Remembering Highlands

Highlands, North Carolina, is not just home to cool mountain breezes, breathtaking views and world-class shopping and restaurants, it also boasts a rich and vibrant history. What started as the dream of two developers in 1875 has grown from a tiny hamlet into a beloved home and home-away-from-home for many. Join sixth-generation Highlands native Isabel Hall Chambers and her husband, Overton Chambers, as they share charming tales of old Highlands, from lazy summer days playing "town ball" to ice-skating and celebrating Christmas. Woven into this collection of articles from the Laurel are true stories of some of the area's grand old homes, its traditions and an array of interesting residents and visitors through the years, as told by fathers and grandfathers, old postcards, letters, deeds and even tombstones. Everyone who loves this unique mountain community will delight in Remembering Highlands.

Isabel Hall Chambers, a Brenau graduate, is a sixth-generation native of this area and a Norton descendant through her father, Tudor Norton Hall, and grandmother, Meta Norton Frost Hall. Her memories of her family, knowledge of family history and growing up in Highlands are the basis for many of these stories. She is a founding member and the first president of the Highlands Historical Society. In addition, she was recently appointed historical archivist for the Episcopal Church of the Incarnation. This, along with her interest and knowledge of Highlands's history, has caused her to be sought out by visitors looking up their roots. She is a storyteller and enjoys other storytellers. Overton "Tony"? Chambers was born in Chicago and is Isabel's husband. He came to Highlands with his family in 1936, and a year later they built a summer home in Highlands. At Dartmouth College, he majored in English. He and Isabel and their three sons returned to Highlands in 1972. He is a member of the North Carolina Writer's Network and published his first novel in 2005. His interests are writing, genealogy and history.