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Then and now
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Knight’s Store in Balsam survived a March 22, 1954, fire (top photo) that destroyed the building behind it, which at that time contained the Balsam Post Office and a store operated by S.A. Futrel on the ground level and an apartment occupied by the Roy Saunders family on the second floor. Firefighters from Sylva, Hazelwood and Waynesville saved the store’s ice cream box and the money from the post office, but the building was a total loss. According to The Sylva Herald’s March 25, 1954, edition, Futrel’s losses totaled $10,000 and the Saunders’ lost property was valued at $3,500. A Sylva fire truck is nearest the burning building with trucks from Hazelwood and Waynesville in the foreground. Knight’s store, which was built by D.T. Knight in 1901, operated until 1979 when his grandson, Bill Knight, was no longer able to run it, according to Carol Lynn Knight of Balsam, who is married to Bill Knight’s son, Balfour Knight. D.T. Knight’s son, George Knight, also operated the store for a number of years, and the building is currently owned by Balfour Knight’s brother, Brian, Carol Lynn Knight said. The first Knight’s Store was at Willets, but D.T. Knight built the existing building and moved to Balsam when the railroad depot opened there, she said. The house on the right is abandoned now, but it’s the former home of Balfour Knight’s great uncle and great aunt, W.B. and Betsy Farwell. – Herald file photo (top) and Herald photo by Nick Breedlove |
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