NC Gazetteer

Big Tom

Also known as: Hairy Bear Mountain
A mountain in Yancey County
… peak in Mount Mitchell State Park, S Yancey County. One of two peaks known as Black Brothers until 1947, when renamed in honor of Thomas "Big Tom" David Wilson (1825-1909), bear hunter and guide who found the body of Elisha Mitchell on July 7, 1857, after he had fallen to his death on Mount Mitchell. Known earlier as Hairy Bear Mountain.