Origins of Area Names between milepost 276-291

• Seven Devils: Seven men on horseback who were interested in developing the mountain with seven peaks encountered a rumor that there was an old man who had seven sons "as mean as the devil." The founders wanted a catchy, unique name that would bring attention to the mountain. They noticed the repeated appearance of the number seven, including the seven predominant rocky peaks surrounding Valley Creek--and also many coincidental reference to "devils"--people also commented about the mountain, "it is as cold as the devil," or "as windy as the devil."
• Valle Crucis: Means "Valley of the Cross," named for two mountain streams that flow toward each other and when emptying into Dutch Creek, form a St. Andrews cross.
• Watauga County: Cherokee name which is said to mean "Beautiful Waters," "River of Islands," and "The Land Beyond," but no one knows for sure.
• Tweetsie Railroad : Gets its affectionate name from the mountain people who loved the train's shrill whistle. The train began in 1882 as the ET & WNC Railroad and finally ran from Boone to Johnson City in 1918. It is now a popular theme park between Boone & Blowing Rock.
• Meat Camp : Meat Camp was so named because of a cabin that stood on the land where hunters would store their meat and hides while they hunted the land.
• Aho Gap : Aho was actually named by a committee. When a name was in the process of being chosen, there was always a conflict with whatever was suggested, so the committee decided that the next word spoken, no matter what it was, would be the name of the new community. After a long silence, BB Dougherty (father of ASU) stood up, stretched, and said, "Aho."