Historic Background
A Buncombe County, North Carolina couple, Zebulon and Audrey Foster, purchased land in the Pine Burr Park area of Woodfin in 1920. They both worked in Asheville, and were looking for a more rural lifestyle for themselves and their young daughter. Initially they lived in a small house on the property, gardened, and had a dairy cow. [2]
The land bordered what became a section of the Dixie Highway, a scenic driving route for tourists from northern states. After a number of people asked to camp on the site, which featured a grove of pine trees and views of the mountains, the Fosters decided to construct some small cabins around 1931. The first seven one-room cabins with porches, built from pine logs, were served by two outhouses. Each cabin rented for $1 per night. [2]
Six more cabins were built in 1932. All the cabins were improved over the next few years, with additions such as bathrooms, brick chimneys, and wood floors. A dining facility was constructed on an adjoining lot in 1937; it operated as a restaurant until 2021. [5] [6] [3] [1] Part of the movie Thunder Road, starring Robert Mitchum, was filmed in one of the cabins in the summer of 1957; it was then called Top-o-the-Hill cabin, and is now known as the Thunder Road cabin. [3]
Audrey Foster operated the Log Cabin Court until she retired in 1970 (Zebulon Foster died in 1941.) [2] It has continued to provide moderately-priced tourist accommodations under subsequent owners. [1]
National Register of Historic Places Listing
Foster's Log Cabin Court was nominated for the National Register in December 2016, and was listed on May 1, 2017. [3] There are twenty-two contributing buildings and three non-contributing buildings in the property listing.
The historic significance of the property was described in the nomination:
As an intact example of twentieth-century automobile-based tourism, Foster’s Log Cabin Court meets National Register Criterion A in the area of Entertainment/Recreation. Foster’s Log Cabin Court also meets Criterion C for architecture as an intact tourist court with Rustic Revival style buildings characterized by saddle-notched pole-log construction. The rustic log construction has appealed to the romantic nature of passing motorists since the court’s inception, offering tourists a welcome opportunity to experience the pioneer heritage of the region. As one of the region’s earliest and best-preserved tourist courts, the buildings of Foster’s Log Cabin Court remain scattered among tall pine trees, and the wooded setting compliments the rustic architecture of the tourist court. [3]
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