Ruth Ann Grissom

Biography

Ruth Ann Grissom grew up on a farm in Montgomery County and earned degrees in journalism and social work at UNC Chapel Hill. She divides her time between Charlotte and the Uwharries.

Stories by Ruth Ann Grissom

Dam Removal and the American Shad

In 1805, one of my ancestors, Stephen Grissom, signed a petition to the state’s General Assembly on behalf of American shad.  The petitioners were concerned that mill dams on the Uwharrie...



Birding along the Uwharrie, without binoculars

It’s an unfortunate fact of life for birders in the Uwharries – spring migration peaks as trees come into full leaf.  Trying to identify palm-sized birds flitting through the canopy can lead to a...



Land Art

In the early 1970s, a group of artists rebelled against the market-driven forces in New York. They moved out West and began to use the earth as their canvas. In time, their works became known as...

Native spring vines

Every spring, I walk along scanning the forest floor for wildflowers.  Sometimes I light on an odd arrangement of blossoms.  It takes a few seconds for my mind to shift gears.  I...



We had chickens when chickens weren't so cool

Chickens are all the rage these days.  All the fashionable neighborhoods have them.  I recently met a gentleman who’d built a stately coop behind his home in Charlotte’s Myers Park....