ECHOES

ECHOES: Glimpses of the History and People of eastern Lincoln County, N.C. brings the forgotten past of one of North Carolina's most fascinating regions roaring back to life.

Award-winning journalists Ken and Anna Jonas Fortenberry readers deep into the rich and often dramatic history of eastern Lincoln County and the western shores of present-day Lake Norman - from Native American settlements and Revolutionary War skirmishes to vanished plantations, Civil War companies, iron furnaces, ghost stories and lost communities now resting beneath the waters of the Catawba River.

Drawn from years of research and originally featured in the widely read news@norman newspaper, these stories preserve a world that is rapidly disappearing from memory.

Inside these pages, readers will discover:

• The rise and fall of Beatty's Ford, once the gateway into western North Carolina
• The magnificent river plantations swallowed by the creation of Lake Norman
• The hidden history of slavery, iron furnaces and pioneer life along the Catawba
• Revolutionary War encounters involving British General Cornwallis
• Civil War soldiers, preachers, politicians and legendary local families
• Ghost stories and folklore passed down through generations
• Rare recollections from descendants whose families helped shape the region
• Forgotten roads, churches, ferries, mills and settlements lost to time

At the center of the book is the story of ordinary and extraordinary people - pioneers, farmers, enslaved workers, ministers, craftsmen, soldiers and families whose lives built the foundation of modern Lincoln County.

Written in a vivid narrative style filled with firsthand memories, historical accounts and colorful local legends, ECHOES is far more than a collection of dates and facts. It is the story of a community, its people and the generations who lived, worked, worshipped and struggled along the old Catawba River long before Lake Norman existed.

For history lovers, genealogy researchers, longtime residents and newcomers alike, this book offers a rare window into the soul of a disappearing Carolina past.