Several factors contributed to the town's abandonment including rough terrain, isolation, and the end of passenger railroad stops.

With its location in the mountains, Lost Cove was an ideal logging area that provided many trees from the surrounding Pisgah National Forest.

However, timber is a limited resource, and as the supply of wood began to diminish, the railroad stopped servicing the town in order to focus on other industries like coal.

While some families made the illicit whiskey for their own personal use, others would turn a profit by selling or trading moonshine to nearby townsfolk or men passing through on the railroad.

[7] One of the reasons that moonshiners were able to prosper in Lost Cove, was that judges trying to control the problem were unsure of which jurisdiction the town fell in.