Historic Flat Rock Scenic Byway
Historic Flat Rock Scenic Byway is a State Scenic Byway in North Carolina. Within North Carolina it covers roughly 9 miles. The map below shows its route. Use “Plan a drive” to open it in the Road Sorties route planner — already routing along Historic Flat Rock Scenic Byway with scenic roads turned on, ready to add your own stops.
Historic Flat Rock Scenic Byway loops eight miles through the Flat Rock community near Hendersonville, North Carolina's 'Little Charleston of the mountains.' The route follows sections of Little River Road, Greenville Highway, and Rutledge Drive past a large granite outcrop once used as a Cherokee ceremonial site, from which the community takes its name. Starting in the 1820s, wealthy Charlestonians made the roughly two-day carriage trip up from the Lowcountry heat to summer here, building the homes that now make up the Village of Flat Rock, entirely listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Along the byway, St. John in the Wilderness, a Gothic Revival church built in 1836, and the Old Flat Rock Post Office, opened in 1839, mark the settlement's early years, while the Woodfield Inn has hosted travelers for more than 150 years. The drive is short but dense with history, offering a close look at antebellum mountain resort architecture rarely found so concentrated elsewhere in western North Carolina.
- Flat Rock, near Hendersonville
- 8 miles
- 'Little Charleston of the mountains'
- St. John in the Wilderness (1836)
- Woodfield Inn
- National Register historic village
Plan a drive on Historic Flat Rock Scenic Byway →
What is a State Scenic Byway?
State Scenic Byways are roads a state has formally recognized for their scenic, natural, historic or cultural value — each state's own curated collection of drives worth taking slowly.
Where to Stay along Historic Flat Rock Scenic Byway
1 campground or RV park sits within about 5 miles of Historic Flat Rock Scenic Byway.
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