This book details the history of the Dorland-Bell School, a residential school in rural western North Carolina. The book is based on letters, extensive interviews, and research about the school. In 1886, Luke and Juliette Dorland, Presbyterian missionaries and educators, retired to Hot Springs, North Carolina. However, at the request of residents in this rural village, they soon were teaching 25 students in their home. Luke Dorland appealed to his former employer, the Presbyterian Board of Home Missions, and $300 was granted for books and equipment. At their own expense, the Dorlands built a two-story frame schoolhouse to accommodate the growing number of students. By 1894, the school, known as the Dorland Institute, had grown to include a girls' dormitory, an expanded schoolhouse, and additional teachers. In 1918, the Dorland Institute consolidated with the Bell Institute, a large day school for girls. Dorland-Bell School now included seven acres of land, boarding facilities for 100 girls in the village, and a 300-acre farm with housing for 40 boys. The book details the evolution of the school over the years until it closed in 1942. The history of Dorland-Bell involves the story of the wider Presbyterian mission in the southern Appalachians. By establishing schools and hospitals, the Board of National Missions in New York reached into isolated areas to help children overcome significant barriers to education. This book illustrates the challenge in balancing well intentioned good works among mountain people with respect for a rich and old culture that was not always receptive to the intervention of outsiders. When Dorland-Bell closed in 1942, it merged with the Asheville Farm School to become Warren Wilson College. The appendix includes acknowledgements, significant dates in the school history, a list of school staff and faculty, a list of students, and brief family histories preserved by the school. Contains references, an index, numerous photographs, school memorabilia, and old newspaper articles. (LP)