- [Narrator] This is a production of PBS, Charlotte.

(mellow country music) Hop in the car and head out on a vacation, a weekend getaway, or a road trip with friends, and there's a good chance, you'll find a unique tourist destination along the way.

(train whistle blowing) Just a two hours drive from Charlotte.

You almost travel back in time to the Wild, Wild West at Tweetsie Railroad.

- [Chris] I grew up coming here and riding on these trains.

It's a great privilege to to say I'm one of the Tweetsie engineers.

♪ With the thoughts you'll be thinking ♪ ♪ You could be another Lincoln ♪ ♪ If you only had a brain ♪ - [Narrator] Join Dorothy along the yellow brick road, at the Land of Oz.

- This is a classic book, a classic movie come to life.

- Because the tinsmith who made me forgot to give me a heart.

- No heart?

- All hollow.

(audience laughing) - [Narrator] Walk across a mile high bridge, at Grandfather Mountain, and meet those who care for the animals there.

- They are such amazing animals, such amazing creatures.

They have their own personalities.

- [Narrator] And see how one family, turned an abandoned mine into a museum, a gift shop, and gem mine for rock hounds.

- Imagination and luck.

There's no playbook you can look up how to run a mining museum.

- [Narrator] All that and more, as we explore classic tourist attractions of the North Carolina mountains.

On this episode of Trail of History.

(lively music) (twangy string music) - It's no secret Americans love to hit the road and see the sights.

Savvy entrepreneurs over the past century, have come up with creative ways to draw in the crowds.

And here in the mountains of Western North Carolina, you have all types of attractions to choose from.

(train whistling) Welcome aboard the Tweetsie Railroad.

Located between Boone and Blowing Rock.

- [Chris] What people expect is a exciting Wild West experience on the train.

- [Announcer] Keep your eyes peeled.

- [Chris] Our Number 12 locomotive is 107 years old.

They can see it, they can smell it, they can hear it, there are cowboys, there are actions, there are horses.

I am Chris Robbins, president of Tweetsie Railroad.

It's fun, you can be a cowboy.

You can be a locomotive engineer.

You can be a conductor.

Kids can live out their fantasy here.

- [Narrator] The Tweetsie Railroad, as we know it today, holds a unique place.

Not only in North Carolina's history, but American history.

- Tweetsie Railroad is North Carolina's first theme park.

In fact, it was one of the first theme parks in America.

And a lot of Wild West theme parks cropped up in the late 1950s and 60s.

Cause every show on television was a western.

- [Narrator] In the era of mega theme parks, owned by corporations, Tweetsie stands out.

As a throwback of sorts.

- [Chris] Many Wild West theme parks have come and gone over the years.

Most of 'em are gone but we still survive.

My uncle and father started it back in 1956.

They acquired a locomotive.

Had it restored down in the southern railroad shops in Hickory, North Carolina.

Brought up here in 1957 and the park opened in July 4th, 1957.

We have our Number 12 locomotive which is they call the Tweetsie locomotive.

That's the only surviving locomotive with the East Tennessee and Western North Carolina railroad.

That ran from Johnson City to Boone, North Carolina every day from about 1918 to 1940.

- [Narrator] The Eastern Tennessee and Western North Carolina Railroad, retired the Number 12 locomotive in 1940.

But continued operating the route for another decade.

A unique feature of the old railroad, it used narrow gauge trains and track.

- A narrow gauge train can go around tighter turns than a standard gauge train can.

And everything can be a little narrower.

So you don't have to cut as wide a path into the mountains or cut as big a tunnel.

(train chugging) (whistling music) - [Narrator] As you might imagine not just anyone can make their way into the cab to take the reins (train bell ringing) of one of these historic iron horses.

- [DJ] I've been playing trains about 10 years.

- [Narrator] Meet Tweetsie engineer, DJ Romine.

- That picture was made about 20 years ago.

The guy on the right is the engineer.

His name is Matt Ernst.

He's our current director of engineering.

Of course back then I was just a little kid really interested in the train and Tweetsie Railroad.

That's a great privilege to say I'm one of the Tweetsie engineers.

