharing borders with nine adjacent counties.-Demographics:...

, and Yadkin
Yadkin County, North Carolina
- Cities and towns :*Boonville*East Bend*Jonesville*Yadkinville-Towns of the past:These towns were incorporated at one time:*Arlington, merged with Jonesville in 2001.*Hamptonville, chartered in 1818.*Huntsville, incorporated in 1792....

.

The Brushy Mountains divide, for much of their courses, the waters of the Yadkin River and the Catawba River
Catawba River
The Catawba River is a tributary of the Wateree River in the U.S. states of North Carolina and South Carolina. The river is approximately 220 miles long...

, two of central North Carolina's largest rivers. The range is approximately 45 miles (72.4 km) long, but only 4 to 8 miles wide. The highest point in the chain is Pores Knob
Pores Knob
-Physical features:Pores Knob is the highest point of the Brushy Mountains chain. The Brushy Mountains are a deeply eroded spur of the much larger Blue Ridge Mountains...

 (2,680 feet, 817 meters), in Wilkes County. Among the other notable peaks in the range are Hibriten Mountain
Hibriten Mountain
Hibriten Mountain, located just east of Lenoir, North Carolina, marks the western end of the Brushy Mountains range. The mountain's summit is nearly 1,000 feet above the surrounding terrain...

 in Caldwell County
Caldwell County, North Carolina
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 77,415 people, 30,768 households, and 22,399 families residing in the county. The population density was 164 people per square mile . There were 33,430 housing units at an average density of 71 per square mile...

, which marks the western end of the Brushy Mountains and is a prominent landmark in the city of Lenoir, North Carolina
Lenoir, North Carolina
Lenoir is a city in Caldwell County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 18,228 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Caldwell County. Lenoir is located in the Blue Ridge foothills. The city also contains the Brushy Mountains, a spur of the Blue Ridge Mountains...

; Hickory Knob, the highest point in Alexander County, North Carolina
Alexander County, North Carolina
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 33,603 people, 13,137 households, and 9,747 families residing in the county. The population density was 129 people per square mile . There were 14,098 housing units at an average density of 54 per square mile...

; and Fox Mountain, the highest point in Iredell County, North Carolina
Iredell County, North Carolina
Iredell County, along with Moore County in the eastern Piedmont, are among a very few counties in the United States sharing borders with nine adjacent counties.-Demographics:...

. The "Brushies", as they are often called by locals, usually rise from 300 to 800 feet (243.8 m) above the surrounding countryside, with few peaks rising more than a thousand feet above their base. The forests on the mountains are part of the Southeastern mixed forests
Southeastern mixed forests
The Southeastern mixed forests are a temperate coniferous forests ecoregion of the United States.-Setting:This ecoregion covers the Piedmont of the eastern United States, stretching in a broad arc from Maryland southwest to Mississippi. It is distinguished from neighboring ecoregions by elevation...

 ecoregion
Ecoregion
An ecoregion , sometimes called a bioregion, is an ecologically and geographically defined area that is smaller than an ecozone and larger than an ecosystem. Ecoregions cover relatively large areas of land or water, and contain characteristic, geographically distinct assemblages of natural...

.

The Mountains are primarily known for their abundance of apple orchards, and the Brushy Mountain Apple Festival
Brushy Mountain Apple Festival
The is a one-day arts and crafts fair held annually in downtown North Wilkesboro, North Carolina. The fair is held during the first Saturday in October. Over 160,000 people visit the fair each year, and it is one of the largest single-day arts and crafts fairs in the Southeastern United States....

 is held in North Wilkesboro, North Carolina
North Wilkesboro, North Carolina
North Wilkesboro is a town in Wilkes County, North Carolina, United States. The population was approximately 4,116 at the 2000 census and is now 4,245 as of the 2010 census. North Wilkesboro is the birthplace and original home of Lowe's Home Improvement, which continues to have a major presence in...

 each year to celebrate the harvest. The region was also once known as a hotbed of "moonshining", or the production of illegal homemade liquor. Several of the earliest stars of stock-car racing in the 1940s and 1950s got their start in the moonshining business in the Brushy Mountains. James Larkin Pearson
James Larkin Pearson
James Larkin Pearson was a poet and newspaper publisher. From 1953 - 1981 he served as North Carolina's Poet Laureate, and was the second poet to hold the title.-Background:...

, a newspaper publisher and editor who served as North Carolina's official Poet Laureate
Poet Laureate
A poet laureate is a poet officially appointed by a government and is often expected to compose poems for state occasions and other government events...

from 1953 to 1981, was born and raised in the Brushy Mountains, and lived in the Brushies his entire life. Much of his poetry was based on his life in the Brushy Mountains.
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