Blowing Rock is a town in Watauga and Caldwell counties in the U. S. state of North Carolina. The population was 1,241 at the 2010 census; the Caldwell County portion of Blowing Rock is part of the Hickory–Lenoir–Morganton Metropolitan Statistical Area, while the Watauga County portion is part of the Boone Micropolitan Statistical Area. Before 1752, when Bishop August Gottlieb Spangenberg of the Moravian Church visited the Blowing Rock, the windy cliffs of the area were home to the Cherokee and the Catawba Native American tribes. After the mid-18th century, when hardy Scots-Irish pioneers began to settle in the region, the mountain passes from southern Virginia into Kentucky attracted many colonists, farmers and trappers who continued south to the mountains of North Carolina; the first family to settle in Blowing Rock were the Greenes, who were established by the mid-19th century on a site that would become the Green Park Hotel property. Other early settlers in Blowing Rock included the Hayes, Bolick and Storie families.

During the American Civil War the mountains of North Carolina witnessed fierce guerrilla warfare between groups of pro-Confederate and pro-Union fighters. To keep their families safe, men leaving for service in the Confederate Army sent them to Blowing Rock, which became a local refuge from the fighting. After the Civil War many of these veterans would join their families and remain in the Blowing Rock area. At the same time, summer residents began to come up from the nearby city of Lenoir to enjoy the cool fresh air and magnificent mountain views. Seeing the potential of their village to become a haven for well-to-do tourists, the residents of Blowing Rock had their village incorporated into a town on March 11, 1889; the town's first mayor was "Uncle" Joe Clarke, the town had a population of about 300. As word traveled to other parts of the South about the merits of Blowing Rock, more visitors began to arrive, first camping out, taking rooms at boarding houses such as the Hayes and Martin houses on Main Street.

There were more visitors than the existing boarding houses could handle, so many homes were turned into hotels. The first hotel in Blowing Rock was the Watauga Hotel, built in 1884; the Green Park Hotel opened in 1891, followed eight years by the Blowing Rock Hotel. Walter Alexander, a prominent local resident, touted the clean air and healthy environment of Blowing Rock; as the tourist economy became Blowing Rock's main industry in the late 19th century, the town was forced to adapt to meeting the needs of tourists. The need for cleaner and better streets led to the paving of the town's highways. Another issue involved the need to build fences to keep farm animals from wandering into town and disturbing visitors - at the time most farms in the area were not fenced. In 1896 the town passed an ordinance; the introduction of the automobile and improved roads early in the 20th century further eased the journey to Blowing Rock, visitors began to arrive from as far away as Florida. Today Blowing Rock remains a tourist destination for visitors from all over the United States.

Due to the town's well-to-do, out-of-state summertime residents, Blowing Rock has restaurants, golf courses, other attractions. A recent priority for Blowing Rock's residents has been to preserve and protect the town's historic structures and maintaining the small-town charm and scenery that has attracted so many people for the last 150 years. In addition to the Green Park Inn, the Bollinger-Hartley House, East Tennessee and Western North Carolina Railroad Locomotive No. 12, Gragg House, Green Park Historic District, Randall Memorial Building, Vardell Family Cottages Historic District and Moses Cone's Flat Top Manor are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Saint Elizabeth of the Hill Country Catholic Church, in Boone operates the Church of the Epiphany as a seasonal, mission church in Blowing Rock. Blowing Rock is located in southern Watauga County at 36°7′47″N 81°40′21″W, in the Blue Ridge Mountains; the southernmost portion of the town, including the actual Blowing Rock cliff, is located in Caldwell County.

The town is located on the crest of the Blue Ridge. Most of the town lies just north of the crest, with waters draining north to the Middle Fork of the New River and thence to the Ohio River valley, while to the south of the ridgecrest, waters flow via the Johns River to the Catawba River valley and to the Atlantic Ocean in South Carolina. According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 3.1 square miles. 3.0 square miles of the area is land, 0.04 square miles, or 1.49% of the total area, is water. The climate in the area can be described as warm-summer humid continental, or highland subtropical climate depending on the isotherm used; this results in an unusual climate compared to the rest of North Carolina. Daytime temperatures in the summer rise above 80 °F. Temperatures in the winter are harsher than would be expected in a southern state. Daytime highs can fall into the 20s or lower. Snow and freezing rain are all common in the winter months. Springtime in Blowing Rock is cool and pleasant.