(coal clanging against the shovel) - [Narrator] The locomotives devour shovels of coal like kids eat candy.

And you won't find anything electronic on any of them.

Everything is mechanical and that means maintenance.

And a lot of it.

- [Chris] Our Number 12 locomotive is 105 years old.

Our Number 190 locomotive was built in 1943.

The thing is you gotta keep them up.

- [Narrator] Director of engineering Matt Ernst describes the work best.

- A lot of work.

Everything with a steam locomotive is either hot, heavy, or dirty, or sometimes all three.

We do an intense amount of preventative maintenance.

That's a continuous process and we stay on top of it.

- [Narrator] And says to make repairs, you simply can't just go to the store for parts.

- We make virtually every part that's on it.

With the equipment we have here in the shop, we've got some large lays that also date back to the steam locomotive's heyday.

There's no CNC, modern computerized machinery in the shop.

(train whistle blows) (upbeat polka music) - [Narrator] Now, remember, a trip to Tweetsie is more than just a ride on a classic train.

Tweetsie sticks to its roots as a Wild West theme park.

- [Texas Pete] My name is Texas Pete.

And this is my best friend, Tabasco.

- [Narrator] Passengers get treated to a full on Wild Wild West show.

- There's enough for everybody.

Some people like funny shows.

Some people want the action.

We try to make sure we get a good mix of that for everyone to be able to enjoy, you know, some big spectacle going on, and things like that too.

Just to kind of entertain the kids of all ages.

- There's so many sensory things going on with the rides, and with the train, and then with the entertainers.

You can't be a passive guest here at Tweetsie.

- Getting my grandkids off of those phones is a big deal to me.

So bringing them here, that was part of the plan.

(laughs) - Did you have fun today?

- Yeah.

- Very fun.

His first time here as well.

(pleasant carnival music) - [Narrator] Tweetsie offers more than just train rides and the Wild West show.

There's a petting zoo, gold panning, saloon shows, and other classic rides for kids of all ages.

According to Robbins, the park annually attracts around a quarter million visitors.

And credits sticking to what they know best for the park's success.

- I think just staying true to our mission, making it fun, keeping it fun, wanting to keep it running.

(engine chugging) North Carolina's growing, that helps.

Seems like Charlotte, and Raleigh, and Winston-Salem, are all booming.

Bringing new people into the state.

Some of 'em have never been to Tweetsie Railroad.

A lot of these people came here to Tweetsie Railroad when they were kids.

Now they're bringing their kids or their grandkids.

But we're also introducing it to new audiences.

(triumphant trumpet music) - [Narrator] On a cool September morning, folks line up early, for a quick bus ride.

Their final destination, well, let's just say, you're not in North Carolina anymore.

No, you're now in the Land of Oz.

♪ Somewhere over the rainbow ♪ - [Narrator] And the annual Autumn in Oz event.

- Autumn in Oz is an immersive theatrical festival, essentially.

It's similar to a Renaissance festival, but with the Wizard of Oz.

- [Narrator] For some of the smaller guests, it might be a little too immersive.

- I don't like it.

I don't like that mean witch.

- (laughs) You don't like that mean, old witch?

- No.

- [Narrator] To three year old Graylin's credit, the wicked witch doesn't discriminate as our producer found out.

- How do you feel about getting that thing out my face?

(witch squeals and laughs) - [Narrator] But don't worry, it's all a part of the Autumn at Oz experience.

Over three weekends in September over 20,000 visitors from all over make their way to Beech Mountain to visit.

- It's like being in the movie walking through a live play.

It's really, really magical.

- It's her favorite movie.

She's watched it since she was eight months old.

And we've been coming since she was two.

- We have the full Kansas farm that is still there.

So you go through Dorothy's house and it's neat and tidy.

And then you go through the tornado cellar.

And you come out the other side and it's crooked.

We have all of the characters along the Yellow Brick Road.

You see live performances, you get photo ops.

We have craft vendors and food vendors and we sell Wizard of Oz memorabilia.

So it's a hybrid of a theater production and a festival.

