Biltmore Relief Fund for WNC: $2 Million Committed to Our Community Posted on October 7, 2024 at 4:00 pm.Written by Jean Sexton For more than 125 years, Biltmore has been committed to our community. This legacy began with George and Edith Vanderbilt, and continues today with the leadership of their great- and great-great grandchildren. Commitment to community is a strong and constant thread woven through our story, connecting past and present. It guides our priorities in good times, and in the most difficult circumstances, like those we faced from Tropical Storm Helene. An Unprecedented Storm Flooding in historic Biltmore Village surpassed prior records, leaving behind heavy damage and debris. The water line on Biltmore’s Lodge Gate is visible here. In late September 2024, Tropical Storm Helene swept across the region, bringing heavy rainfall and gusting winds. While the area was prepared for flash flooding and power outages, no one could have predicted how quickly conditions would change and how widespread the destruction would be—surpassing even the historic level of the 1916 flood. As with the storm of 1916, community effort is at the core of how our region will recover today. An archival letter from Chauncey Beadle, Biltmore Estate Superintendent, to a concerned acquaintance, captures this sentiment well across generations: “Thank you cordially for your letter of August 2, and for all the good wishes therein contained. We are recovering rapidly from the destruction caused by the recent high-water in the rivers in our vicinity; and while the material losses have been great and the loss of life irreparable, yet the devastation will not be in evidence much longer. More and more I realize the solidarity of the community, and its quick resuscitation from the flood will always be a memory wherein one takes pride in his community.” Launching Biltmore Relief Fund for WNC On October 7, 2024, Biltmore announced a newly created fund to help provide immediate relief to employees in crisis and local organizations aiding in recovery efforts. On October 7, we announced a financial commitment of $2 million through the newly established Biltmore Relief Fund for WNC to aid in Helene relief efforts. “Western North Carolina has been our family’s home for more than 125 years, and we are devastated to see Helene’s impact here and in the surrounding counties. We remain committed to supporting our employees and neighbors in the aftermath of this unprecedented storm and the long-term recovery efforts. Now more than ever, we must work together to stabilize and rebuild this community,” said Bill Cecil, Jr., President and CEO of Biltmore. Biltmore strives to support community well-being through investments in local non-profits that assist people in need, increase cultural experiences, conserve the natural environment, and sustain the economic vitality of Western North Carolina. “The focus for the Biltmore Relief Fund for WNC is to provide critical and immediate financial relief for people in need, including supporting employees in crisis, providing support to area non-profits aiding our region, and investing in the recovery of our community,” Bill said. Our leadership was able to quickly identify and commit the relief funds to a group of non-profit organizations aiding in our community’s recovery efforts: Always Asheville Fund Asheville Area Habitat for Humanity Asheville Dream Center Concert for Carolina Meals on Wheels of Asheville and Buncombe County Mountain Strong Fund for Business Recovery The Community Foundation of WNC – Emergency and Disaster Response Fund World Central Kitchen (If you are a local organization seeking a grant, please consider applying to The Community Foundation of WNC.) Biltmore’s team in action While recovery efforts occurred on the estate, Biltmore’s team members were also actively helping our community. In addition to launching the Biltmore Relief Fund for WNC, we have been honored to assist the community in other ways: Assisting with historic collection removal and temporary storage for The Cathedral of All Souls—the parish church that George Vanderbilt originally had designed and constructed in Biltmore Village. Providing donations of food to Meals on Wheels, potable water to World Central Kitchen, cold-weather supplies to ABCCM, and temporary canopies for FEMA sites. Thank you for supporting our community Our local economy relies on tourism and your visit helps support the recovery of our employees, neighbors, and friends. Thanks to the incredible work of so many generous people, recovery is happening all around us. Many major roadways and local businesses have reopened to once again welcome visitors, while others are still recovering.With tourism being the main economic engine in Asheville and Western North Carolina, especially during the busy fall and holiday seasons, you are providing critical support for our region by visiting Biltmore and other local businesses. If you are interested in supporting further recovery efforts, please consider a financial donation to these local organizations: MANNA FoodBank Asheville Area Habitat for Humanity The Community Foundation of WNC You can also support area businesses by shopping or donating at Love Asheville from Afar. As a company and a community, we appreciate your patience as we navigate this crisis together and continue to focus on recovery efforts.
