Watauga Club

In 1884 a group of young men established the Watauga Club to help remedy North Carolina’s poverty-stricken condition. One of the group’s first projects was a campaign to establish an industrial school, which is now NC State. The first president of the club was William Joseph Peele. Other influential members included Walter Hines Page, Charles W. Dabney, Josephus Daniels, John W. Thompson and William Stuart Primrose. Watauga Hall is named in the club’s honor.