(orchestral music) - [Narrator] Based on Frank Baum's book, the Wonderful Wizard of Oz, The Land of Oz Theme Park opened to the public in 1970.

And it was all part of a master plan to expand tourism in the region.

- Grover Robbins built Tweetsie Railroad in Blowing Rock in the late 1950s and he wanted to develop the whole area of western North Carolina into a new tourist area.

So his next project after Tweetsie was figuring out what to do with Beech Mountain.

And they wanted to create year round employment.

So they brought up Charlotte based designer Jack Pentes to the top of Beech Mountain said, What can we do with this?

And he said, This is Oz.

- [Narrator] Throughout the 1970s, thousands of people visited the land of Oz, to walk down the yellow brick road, fly high in the iconic balloon ride, and meet the beloved characters from the Wizard of Oz movie.

Unfortunately though, along the way, the park ran into some trouble.

- [Sean] In 1975, a fire broke through Emerald City.

Carolina Caribbean who built the park went bankrupt.

But one of the investors came in and bought the park.

And then it ran through 1980.

- [Narrator] After closing in 1980, the park was left to decay as the owners debated what would happen next.

It was a dark time for the classic tourist destination, but there was talk of demolishing the entire park to build homes.

But by the early nineties, the Lighty family who owned the land decided to try something new.

- They decided to open the park for one day in July.

And that grew into multiple events throughout the years.

And now we run Autumn in Oz for three weekends every September.

- Well Dorothy, I think, is along the Yellow Brick Road.

- [Narrator] The fairy tale stories in movies we enjoy as children, often bring feelings of nostalgia as adults.

- It was awesome.

I remember coming here as a seven or eight year old and just going through the forest, getting down to the witches cave.

It was a neat experience as a kid.

A lot of fond memories.

- [Narrator] Ann Zeitz even got the t-shirt her first time to Oz.

- I went with my parents back then and now I wanna bring my son who's 20 now.

- [Narrator] Meet cousins, Sarah Luttrell and Martha Brame.

- I live in Sarnia, Ontario, Canada, and I live in Wilkesboro, North Carolina.

- [Narrator] This duo has some fond memories of the land of Oz and a personal connection.

- My father and her mother are first cousins to Harry Robbins who is one of the creators and owners of this.

So we came every summer growing up and it was just magical.

Contacted her and I said, are you up for it?

Because I wanna come.

- It's been really neat and to think, oh well look, it's the same.

We remember things - Yeah.

It is the same.

from years and years ago.

- The Yellow Brick Road obviously was just - The best.

- I teared up.

It's just history for us.

(whimsical fairy tale music) - [Narrator] Making Autumn at Oz an unforgettable experience for visitors takes a small army and some major talent.

♪ I'd be tender, I'd be gentle, and awful sentimental ♪ ♪ Regarding love and art ♪ - We have 60 actors a day.

We have a staff of 45.

This year we have Austin Scarlet from Project Runway and he's designing new costumes for everybody.

And so it takes a lot of people and a lot of perseverance and a lot of patience.

- But she said she wants to have Toto destroyed.

- Oh her fat, cute little doll.

- [Narrator] Visitors taking the journey along the yellow brick road interact with their favorite characters.

Characters such as the Mayor of Munchkinland, the Scarecrow, TinMan, or the Cowardly Lion.

All portrayed by actors with an equal obsession for the Land of Oz.

Say hello to actress Steph Twomey.

- Growing up, like the Wizard of Oz was everything to me.

It was every birthday party.

It was every Halloween.

The Wizard of Oz itself.

It's such a magical story.

- [Narrator] She remembers her very first visit to the Land of Oz.

- I had the time of my life.

I mean I absolutely loved it.

It was just everything that I had ever dreamed of as a child, you know, right there in this theme park.

And so I left and it was like the best weekend ever.

- [Narrator] With that very first visit, Twomey was hooked.

- And I emailed them, I said, Hey, can I be Dorothy?

I'll never forget he sent me an email back that says, Well are you willing to dye your hair at the time?

And I was like, Yes.

