Lost Heritage

During construction of the Tennessee Valley Authority Watauga Dam, TVA workers roamed the valley and interviewed the land owners and other residents prior to their homes and property being taken over by the Tennessee Valley Authority. Those reports constituted an account of the people, the valley, and the time. This compilation is a documentation of the people of old Butler and the Watauga Valley from those TVA records—and from people who hold fond, romantic memories of that place and time. It documents old Butler and surrounding communities of the Watauga Valley that were inundated, institutions that were moved or destroyed, and families that were displaced or otherwise affected by construction of the TVA Watauga Dam.