what is canton nc like

[jbird22]

I live within the city limits and the scent of the mill reaches me LESS at my Canton home than it did in my Waynesville home. I like it because many immediately dismiss it, thinking it is awful - which tends to cull the herd, so to speak. As I said, if you know where to look, there is no better bang for the buck in an Asheville "suburb" than Canton.

I am about five minutes to the highway, five minutes to the Buncombe County line (higher taxes), in a roomy, established neighborhood.

[Cofga]

Like my granddaddy used to say "you can get used to a t--d under your nose if you leave it there long enough", sniff sniff. The first thing my friends in Asheville warned me about was the smell from Canton. Don't get near or downwind of that town. On a really bad day you can smell it in Candler and even on the ridges above Avery Creek--James

[jbird22]

Originally Posted by jbird22

I live within the city limits and the scent of the mill reaches me LESS at my Canton home than it did in my Waynesville home. I like it because many immediately dismiss it, thinking it is awful - which tends to cull the herd, so to speak. As I said, if you know where to look, there is no better bang for the buck in an Asheville "suburb" than Canton.

I am about five minutes to the highway, five minutes to the Buncombe County line (higher taxes), in a roomy, established neighborhood.

CLARIFICATION: When I said "I like 'it'..." I meant unscented areas of Canton, not that Paper Mill smell.

[Sweetwater93]

I can't think of a better place to live than in the Canton area. I have lived here for 16 years. The people are great, Schools are great. People complain about the smell well I live 5 minutes from down town and don't smell a thing. If you live here You know thats not stink that is the smell of MONEY that smell has kept this little town going for over a one hundred years. People who live here have roots in the mill their families go back for generations working in at the Mill. So I hope the smell keeps people away I love living in this small town you can have Asheville and all your big towns with all their crime and weirdos. As for the Flood it was the first time in probably 80+ years that it flooded. It was an act of God not something that was caused by the people of Canton.

[pslamp32]

Originally Posted by Sweetwater93

So I hope the smell keeps people away I love living in this small town you can have Asheville and all your big towns with all their crime and weirdos.

Lol! Not a big fan of crime but I rather like 'the weirdos'. Heck If I was in your town I'd probably be considered one of them.

[OMGosh Josh]

Canton is smeeeellly.

I like living just outside of town (Asheville), though.

I live in Fairview. woot!

[soundforlanguage81]

I lived in Canton until I was 23 years old and I grew up 500 yards from the paper mill. The smell was rarely an issue. I dig my hometown because unlike most of WNC it retains a working class character. Every native family has at least one relative who works or has worked at the paper mill. Without it, Canton would be a ghost town.

While i'm at it, I'll go ahead an put a few of the myths and preconcieved notions to rest:

-The smell isn't constant, and it by no means reaches every part of town. I lived in west Canton and I could literally walk to the edge of my neighborhood and throw a stone onto the mill property. You would catch a wiff pretty infrequently and it lasts maybe a few minutes, or until the wind changes direction.

-The % of people living in poverty in Canton is less than Waynesville's. Just because some wad from New York by way of Florida by way of NC decided to clear-cut 25 acres of land and slap a million dollar home on the side of eaglenest mountain doesn't make Waynesville any better. The middle class homes in Canton FAR outnumber the rusted out singlewide trailers.

-Like previously mentioned, Canton addresses take up nearly all of southern Haywood county. That includes the beautiful communities of Cruso, Lake Logan, (most of) Bethel etc.. And from my house I could make it to downtown Asheville in 20-25 mins, so it's one of the closest incorporated towns in proximity to Asheville.

-We're not talking about Dog Patch here people, While Canton is not Wal-Mart centric (thank god) it does boast multiple grocery stores, a few nice restaurants, a few nice diners, fast food joints by the interstate... and a downtown that is changing for the better every day. Basically it has everything a town of 4,000 people would be expected to have.

All people seem to notice are the negative things about Canton, and the negative things that one could say goes for every other small town in America. It's a place that primarily relies on one major industry, and not millions upon millions of tourist dollars. I'll take that kind of town anyday.