And I immediately like sent a picture to my sister, my mom, and I'm like almost in tears.

I was like, oh my gosh.

I finally get to be Dorothy.

Like I get to be Dorothy at The Land of Oz Theme Park.

- Whoa!

♪ With the thoughts you'll be thinking ♪ ♪ You could be another Lincoln ♪ ♪ If you only had a brain ♪ - I could!

- I'm incredibly lucky and incredibly thankful that I get to have that experience and get to be a part of that.

(bell rings) - Who rang that bell?

- [Narrator] At the end of the Yellow Brick Road, visitors must knock on a large gate to enter the Emerald City.

On this day, we met Tiffany Christian.

- One, two, three Dorothys.

Oh my!

- This is my first year as part of the Oz family, as part of the cast.

And it has been everything I thought it would be.

I feel like a superstar.

Like I get to be in everybody's photo albums and their videos.

I'm a part of people's family histories.

I am a part of a magical day.

- [Narrator] Besides her role in the Emerald City, she also plays a key role back in Kansas.

- I'm also on Em.

And I am the first black on Em that they've had.

And so just tales of the other cast members when they see children's faces light up when they see somebody that looks like them as part of this experience.

And so we've grown to a point where our imaginations expand to include all kinds of people and to be part of that is very important for me.

- [Narrator] The book, movie, and this iconic theme park in the North Carolina Mountains continue to impact the lives of their fans.

Remember Little Graylin?

- It's wonderful to watch the magic cuz she thinks she's really in the Wizard of Oz.

- [Narrator] And so the Land of Oz through more than five decades, still stands as one of the North Carolina mountains iconic tourist destinations.

Hopefully welcoming visitors for years and generations to come.

♪ Oh, we're off to see the wizard ♪ ♪ The wonderful Wizard of Oz ♪ - Bye, bye, Dorothy.

- Bye now!

- [Narrator] Scenic and majestic views throughout the Western North Carolina mountains offer travelers at different perspectives of the natural world.

For those who pass through the gates at Grandfather Mountain, take this winding mountain road all the way up to the top.

They're rewarded with spectacular views.

The unique Mile High Swinging Bridge.

A recently renovated nature center, and up close wildlife encounters.

- Grandfather Mountain is a classic North Carolina tourism destination.

When you think of the whole state of North Carolina, from the mountains to the coast.

A visit to Grandfather Mountain is just one of those things everyone needs to experience.

Whether you're born and raised in North Carolina.

- [Narrator] Or a recent transplant to the state, like Bill Kinney.

- We decided to take our grandson on a little trip.

I've always heard of Grandfather Mountain ever since as a child, but I've never been here.

- [Narrator] They're amongst the tens of thousands of visitors to Grandfather Mountain each year.

But they were not the first.

The Cherokee called the Mountain Tanawha.

According to the Grandfather Mountain Stewardship Foundation website, the name Tanawha means a fabulous hawk or eagle.

But European settlers to the region have another name for the mountain.

- Grandfather Mountain gets its name from the iconic silhouette of the mountain from a distance.

I think it looks like an old man's face.

The face is lying down looking up to the sky.

- [Narrator] Grandfather Mountain is comprised of over 6,000 acres with several primary stakeholders.

- We have Grandfather Mountain State Park.

The Grandfather Mountain Stewardship Foundation which operates and owns the attraction side of Grandfather.

And then we also have other properties that are owned by the Nature Conservancy and Blue Ridge Conservancy for conservation and preservation purposes.

(twangy string music plays) - [Narrator] This rugged wilderness remained mostly inaccessible until the community of Linville was established in the late 1800's as a tourist destination.

- And it wasn't really though until the 1930s, 1940s that Grandfather Mountain became a travel destination.

There was a one-lane road that visitors could pay a toll at the entrance gate and could travel up the mountain to a location where they could then hike to the high peaks of Grandfather.

- [Narrator] But it was Wilmington native Hugh Morton who to take the family business to new heights.

- Hugh Morton inherited Grandfather Mountain from his grandfather, from the McCrae family.

And established the park as we know it today.

