Black Mountain Swannanoa Chamber of Commerce celebrates 100 years

The Black Mountain Swannanoa Chamber of Commerce is celebrating its 100th anniversary in 2023.

According to a Facebook post from the chamber, it was incorporated on Jan. 26, 1923.

“Its focus was to promote Black Mountain as a tourist destination,” Executive Director Sharon Tabor said. “That’s been the chamber’s focus for 100 years, as well as economic growth.”  

Tabor said one of the first projects of the chamber was to play an “instrumental” role in creating a road from Black Mountain to Chimney Rock, what now is N.C. 9. The proposed road would have gone from Mount Mitchell, which Tabor said the chamber thought would divert traffic away from Black Mountain.

As for its physical space, the Black Mountain Swannanoa Chamber of Commerce has had many iterations.

Previously, the chamber shared a building with Black Mountain Savings Bank. The chamber also shared a building with Black Mountain Town Hall when both were still on Cherry Street where the Black Mountain Center for the Arts currently sits. It was not until the 1980s that the chamber moved into its current building at 201 East State St.

To celebrate the occasion, Tabor said there will be several events happening throughout the year.

“We’ll do little things throughout the year,” Tabor said. “We want to do something a little bit every month to keep it front and center rather than one large event.”

The celebration kicked off in 2022 with the annual December banquet.

Tabor said she plans for at least one social media post each month highlighting different parts of the chamber’s history.

The summer, residents and tourists coming to Black Mountain can find rocking chairs around town decorated by local children depicting the anniversary theme. Tabor said the children will get creative and can do anything they would like on the panels of the rocking chairs, as long as it ties back to the 100th anniversary of the chamber.

Tabor said the annual Sourwood Festival is also a potential opportunity to incorporate the 100th theme.

The celebrations will close with the annual December banquet which will be themed as a “jazz age murder mystery dinner,” according to Tabor.

Looking toward the future, Tabor said she hopes for the chamber to get more involved with economic development by partnering with organizations such as the Land of Sky Regional Council and the Western North Carolina Chamber of Commerce.

“We can remain relevant not just to tourism, but with housing and other job opportunities than can keep our community sustainable,” Tabor said. “When we think about the fact that over 17 businesses in Black Mountain have been here more than 100 years, the chamber is the youngest of those 17. That kind of highlights the longevity and stability of the community.”