Looking Back at the Flood of 1916 Posted on July 16, 2016 at 12:00 pm.Written by Jean Sexton While many of the events in Biltmore’s long history are joyous, some are solemn occasions that have shaped the estate and our community. On September 27, 2024, heavy rain and high winds from Tropical Storm Helene swept through Western North Carolina, causing record-level flooding throughout the region. This natural disaster echoes the Asheville flood of July 16, 1916, when water reached historic levels far beyond the banks of the Swannanoa and French Broad Rivers, causing widespread damage at Biltmore and throughout the western end of the state. As we reflect on the historic flood of 1916, we invite you to discover the stories that have shaped our history and inspire our resilience today. Biltmore Greenhouses, 1916. Courtesy of the National Park Service, Frederick Law Olmsted National Historic Site. The End of an Era Prior to the flood of 1916, Biltmore’s Nursery was one of the top nurseries in North America. Founded in 1889, it was established to supply the wide variety of trees, shrubs, and other ornamental plants that Frederick Law Olmsted required to complete the estate’s industrious landscape design. It grew to be a beacon within the horticultural world as it opened to public buyers and supplied customers across the United States with unsurpassed variety, quantity, and quality of ornamental plants. The nursery also contributed to George Vanderbilt’s vision of a self-sustaining estate, and provided income at a time when the estate was still under construction. Swannanoa River cutting off Biltmore from Asheville, 1916. North Carolina Collection, Pack Memorial Public Library, Asheville, North Carolina. Biltmore’s Lodge Gate, 1916. North Carolina Collection, Pack Memorial Public Library, Asheville, North Carolina. Uncontrollable changes On March 6, 1914, the estate experienced a crushing loss with the untimely death of George Vanderbilt. Left with a large estate to manage, Mrs. Vanderbilt was already considering downsizing various estate operations, including the nursery. She was also pondering the donation of the Biltmore Herbarium, a subsidiary of the nursery, to a small local educational institution. However, before decisions could be made and implemented, the flood of 1916 provided the last word. The ruin from the flood was so massive that it closed the doors of the nursery’s large-scale commercial operation, destroyed three-fourths of the Biltmore Herbarium, and ruined many rare botanical volumes that were part of the estate’s botanical library. Chauncey Beadle, estate superintendent and head of the Biltmore Nursery, wrote after the flood that “We are heavy losers, something like 85% of our nursery stock having been destroyed.” Flooded field, 1916. Courtesy of the National Park Service, Frederick Law Olmsted National Historic Site. A Legacy withstanding the test of time While the flood’s damage was permanent, the legacy of the Biltmore Nursery was timeless. The specimens grown at Biltmore before the flood found homes on the estate’s grounds and outside of Biltmore’s gates thanks to the nursery’s commercial success. In particular, the North Carolina Governor’s mansion in Raleigh received a donation of various shrubs and plants in 1898 for the beautification of the Executive Mansion Square. Then in 1908, a shipment of roses and sequoia trees were delivered to Dr. Booker T. Washington at what is now Tuskegee University. Various plants and trees were shipped across the country and overseas before the flood, and continue to thrive at botanic gardens, public parks, universities, and private landscapes. Beadle and Edith Vanderbilt arranged for the surviving parts of the Biltmore Herbarium and botanical library to be salvaged and donated to the Smithsonian Institution. While the flood may have ended the business side of the nursery, the landscapes at Biltmore and beyond serve as a living testament to the vision and business acumen of Frederick Law Olmsted, Chauncey Beadle, and George Vanderbilt.