Mountains of Virginia
But more Where is This? (Postcard #5)
Short postcard post today. This black-and-white postcard features a “Mountain Scene near Norton, Virginia.”
Much of the area is still mountainous, situated in the Appalachians. No doubt, this road is now paved, maybe widened. The home to the left side of the road may or may not be there still.
Because of the vast area around Norton, and the fact that nothing was written on this card, I don’t have sufficient clues to pinpoint the location. I did try dropping down on Google maps but, not every road is accessible and, well, there’s no way…
If any one lives in the Norton, Virginia area, any ideas?
UPDATE: Barbara Tien of Projectkin found a postcard online with precisely the same photograph labelled “In the Smoky Mountains Near Maryville, Tennessee” by Bayard Wootten. Who knows where this photo was actually taken. Because the Maryville card has a photographer credit and the Norton card does not, if I had to choose one that is more accurate, I’d go with Maryville. Neither can be depended upon for certain. My post about Chain Rock featured a postcard that cited the location as Middlesboro rather than Pineville, Kentucky, although that error is more understandable since those towns are only about ten miles apart. Maryville, Tennessee and Norton, Virginia are 161 miles apart.
Well, I can't claim any personal recollection of this lovely bucolic scene, but I've still gone some search game 😉 I learned on smokymountains.org (www.smokymountains.org/the-early-20th-century-on-the-peaceful-side-of-the-smokies-through-postcards/) ...
"This snapshot of the Peaceful Side of the Smokies, near Maryville, was taken by Bayard Wootten (1875-1959). Wootten was a pioneering female photographer from North Carolina who became the first woman to serve in the North Carolina National Guard as “Chief of Publicity.” In this role, she used her photography to raise public awareness and support for the Guard. Wootten was also among the first women in the U.S. to take aerial photographs. Throughout her career, she produced over a million images."
So... that naturally sent me to look up Bayard Wootten and, wow, isn't THAT interesting: (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bayard_Wootten). "When her husband Charles Wootten abandoned her for the Gold rush she returned home to New Bern to support her two sons by painting flowers on china and fine dresses. She even taxidermied animals including an American alligator which is in the Berlin Museum of natural history." 😳 Wow.
Keep in mind that she didn't get the right to vote until 1920. Unbelievable.