Revere is an unincorporated community

Unincorporated area

In law, an unincorporated area is a region of land that is not a part of any municipality.To "incorporate" in this context means to form a municipal corporation, a city, town, or village with its own government. An unincorporated community is usually not subject to or taxed by a municipal government...

 in Madison County

Madison County, North Carolina

-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 19,635 people, 8,000 households, and 5,592 families residing in the county. The population density was 44 people per square mile . There were 9,722 housing units at an average density of 22 per square mile...

, North Carolina

North Carolina

North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...

, United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. It is also known as Sodom and Sodom Laurel.

Geography

Revere is located at 35°54′09"N 82°42′12"W (35.9026053, -82.7031949). It has an elevation of 2182 feet (665.1 m).

Name origin

The community was originally named Sodom. During the Civil War

American Civil War

The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...

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

Sodom and Gomorrah

Sodom and Gomorrah were cities mentioned in the Book of Genesis and later expounded upon throughout the Hebrew Bible, the New Testament and Deuterocanonical sources....

 in the Bible.

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

Music

Revere is particularly rich in ballad

Ballad

A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads were particularly characteristic of British and Irish popular poetry and song from the later medieval period until the 19th century and used extensively across Europe and later the Americas, Australia and North Africa. Many...

 singers, and noted folklorist Cecil Sharp

Cecil Sharp

Cecil James Sharp was the founding father of the folklore revival in England in the early 20th century, and many of England's traditional dances and music owe their continuing existence to his work in recording and publishing them.-Early life:Sharp was born in Camberwell, London, the eldest son of...

 transcribed several "Old World" ballads sung to him in 1916. 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

Wallin Family

The Wallin Family is an American family of traditional ballad singers from Madison County, North Carolina. Their repertoire of Appalachian folk ballads— many of which were rooted in "Old World" ballads traceable to the British Isles— brought them to the attention of folk music...

, and Sheila Kay Adams

Sheila Kay Adams

Sheila Kay Adams is an American storyteller, author and banjo player who received the North Carolina Folklore Society’s Brown-Hudson Award in recognition of her valuable contributions to the study of North Carolina folklore....

are featured in the book.