Gerton

History

The area was first connected by a Drovers' road, a natural access into the interior of the Blue Ridge Mountains for drovers who were moving livestock, mostly flocks of turkeys and some geese, herds of hogs and some cattle in and out of the mountains to the markets. Established in 1798, it connected the area with Asheville, following on what is today U.S. Route 74A (US 74A). In 1883 the "Pump" Post Office was opened, named after a pump that supplied water off Bearwallow Mountain to the community in the valley. In 1902, the United States Post Office issued a new cancelling stamp for the post office, but had misspelled Pump as Rump. The residents, being both upset and embarrassed, decided to rename the community after a long-time and beloved school teacher in the community, Gertrude Freeman. However, having been known to be very shy and modest, it was decided to use a contraction of her name instead, Gerton.

Geography

The community is located along Gerton Highway (US 74A), northeast of Hendersonville, along the banks of Hickory Creek, part of the Broad River watershed. It is southeast of Asheville via US 74A. Just northeast of the town is the Florence Nature preserve, containing several miles of hiking trails, and connecting to other trails surrounding the town. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the Gerton CDP has an area of , all land.

Race & ethnicity

Most-observed species

• Northern Cardinal

  Cardinalis cardinalis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  27,567
• American Crow

  Corvus brachyrhynchos C.L.Brehm, 1822 · Aves
  26,246
• Carolina Wren

  Thryothorus ludovicianus (Latham, 1790) · Aves
  25,063
• Tufted Titmouse

  Baeolophus bicolor (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  24,375
• Carolina Chickadee

  Poecile carolinensis (Audubon, 1834) · Aves
  24,310
• Song Sparrow

  Melospiza melodia (A.Wilson, 1810) · Aves
  21,221
• Eastern Towhee

  Pipilo erythrophthalmus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  21,215
• Blue Jay

  Cyanocitta cristata (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  20,617

Largest nearby schools

• North Henderson High
  High · Hendersonville · 1,146 students · 17.1:1 ratio
• Apple Valley Middle
  Middle · Hendersonville · 825 students · 15:1 ratio
• FernLeaf
  Other · Fletcher · 520 students · 14.1:1 ratio
• Clear Creek Elementary
  Elementary · Hendersonville · 484 students · 15.1:1 ratio
• Fletcher Elementary
  Elementary · Fletcher · 482 students · 16.1:1 ratio
• Edneyville Elementary
  Elementary · Hendersonville · 439 students · 14.6:1 ratio
• Sugarloaf Elementary
  Elementary · Hendersonville · 416 students · 14.3:1 ratio
• Dana Elementary
  Elementary · Hendersonville · 407 students · 14:1 ratio

Most recent

• M 2.65 — 2026-03-24
  10 km SSW of Dillsboro, North Carolina
• M 2.73 — 2025-08-14
  7 km N of Columbus, North Carolina
• M 3.24 — 2023-06-04
  4 km NNW of West Canton, North Carolina
• M 2.76 — 2023-05-23
  4 km N of West Canton, North Carolina
• M 2.69 — 2022-12-08
  0 km S of Laurel Park, North Carolina
• M 2.65 — 2021-08-17
  6 km N of Morganton, North Carolina