Elk Park, North Carolina

Elk Park is a town in Avery County, North Carolina, United States. The town was so named because of the number of elk killed there. The population was 452 at the 2010 census.GeographyElk Park is located at .According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 0.7sqmi, all land.HistoryIn 1882, the East Tennessee and Western North Carolina Railroad ("Tweetsie") linked Cranberry and Johnson City, Tennessee with a stop at Elk Park; three years later, Elk Park was incorporated. In 1911, Avery County was established; originally Elk Park was to serve as the county seat, but was changed after North Carolina Lieutenant Governor William C. Newland made a deal that the new county seat would be named after him for his aid in passage of the bill. However, Elk Park served as a temporary county seat while the new incorporated town of Newland was being constructed. In 1950, the East Tennessee and Western North Carolina decommissioned the railroad at Elk Park, ending rail service in Avery County, though it has survived as a town, unlike neighboring Cranberry.Elk Park School was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2005.