One of N.C.’s ‘coolest’ new products is ‘Old 97 Kettlecorn’

Nominations for the “Coolest Thing Made in North Carolina,” an online contest offered by the North Carolina Chamber of Commerce, open Aug. 22. We’re previewing some of the likely “small business category” candidates. 

And, we’d be hard-pressed to find a more “down-home” family business in North Carolina than The Old 97 Kettlecorn Company, located in Spencer in Rowan County.

 

This newly established company was registered in 2018 and takes its name from “The Old 97,” which was the legendary Southern Railway mail train that ran off the tracks while crossing a ravine at Danville, Va., on Sept. 27, 1903. Eleven people were killed in that tragic accident.

 The engineer was under pressure, some sources say, to make up time on the leg from Monroe, Va. (near Lynchburg) to Spencer, the mid-way point on the line between Washington, D.C., and Atlanta, Ga. If the mail train was late to arrive in Spencer, the Southern Railway would be subject to a penalty fine by U.S. post authorities. 

Laurie Deal-Wilson, who formed The Old 97 Kettlecorn Company, is proud to claim Spencer as her hometown. She said that throughout the years, many of her kinfolk have worked at Spencer Shops, which was the railroad’s repair and maintenance facility built in Spencer in 1896. 

(The conversion from steam locomotives to diesel locomotives caused the demise of the Spencer Shops. They were phased out by the 1970s, but the complex is now home to the acclaimed North Carolina Transportation Museum.) 

Spencer and railroading go together much like kettle corn and festivals. 

Laurie Deal-Wilson gives much credit to her daughter, Taylor Wilson, for concocting the secret kettle corn recipe. While away at college in Pennsylvania, Taylor was “converted” from salty, movie theater-style popcorn to sweet-and-salty kettle corn. Add sugar…and some flavoring, if you’d like.

 

Freelance writer Geraldine Higgins wrote: “The Wilsons set out to turn their newfound (kettle corn) passion into a business and quickly built a brand honoring their hometown’s deep-rooted connection to locomotives.” 

“The name of the company itself is a reference to the country ballad ‘The Wreck of Old 97,’” Higgins added. 

Indeed. Performed in 1924 by Vernon Dalhart, it was the first country record to sell 1 million copies. Many artists have covered the song, but the fan-favorite version is Hank Snow’s…with Johnny Cash’s rendition running a close second.

Hank Snow

 

Taylor’s brother, Coleman, took the kettle corn idea and ran with it, devoting himself fulltime to launching a legitimate business. He sought out weekend festivals in the area to promote The Old 97 Kettlecorn line. 

That was going swimmingly, even prompting an introduction of a highly popular Cheerwine flavor of kettle corn. (Cheerwine is a uniquely flavored cherry-cola soft drink that was invented in nearby Salisbury in 1917.)

 

The 2020 COVID pandemic was a game-changer for The Old 97 Kettlecorn Company. Festivals were cancelled left and right, “leaving the company without its main source of revenue,” Higgins wrote. “With no events to attend, the company was forced to reinvent itself.” 

“We became adamant about going into stores and ordering online,” Coleman said. 

Laurie said the transition has worked, because of the Wilson family’s commitment “with every batch to bring you the best-tasting kettle corn you can find.” 

“Our customers are important,” she said. “We understand the value of their dollar, so that is why we strive to provide consistency in our product” and welcome them “into our family.” 

As the N.C. Chamber says: “What’s made in North Carolina is what makes North Carolina.”