Jason Sandford
Jason Sandford is a reporter, writer, blogger and photographer interested in all things Asheville.
This blog about Appalachian history has a great post – remembrances from architect Tony Lord, who left his mark on many an Asheville building:
“At first it was a stock company that gave the lease to the Plaza Theatre. And they would do a show every week, I guess or every two weeks, and they would rehearse with a chorus line with about 5…one of whom was Lenny’s wife who was pregnant at the time, and could still kick as high as anyone else. And of course this was all during prohibition days. You went up there with a couple of friends, and you came out and had a cola or something…after probably Goode’s Drug Store, a place where you were likely to encounter everybody you ever met.
“It was on Patton Avenue. Ran through…it was where the Wachovia Bank is now. Ran through from Patton to College. I remember Tom Wolfe holding forth on some trip he had made to France, his pleasure and amusement in the provincial French one night stands…and Charlie Parker, who was an architect here. They could all be found standing out front at Goode’s, from about 1:00 in the afternoon to about 6:00 in the afternoon. He didn’t stay in his office because people came in and bothered him. Then he’d go back after supper, at night, and turn it out, and go to work early the next morning. So this is the way we operated. But he was good. He’s the man who did the Arcade building.”
Anthony (Tony) Lord, 1900-1993
August 2, 1979 interview
Architect Tony Lord left his mark on many public and private buildings in Asheville, including the Pack Memorial Library and the D. Hiden Ramsey Library on the campus of UNC Asheville. He was also influential in the greening of downtown Asheville, planting and protecting trees. He was one of the founding members of the architectural group Six Associates. For many years he was a member of the Board of Directors of the public library.
Source:http://toto.lib.unca.edu/findingaids/oralhistory/SHRC/lord.html
