[1][2][3] The North Carolina General Assembly declared Folkmoot USA to be the state's official international folk festival in 2003.
[5] Folkmoot USA began with a visit by Waynesville surgeon Dr. Clinton Border and a square dance team to a folk festival in Sidmouth, England in 1973.
Western North Carolina had a history of preserving its traditional culture, so Border believed it would be a good location for an American folk festival.
[6] The first event took place in 1984, coinciding with North Carolina's 400th birthday celebration, featuring performers from England, Germany, Holland, Ireland, Turkey, Mexico, Puerto Rico and India.
Heating, cooling and electrical improvements were still needed which would cost $300,000 more, and funds were being raised through events such as Mountain Memories Hazelwood, a variety show about the area's history.
Year-round programs include Southern Storytellers Series, Cultural Crash Courses, Nashville Songwriters in the Round, live music performances and International Friendship Dinners.
[3] As of 2024, with the festival getting shorter every year, Folkmoot USA succeeded in turning its buildings into a year-round arts center which paid for itself.
[14] In Anglo-Saxon England, a folkmoot or folkmote (Old English - a meeting of the people) was a governing general assembly consisting of all the free members of a tribe, community or district.
[6] Folkmoot USA belongs to the International Council of Folklore Festival Organizations and Traditional Arts, or CIOFF, based in Paris.