He had the vision for completing the Park Road to the summit of Grandfather Mountain at Linville Peak, which is the fourth highest peak of Grandfather.

And had the vision for the Mile High Swinging bridge.

And everybody thought he was crazy.

- [Narrator] The bridge cost $15,000 to construct.

- The grand opening of the Mile High Swinging Bridge was originally in September 2nd, 1952.

And Governor Olmsted, who was governor of North Carolina at the time, was here for the grand opening of the bridge and his daughter was the first person to cross the bridge.

- [Narrator] The Mile High Swinging Bridge may have put Grandfather Mountain on the map as a must see tourist destination.

But one major attraction resulted by chance in the late 1960s.

- [Jesse] The animal habitats happened very much out of circumstance.

Mildred, the bear, was brought to Grandfather Mountain to be a wild bear.

She was released into the wild and within 24 hours she was back in the park hanging out with employees.

And within a week she had wandered to Linville.

And so the Wildlife Commission said Mildred's gonna have to go into captivity.

But at that point, Mr. Morton had fallen absolutely in love with her and decided to keep her at Grandfather Mountain.

And so Mildred the Bear is the reason we have the Environmental Animal Habitats here at Grandfather Mountain.

- [Narrator] The first bear habitat was built in 1973.

And Mildred, the bear, lived at Grandfather Mountain for nearly 27 years until her passing in 1993.

But her paw print on the mountain was certainly made.

Today, you can see much more than just bears at the park.

- Here at Grandfather Mountain we have black bears, cougars, river otters, elk, and bald eagles that are on display in the habitats for the visitors to come see.

All of the animals that we have here are native to North Carolina or were once here.

Personally, my favorite probably would be the otters.

I really love how playful they are.

They're very intelligent.

The cougars would be a very close second 'cause I'm a cat person as well.

- [Narrator] Grandfather Mountain Animal curator Christie Tipton, says the animals serve a purpose.

- The reason that we have the animals here is it's a good opportunity for people that don't always get a chance to see these animals out in the wild to come and see them.

You know, help form connections with them, learn all about them, and learn how they are important to the environment.

- [Narrator] Tipton adds that each animal at the park is there for a reason.

- They have either been raised around humans, so they're too used to people.

Some of them been orphaned out in the wild.

Got too used to people when they were, you know, brought into a rehaber.

Some of them been injured out in the wild and they can't be released due to those injuries.

So all of them are here because they cannot live on their own in the wild.

The best part about working with the animals for me is just forming the relationships with them.

And from species to species, they're just so different and so amazing in their own way.

So it's just incredible to be able to work with these guys.

- [Narrator] There's lots to do at Grandfather Mountain and even a bit of Hollywood history.

- There's been many films and commercials recorded on Grandfather Mountain.

The most famous is the Forest Gump movie.

There was a scene filmed here on one of our switchbacks on the road going to the summit of Grandfather Mountain, where Tom Hanks ran across country as Forrest Gump.

But the runner in the film was actually Tom Hank's brother.

He was his body double that did a lot of the running scenes in the movie.

And so Tom Hanks was not here that day filming that.

It was his brother.

- [Narrator] Now there's one thing you definitely want to consider when planning a trip to Grandfather Mountain.

And that's the weather.

- So Grandfather Mountain is a place of extreme biological diversity.

But it's also known for its weather extremes.

This is known as probably the windiest place in North Carolina with winds exceeding 124 miles per hour.

Today, here at Grandfather Mountain, we have 50 to 60 mile an hour winds.

- [Narrator] For safety, staff regularly measure the wind speed, and close off access to the Swinging Bridge if gusts exceed 50 miles per hour.

Even moderately high winds add to the experience when crossing the iconic Swinging Bridge.

But even on a windy day, Jesse Pope says Grandfather Mountain is so much more.

- The biggest part of Hugh Morton's vision here at Grandfather, was he always wanted to protect the resources.

He wanted to have public access so people could come and experience it.

And it's a really special iconic international destination.

When you come, every day's a different experience.

(upbeat lively music plays) - [Narrator] Buckets of ore, screens and cool flowing water, provide young gem miners like Isaac, all he needs to find his next treasure.

