[4] Located in the Blue Ridge Mountains of western North Carolina, sits in the shadow of Mount Mitchell, the highest peak in the Eastern Continental United States.

The town was founded on March 6, 1834, from land conveyed by John "Yellow Jacket" Bailey, and it was named after Captain Otway Burns, a naval hero of the War of 1812.

[5] In September 2024, Burnsville and the surrounding area was heavily impacted by Hurricane Helene and subsequent storm-induced landslides, resulting in devastating property and infrastructure damage to Yancey, Mitchell, and Avery Counties.

[1] The Parkway Playhouse, the oldest continually operating summer stock theater company in North Carolina, is located in Burnsville.

They include the Bald Creek Historic District, Chase-Coletta House, Citizens Bank Building, John Wesley McElroy House, Yancey Collegiate Institute Historic District, and Yancey County Courthouse.

Established in 1956, The Mount Mitchell Arts & Crafts Fair is coordinated and sponsored by the Burnsville-Yancey Chamber of Commerce.

The event includes bluegrass and acoustic music, food vendors, and a unique selection of handmade arts and crafts from artisans across the country.

U.S. Highway 19E runs through the town, leading to Interstate 26 and Mars Hill to the west and, to the east, to Spruce Pine.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 1.6 square miles (4.1 km2), all land.

The closures of the Avondale Mills facility and Taylor Togs' Micaville blue jeans factory occurred in 2004.

The construction began at the junction of Interstate 26 in Madison County and continued to where U.S. 19E intersects with Jacks Creek Road.

[13] Work on widening the next section to the Micaville intersection was completed and opened to a four-lane traffic pattern over the weekend of October 29–30, 2016.