Highlands, NC  Town Overview

At the southern tip of the Blue Ridge Mountains, at an elevation of over 4,000 feet, lies the mountain community of Highlands, North Carolina. The year round population of the Highlands area is about 4,500 and Cashiers is about 2,500, while in the summer the area swells to over 25,000 folks. Unlike most resort towns, the majority of the summer visitors are also homeowners and the town has created a community of concerned citizens and cultural organizations with many diverse activities. Rarely is it possible for such a small town to offer the array of services found in Highlands. Medical needs are met with a full-service hospital and a staff of general practitioners and specialists. The cultural amenities include professional theatre, chamber music concerts, cabarets, art exhibits and other special events. A variety of educational classes and informative seminars are also available. Highlands gives you a range of choices and somehow manages to nurture your spirit at the same time.

History: Highlands was founded in 1879, when it founders drew lines from Chicago to Savannah from New Orleans to Baltimore. They felt that the place where the lines met would eventually become a great trading center. In the 1930s the town became a golfing paradise instead when Bobby Jones and friends founded the Highlands Country Club. Highlands evolved as a health and summer resort town on the highest plateau of the Southern Appalachian Mountains in Western North Carolina. 

Population: 946

Macon County: 32,608

Elevation: 4,118 FT  

Climate:

Property Taxes: 24 ½ cents per $100 in value or $245 per $100,000 

Median Home Price: $479,000

Airport: Asheville Regional Airport

Resourceful Websites:

www.highlandschamber.org