Tryon is a town in Polk County, on the southwestern border of North Carolina, United States.

[4] Located in the escarpment of the Blue Ridge Mountains, today the area is affluent[5] and a center for outdoor pursuits, equestrian activity, and fine arts.

The area which Tryon now occupies was originally part of the Cherokee hunting grounds[6] of Western North Carolina.

Archaeological evidence dates indigenous peoples' occupation of the site to the end of the last ice age, more than 11,000 years ago.

[9] Luys Hernandez de Biedma, one of de Soto's officers, wrote of a group of Spanish men who made their way to Xuala on May 21, 1540: The next day, they went to Xuala which is a town on a plain between some rivers; its chief was so well provisioned that he gave to the Christians however much they asked for: slaves, corn, little dogs [probably opossums]… and however much he had.

[11]From there, de Soto went to Gauxuile (since developed as Asheville), which in Cherokee meant "The place where they race," named for the walk around the perimeter of the village.

As conflict and tension increased, the British built defensive forts along the frontier, including the "Block House" near the future Tryon.

In 1767 William Tryon, governor of the North Carolina Colony from 1765 to 1771), traveled to the area and negotiated a peace treaty with the Cherokee.

They established a boundary line between a location near Greenville, South Carolina, the highest point on White Oak Mountain (renamed Tryon Peak by the settlers).

[16] Oak Hall, originally built as the Tryon Hotel in 1881, is located on a bluff that looks over Trade Street.

[18] It had notable guests into the 20th century, such as Henry Ford, Thomas Edison, British film actor David Niven, Sherlock Holmes actor William Gillette, writer F. Scott Fitzgerald, composer George Gershwin, First Lady Mrs. Calvin Coolidge, Lady Nancy Astor, and Mrs. George C. Marshall, wife of the World War II general.

Its chocolate fudge makes livers budge, It's really too divine, And as we reel, we'll give one squeal For dear old Misseldine's.

[21] According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 1.8 square miles (4.7 km2), all land.

Tryon is located near a "thermal belt", an area generally free of dew and frost, which provides an enjoyable climate year-round.

In this region of the Blue Ridge mountains, air may be warmer on the slopes than in the base of a valley,[23] particularly in the spring and fall.

Some have helped to create the cultural center that continues to attract writers, educators, artists, and professional people to the Tryon area.

The Good Shepherd Episcopal Church, originally a slave chapel known as St. Andrews, located on the Coxe Plantation, was moved to Tryon in 1955, on Jackson Road.

Before the discovery of penicillin, rest in mountain air was considered helpful in the treatment of TB, which was often fatal.

Swayback cabin, now more than 240 years old, hosted American writers Ernest Hemingway and F. Scott Fitzgerald.

In 2018, Tryon played host to the FEI World Equestrian Games, the “Horse Olympics,” which drew hundreds of thousands of visitors to the area.

It conducts an annual contest, and winning submissions are exhibited in the Tryon Fine Arts Center.

[37] Tryon Youth Center, located in a 5,300-square-foot (490 m2) building on US Highway 176, offers artistic, social and recreational programs for area young people.

Four African-American artists: Adam Pendleton, Ellen Gallagher, Rashid Johnson, and Julie Mehretu jointly bought her childhood home to preserve it.

"When Carter Brown came to Tryon from Michigan in 1917 , he opened the Pine Crest Inn, developing it as a resort for wealthy northerners.

[43] Ross noted in 2010 that in their heyday, the Tryon Horse Show "was so popular that the schools were let out and most businesses closed for the afternoon.

"[citation needed] The Tryon Horse Shows are held at the Foothills Equestrian Nature Center (FENCE).

The current Morris is the fifth generation; three of the previous versions succumbed to fire, mischievous kidnapping and age, and the fourth was refurbished with a fiberglass body.

In June 2014, the $100 million TIEC and Resort opened to host numerous multi-day, international-level equestrian competitions across several disciplines in collaboration with the Tryon Riding and Hunt Club.

In addition, the Tryon Sports Complex on site includes a health club, game room, kids' camp, sports bar, children's playground, tennis courts, mountain bike park, climbing walls, basketball court, and a large pool.

[50] The area is known for its scenic drives featuring well-kept horse farms, hardwood forests, and Carolina foothills overwhelmed by kudzu.