The Brevard, NC White Squirrel

Beautiful waterfalls bring many tourists to the mountains of Western North Carolina, and more specifically to the little town of Brevard. Folks from all over will visit our area to hike our beautiful mountain trails, to watch the sunsets over the mountains in the distance, and to visit our numerous waterfalls. There is another reason many will travel to visit Brevard, NC; that is to see the white squirrel.

In our town we celebrate our white squirrels. We have the White Squirrel shop in town where you can purchase many decorative items for your home, we have the White Squirrel Festival, and our postcards will feature the beautiful creatures. For many of us, we see the squirrel daily in our back yard, or while driving into town and we don't take much notice until we hear a visitor shout, "Look, it's a white squirrel!" This is when we realize that it really is quite unusual.

While attending the White Squirrel Festival a few weeks ago my children and I learned the story of how these critters came to Transylvania County. It seems that a little girl's relative brought her 2 white squirrels from another country as a gift. She kept them as pets for a while but when her family moved to another state she asked her grandfather to keep and care for her pets. He either got tired of feeding them and keeping them caged up or they simply escaped. Either way, they were freed and began to multiply.

It is estimated today that 1 in 3 of Brevard's squirrels are of the white variety. The little girl of the story is now a regular visitor to our town, obviously grown and quite possibly a grandmother herself. We greet and applaud her as the very special one who brought the white squirrel to the city of Brevard, NC.

If you are in our area and looking for something that you won't see anywhere else in your travels, come visit us in Transylvania County. You will be welcome in the home of the White Squirrel.