North Carolina
January 2019
Jo-me-okee, according to the folks who used to live here, the Saura Tribe of Native Americans, means “Great Guide” or “Pilot.” This enormous rock has also been called “Mount Ararat” and “Stonehead Mountain”.
In 1753, the Moravians, just like all the other white folks, exhibited the usual sensitivity by changing the original name. They renamed it “Pilot Mountain” instead of just leaving it the hell alone. The area was first mapped out by some guy named Joshua Frye and some guy named Peter Jefferson who happened to have a son named Tom. Yeah, that Tom Jefferson. How would they have liked it if someone came along and changed their names!