Last Updated on May 6, 2026 5:11 pm James Phillip (Phil) Smalling , a former Watauga County Commissioner passed away May 2, 2026. He was 83. Smalling was also an Air Force veteran and worked in the maintenance department of Watauga County Schools. While a member of the Watauga County Commissioners, in 1989, he led motions to limit the annexation powers of the Town of Seven Devils, and he opposed the bid to incorporate the community of Foscoe int…
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