U.S. Magistrate Judge Dennis L. Howell sentenced Billy Joe Hurley, 46, of Bryson City, last week to serve five months and fifteen days in jail for the illegal possession or harvesting of American ginseng from the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, announced Anne M. Tompkins, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina.

The Cherokee Indian Fair will take place Oct. 7-11 at the Cherokee Indian Fairgrounds. The Destination Marketing Department has prepared the lineup for this year’s event. The theme for this year’s Fair is Cherokee People: Our Legends and Tales. Each week, leading up to the Fair, the Cherokee One Feather will print a day schedule showing all the activities at the Fair.

EBCI Fisheries and Wildlife Management has been working with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission, and Conservation Fisheries Inc. to conserve and restore the imperiled sicklefin redhorse since 2007. “This project is focused...