Going Home Again: Thomas Wolfe Memorial
Asheville's great contribution to American literature was the novelist Thomas Wolfe, author of the classics Look Homeward, Angel and You Can't Go Home Again. Wolfe was born in Asheville in 1900 and his works reflected the conflicted love he felt for his hometown.
The boarding house on Spruce Street known as Old Kentucky Home, where Wolfe spent his childhood, is a national historic site and museum dedicated to the author. (Spruce Street as such no longer exists; look for the visitor center at 52 N. Market Street.) Although an arsonist caused costly damage to the premises in 1998, most of the Wolfe artifacts on the site were salvageable. The house reopened to the public in 2004.
The museum and the visitor center behind it are closed on Mondays. They're open Tuesday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Sunday from 1 to 5 p.m. Hours are restricted slightly November through March. Admission is a scant $1 for adults and $.50 for students and children.