Rainfall is moderate. As of the census of 2000, there were 1,418 people, 663 households, 387 families res

Robert John Sprowl is a retired professional baseball player, a pitcher in Major League Baseball from 1978 to 1981. He played for the Boston Red Sox and Houston Astros. Sprowl was a star pitcher at the University of Alabama. In 1976, he played collegiate summer baseball with the Wareham Gatemen of the Cape Cod Baseball League, received the league's Outstanding Pro Prospect award, helped lead Wareham to the league title. Sprowl led the nation in strikeouts per nine innings in 1977, was selected by the Red Sox in that year's amateur draft. Sprowl is best known for losing two critical games in the 1978 pennant race between the Red Sox and the New York Yankees. Before he was called up to the majors, Sprowl had compiled a 9-3 record in the AA Eastern League. Boston's minor league organization claimed that he "had ice water in his veins," and manager Don Zimmer gave Sprowl three starts late in the season. Sprowl's first start was in Baltimore on September 5, where he went seven innings, allowing four runs on five hits and three walks, but took the loss when Orioles ace Jim Palmer stifled the Red Sox, who got a second-inning run on a Dwight Evans RBI double, nothing more.

Sprowl carried the 1-0 lead into the bottom of the seventh, having allowed only two hits to that point, but surrendered a game-tying home run to Lee May. It was alleged that if Boston left-fielder Jim Rice had not turned the wrong way, he could have caught May's hit, which cleared a seven-foot fence in left field. Instead he knocked the ball into the bullpen. Andres Mora grounded through the legs of Red Sox third baseman Butch Hobson, reaching second base.. Sprowl retired Rick Dempsey on a grounder to shortstop, as pinch-runner Mike Dimmel advanced to third, with the infield playing in, Carlos Lopez hit a soft liner that didn't reach the outfield on the fly, but dropped for a hit and allowed Dimmel to score the eventual winning run; the Red Sox players lauded Sprowl's effort and Zimmer decided to give him a second start. His second start was on September 10 against the New York Yankees, in the fourth game of a four-game series at Fenway Park, after the Yankees had defeated Mike Torrez, Jim Wright, Dennis Eckersley to draw within one game of Boston.

Zimmer passed over veterans Bill "Spaceman" Lee and Luis Tiant, who had dominated the Yankees during their careers. Sprowl walked the first two batters, got Thurman Munson to hit into a double play, but was unable to retire Reggie Jackson and escape the inning, surrendering an RBI single, he walked Lou Piniella and Chris Chambliss and was pulled. The Yankees won the game, 7-4, tying Boston for the division lead, subjecting Zimmer to much second-guessing, due to Sprowl's perceived "nerves". Tiant started the next night against Baltimore and took a 4-1 lead into the 8th before tiring and surrendering three straight hits to open the frame. However, the Red Sox lost their next three games and were 1.5 games behind the Yankees when they arrived in New York on September 15, which would have been Sprowl's next start. Due to previous criticism, Zimmer this time opted to bypass Sprowl and start Tiant on short rest. Sprowl started the Monday game in Detroit, he allowed three runs in 5 innings. This would be Sprowl's last start of the season, as Zimmer went with a four-man rotation of Tiant, Torrez and Stanley for the final two weeks.

Overall, Sprowl went. The

The Lugansk Higher Military Aviation School of Navigators was a flying training school of the Soviet Air Forces and the Ukrainian Air Force. Established in 1966 in Voroshilovgrad, the school trained navigators until its closure in 1997. In connection with the reduction of air and focus on intensive development of anti-missile technology, Voroshilovgrad Pilot School, amongst other Air Force military schools, was disbanded in 1960; the vacant airfield was given over to MI-6 helicopters. In the mid 1960s Helicopter facility was transferred to the city of Voronezh and was replaced by the Kharkov Regiment VVAUL, equipped with L-29 Delfin, based in Lugansk until mid-1967. In 1966, the commander in chief of the Air Force decided to establish a second Soviet navigators' aviation school, since at that time the only school of navigators was in Chelyabinsk, the choice fell on Lugansk city, it was decided to establish a school of navigators on the basis of liquidated Pilots' School. September 9, 1966, is considered the official date of formation VVVAUSH.

The Chelyabinsk Red Banner Military Aviation Institute of Navigators sent to Lugansk a number of officers who formed the school's backbone. In the summer of 1967, held its first set of students in the school. In 1969, the command of the school appealed to the Regional Party Committee with a request for assignment LVVAUSH as successor Lugansk military pilot school, the name of "the proletariat of Donbass". Since 1971, the issue is students, weaned four years directly VVVAUSH. Education at the school was carried out on four profiles: Military Transport Aviation, maritime missile-carrying aircraft, anti-submarine aircraft and the profile of training - the officer of command and control. After the independence of Ukraine, the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine was not able to maintain the school and it was reduced. In October 1993 the Lugansk VVAUSH joined the Kharkiv Institute of the Air Force as a branch; the last issue of LVVAUSH cadets was produced in 1996 and that year on the basis of the school was formed 205th aviation training base of the Kharkov Air Force Institute, which existed two years and was disbanded.

The date of official liquidation LVVAUSH was considered July 17, 1997. Website of school graduates Michael Holm, Voroshilovgrad Higher Military Aviation School of Navigators im. Proletariat Donbass