- Collecting rocks.

- [Narrator] Rhonda Phillips brought her grandson's, Jesse and Isaac to the Gem Mine at Emerald Village.

Continuing a family tradition.

- I started doing this with my sons when they were little boys.

It brings a lot of joy to my heart when they start picking out different colors.

And then we'll go home, we'll take the card, and I'll teach 'em about all of the different minerals.

- [Alan] Emerald Village is an collection of mining related attractions near little Switzerland and the Blue Ridge Parkway.

We have the mining museum.

We have gem mining.

We have shops, walk-in trails, a whole village.

- Ask owner Alan Schabilion how it all got started over four decades ago and he's quick to point fingers.

- Well, I can actually blame my dad on that.

He had the wild idea of coming to the mountains, finding some old abandoned mines, and turning them into a museum.

We opened it in 1980.

I moved here about that time.

Did the construction work on the buildings.

Been here ever since.

Some people would say I have rocks in my head.

- [Narrator] Of course, creating a tourist attraction from an old mine required a rock solid business plan.

- Imagination and luck.

Probably made a few mistakes, but we've always been open to new ideas, new attractions.

Making it a little bit better each time.

And making sure we have fun.

- [Narrator] And that plan seems to be working.

- We're actually working on the fourth generation.

So it's still very much a family business.

- [Narrator] For most, a visit to Emerald Village means exploring the rich mining history of Mitchell County.

- We call this the Bon Ami Mine.

If we were French, of course we'd say Bull nami, but none of us are French.

So Bon Ami, it is.

Bon Ami makes a scouring powder.

Many people are familiar with it.

They made it for 125 years now using feldspar from these mines here.

Feldspar was a magic ingredient.

Actually 95% of the product was ground up feldspar, 5% was sulfur.

- [Narrator] Inside the mining museum, there's memorabilia related to Bon Ami, historical photos, tools, and various mineral samples.

Outside, old mining equipment dots the landscape all around the property.

- All the various things the miners needed to work in these mines.

These were hard rock mines.

Drilling the holes and then packing those holes full of dynamite, blasting it down.

They used mules here to pull the railroad cars in and out of the mine.

It was hard work.

Nobody wants to be a miner.

Say we're paid 10 cents an hour.

10 hours a day, dollar a day, six days a week.

Very hard, dangerous work.

- [Narrator] There are a dozen mines on the 88 acre property.

Most like the McKinney mine, though, are too dangerous to enter.

But with some creative water management, you can explore the Bon Ami mine.

There's old mining carts, drills, a black light room highlighting the minerals and a lake full of trout.

But sorry folks, no fishing allowed.

But you're allowed to feed them.

After exploring the mine and the museums at Emerald Village, the next step for most rock hounds, of course, the gem mine.

- We offer buckets that people can sit down at the the flume and we provide the screens, go through 'em, pick out the pretty ones, keep anything you find.

For those that really want a real experience, is the old mine dumps here have been open for collecting.

And so for a fee you can go out and spend all day on the dumps.

Picking up whatever strikes you're fancy.

Probably won't strike it rich, but you're guaranteed to have fun.

- [Narrator] Fun, easy, and educational for the kids from the Avery County 4-H. - Avery 4-H during the summer, we have kids ages five through 12 and we take them on different field trips.

And so today our field trip is here to Emerald Village to let our kids explore rocks and gems.

And so they've been looking forward to this and just to see their face light up when they find a colored gem and they want to know what it is.

And of course, they always think they're worth a million dollars every time they find anything cool.

- [Narrator] The real lesson for the folks visiting Emerald Village.

- If people want to know, am I gonna strike it rich?

Well, I tell you, if you're having fun, you're rich.

- [Narrator] Whether it's a gem mine, a natural wonder, or even a theme park, these destinations are often where the most special memories are made with family and friends.

So on your next road trip, you might decide to take that off ramp and see what that unique place from the billboard is all about.

Thank you for watching this episode of Trail of History.

(upbeat twangy country music plays) A production of PBS Charlotte.