Born in Tokyo Japan in 1881, Masahara Izuka later moved to the United States and changed his name to George Masa. He came to North Carolina and first worked at the Grove Park Inn as a valet and a bellhop. Later he became a professional photographer, photographing the local area and selling his photos. His photographs appeared in magazines, newspapers, brochures, and on postcards.
He became interested in the Appalachian Mountains around Asheville, North Carolina and began photographing and mapping them. Masa was part of a local hiking group, the Carolina Mountain Club, and Masa mapped trails in the mountains using a device he fashioned himself out of a bicycle tire and an odometer. Twenty-eight years after his death, in 1961, Masa Knob, a peak in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, was named in honor of his memory and to celebrate his work.
He became interested in the Appalachian Mountains around Asheville, North Carolina and began photographing and mapping them. Masa was part of a local hiking group, the Carolina Mountain Club, and Masa mapped trails in the mountains using a device he fashioned himself out of a bicycle tire and an odometer. Twenty-eight years after his death, in 1961, Masa Knob, a peak in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, was named in honor of his memory and to celebrate his work.
Born in Tokyo Japan in 1881, Masahara Izuka later moved to the United States and changed his name to George Masa. He came to North Carolina and first worked at the Grove Park Inn as a valet and a bellhop. Later he became a professional photographer, photographing the local area and selling his photos. His photographs appeared in magazines, newspapers, brochures, and on postcards.
He became interested in the Appalachian Mountains around Asheville, North Carolina and began photographing and mapping them. Masa was part of a local hiking group, the Carolina Mountain Club, and Masa mapped trails in the mountains using a device he fashioned himself out of a bicycle tire and an odometer. Twenty-eight years after his death, in 1961, Masa Knob, a peak in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, was named in honor of his memory and to celebrate his work.
He became interested in the Appalachian Mountains around Asheville, North Carolina and began photographing and mapping them. Masa was part of a local hiking group, the Carolina Mountain Club, and Masa mapped trails in the mountains using a device he fashioned himself out of a bicycle tire and an odometer. Twenty-eight years after his death, in 1961, Masa Knob, a peak in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, was named in honor of his memory and to celebrate his work.
