U.S. Route 70 road trip rolls into Marion, N.C.

Driving down through the Swannanoa Gap on Interstate 40/U.S. Route 70 east of Asheville…the stretch that drops almost straight down into Old Fort…is one of North Carolina’s most scenic 5-mile drives. 

Passengers can enjoy the spectacular panoramic view of Royal Gorge, but the vehicle’s driver must always keep his/her eyes on the twisty, steep roadway…while pumping brakes on the 6% grade. 

When the pavement levels out below at Old Fort, U.S. Route 70 “resurfaces,” spinning off once again from the superhighway. 

Here, one can observe the mountains beginning to fade into foothills. From Old Fort, it’s just a few miles more to reach Marion, the seat of the McDowell County government. Marion is a good point to pause, reflect and refresh. 

The county was formed in 1842 and took its name from American Revolutionary War leader Col. Joseph McDowell. 

After America’s independence was achieved, McDowell was selected in 1879 to be a member of the first board of trustees of the University of North Carolina. McDowell was also elected twice to the U.S. Congress. 

Marion was incorporated in 1844 and named after Revolutionary War hero Gen. Francis Marion, who was known as the “Swamp Fox.” 

You will find Mr. Bob’s Do-Nuts shops in Old Fort and Marion. Bob Masiello’s specialty is called an “apple ugly,” a pastry made from doughnut holes, apple sauce and cinnamon. (Not shown here)

Marion was rocking when the downtown was packed with people on July 7, 2011, for the dedication on the town hall lawn of a commemorative plaque honoring one of its native sons. He is legendary college basketball coach Roy Williams. 

The plaque is mounted on a pole, and it resembles an official North Carolina Historical Highway Marker, except it’s not silver and black. Rather, the face of the plaque is “Carolina blue.”

The inscription reads: “Roy Williams: National championship winning college basketball coach for University of North Carolina and member of basketball hall of fame. Born in 1950 in Marion General Hospital, which stands one block north.” 

Many biographies of Coach Williams refer to him as a Spruce Pine native. To set the record straight, the Williams family was living in Spruce Pine in Mitchell County, but the closest hospital was in Marion, about 20 miles south of Spruce Pine. 

Lallage “Mimmie” Williams gave birth to baby boy Roy in the Marion hospital on Aug. 1, 1950. 

Roy was a young child when the family moved to the Asheville area. Williams graduated in 1968 from T.C. Roberson High School (named for former Buncombe County school superintendent Thomas Crawford Roberson). 

Williams was the student body president as well as a standout player in basketball and baseball. He also enjoyed square dancing.

Marion, Spruce Pine and Asheville all claim to be the home of Coach Williams. “I feel a tug from all three communities,” Williams told the Asheville Citizen-Times in 2009. 

“My mother was born and raised in Mitchell County, I had an aunt who lived in Spruce Pine, and I played in the creeks around her home. I’ve also played some bad golf on their splendid little course at Grassy Creek (in Spruce Pine).” 

Two people who influenced Roy Williams at T.C. Roberson High were Roy Eugene “Buddy” Baldwin and Rosa Lee Case Baldwin. Buddy taught history and was the basketball coach; Rosa Lee was a mathematics teacher. Roy Williams wanted to “be like Buddy,” and coach basketball. 

Williams turned down a full scholarship to study engineering at Georgia Tech in Atlanta and free ride offers to play basketball at small colleges. He was headed straight to UNC in Chapel Hill, because that’s where Coach Buddy Baldwin had gone to college.