Revere is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a parcel of land that is not governed by a local general-purpose municipal corporation. (At p. 178.) They may be governed or serviced by an encompassing unit (such as a county) or another branch of the state (such as th ...

in Madison County,

North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...

, United States. It is also known as Sodom and Sodom Laurel.

Name origin

The community was originally named Sodom. During the

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

, a Baptist preacher travelling through the area commented on a group of prostitutes and compared it to Sodom in the Bible.

Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a historically Reformed Protestant tradition named for its form of church government by representative assemblies of elders, known as "presbyters". Though other Reformed churches are structurally similar, the word ''Pr ...

missionaries disliked this name, and officially changed the name to Revere. However, natives of the area continue to use the name Sodom.

Music

Revere is particularly rich in

ballad A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads were particularly characteristic of the popular poetry and song of Great Britain and Ireland from the Late Middle Ages until the 19th century. They were widely used across Eur ...

singers, and noted folklorist

Cecil Sharp Cecil James Sharp (22 November 1859 – 23 June 1924) was an English collector of folk songs, folk dances and instrumental music, as well as a lecturer, teacher, composer and musician. He was a key figure in the folk-song revival in England dur ...

transcribed several "Old World" ballads sung to him in 1916, some by family members of singer Dillard Chandler. In 2001, Rob Amberg published a book ''Sodom Laurel Album'' that chronicles the traditions and lifestyle in Revere. Residents and folk singers Dellie Norton, Doug Wallin, and Sheila Kay Adams are featured in the book.

References

Unincorporated communities in Madison County, North Carolina Unincorporated communities in North Carolina {{MadisonCountyNC-geo-stub