The spine tingling, bugle-like call of the Plott hounds has been ringing through these hills for over 200 years. They are the most famous bear dogs in all the land. For downright courage and persistence, they have been the pick of many a mountain bear hunter since Henry Plott developed the breed back in 1780.
Their exploits are legion and the years have shaped them into a legend. A thousand tales testify to their talents. Like the men who followed them, they have fierce passion for the chase. They are relentless trackers and strong winded.
The Plott hounds trace their ancestry back to the Old World, back to a breed that must have been just about the best hunting dogs that ever lived. How they came to America and how they grew up and survived in the North Carolina wilderness is one of those stories that fits into the pattern of the empire builders.
The story begins in Germany in 1750 when two young brothers decided to pull up stakes and seek their fortune in America. They set out for the promised land with their meager cash earnings, a few possessions and three large dogs. Nobody knows what kind of dogs they were, but the brothers thought they would be useful in hunting bear, deer and buffalo on the frontier.
One of the brothers never saw the strange new country where he expected to carve out a home and hunt and farm. He died during the long voyage and was buried at sea. But the other borther completed the journey and, with the dogs, as his only remaining companions form the homeland, struck out for North Carolina. He settled in Cabarrus County where he married and raised a family. His name was Jonathan Plott. His descendants still live in Plott Valley, in the shadow of Plott Balsam, a 6,000 foot peak near Waynesville in Haywood County.
Old Jonathan Plott would probably be surprised to find a valley and a mountain and a range of mountains, as well as a creek bearing the family name. He probably would be even more surprised and amazed to find that it has been the dogs he brought from Germany that have made the name Plott a legend.
In 1780, his son Henry bred these dogs to curs and obtained a relentless tracker. Hound blood was introduced for the sake of the nose, but since then the strain has been kept pure. The Plott hounds range in color from the original brindle to buckskin. Some of the latter have a small white marking on their chests. They typically have hound faces and ears. Their alertness and eagerness to please their masters make them good companions as well as good hunters. For years the Plott hounds were little known outside the mountains except by the tales carried out by folks who had been privileged to hunt with them.