![](https://www.ashevillehistory.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Asheville_Citizen_Times_Mon__Sep_20__1976_-1-scaled-1-249x300.jpg)
1981
Frances McDowell and Ruth Camblos
Under the aegis of the Western North Carolina Historical Association, a committee was formed, headed by Frances McDowell and Ruth Camblos, to wage a long and successful battle to save the Smith-McDowell House. McDowell and Camblos, assisted by many other skilled people and organizations, restored the house and led the effort to make the house into a museum.