10 years ago
* Robbinsville’s new $7.4 million wastewater-treatment plant remained on schedule to open in the fall. The existing plant was 40 years old and had came close to shutdowns. The new plant would expand from 630,000 gallons of capacity to more than 800,000. The new plant was primarily funded by USDA grants.
* Tyler Colvin of Robbinsville was sentenced to five months in prison for killing a black bear cub in the Wayah Bear Sanctuary in Nantahala National Forest in 2011. Colvin used a muzzleloader and fired three shots at the bear, one of which killed the cub. Colvin was also ordered to pay $2,232 to the N.C. Wildlife Commission.
* The Robbinsville Middle School Knights had a new sense of purpose this season. Every play and inning was in honor of their friend and teammate, Loudon Orr. Orr passed in 2012 after an accident while attending a baseball camp. Update: Today, both the middle-school and high-school baseball programs play their games on Loudon Orr Memorial Field.
25 years ago
* About 50 gathered before Sunrise on Easter morning at Stecoah Gap, to celebrate the greatest event of Christianity. Mike Edwards shared the Bible, while Gary Crisp offered the closing prayer.
* Ernest Sellers died while being held at the Graham County Jail. Although the autopsy found that Sellers died of natural causes, a circulation letter – signed by several inmates – differed greatly from the information given by them to the N.C. State Bureau of Investigation. Officials were still looking into the matter.
50 years ago
* Clashing opinions were heard regarding the use of land in Snowbird and how it should be managed. Leonard Lloyd, representing Graham County Board of Commissioners, stated that the people of Graham County were caught between three major forces, each telling the citizens the best use of the land. “Let these lands and its people rest,” said Lloyd.
* A number of fires were set across the county over the weekend, according to John Derks, Cheoah District Ranger. The fires were contained quickly, as the U.S. Forest Service helicopters were used in patrol work. The forest service was also authorized to pay a $500 reward for the conviction of the responsible party.
-Compiled by Diane West