Author of "Our Southern Highlanders" (1913) and other works, naturalist, librarian. Grave 3/10 mi S.W. Mt. Kephart, 30 mi. N., is named for him. — — Map (db m12693) HM
World War I
Barker, William H.,
Bates, Everett R.,
Cathy, Charlie,
Cochran, John T.,
Franklin, Walter I.,
Freeman, Caro N.,
Kincaid, William,
Leaiherwood, James L.,
Mashburn, Earnest L.,
Mason, William,
Mathis, Fred, . . . — — Map (db m52470) WM
Chief of Oconaluftee Cherokee. He advocated temperance and opposed removal of his people from their homeland. Lived in this vicinity. — — Map (db m12694) HM
“We meet today to dedicate the mountains, streams, and forests to the service of the American People.”
President Franklin Delano Roosevelt
September 2, 1940
The Rockefeller Memorial . . . — — Map (db m20022) HM
Great Smoky Mountains National Park is a sanctuary. This is one of the few places in the eastern United States where animal populations can live, propagate, and die with relatively little influence from humans. Plants flourish in untold numbers and . . . — — Map (db m20057) HM
Look out across the Smoky Mountains landscape.
How did this land come to be?
They carefully got all the mud and they laid it out on the rocks. And when it was dry enough, Grandfather threw it out into the water, and it became land. And the . . . — — Map (db m43855) HM
According to oral tradition, the Blue Clan knew about a plant with a blue flower that was used to heal childrens diseases.
(Cherokee language translation)
Clan Facts:
Your clan came from your mother. People of the same clan could . . . — — Map (db m134823) HM
Broomcorn is a member of the sorghum plant family and is the source of broomstraw for making brooms. It was introduced to this country from Asia in the late 1700s.
The straw is part of the seed head that grows at the top of the plant. Once the . . . — — Map (db m190512) HM
From here you can see the Qualla Boundary, the 56,000-acre home of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians. It borders Great Smoky Mountains National Park and Blue Ridge Parkway. The Cherokee originally held over 140,000 square miles in parts of eight . . . — — Map (db m150379) HM
Cherokee Indian Reservation. Established by United States for the Eastern Band of Cherokee after the removal of 1838.
(Leaving) Cherokee Reservation. Established by United States for the Eastern Band of Cherokee after the removal of . . . — — Map (db m11526) HM
This park is dedicated to all members of the eastern band of Cherokee Indians who served honorably in the Armed Forces of this Great Nation, and especially to those who died in the effort and to Charles George, the only member of the Eastern Band . . . — — Map (db m12929) HM
You hardly ever left a tree of any size standing and all the little 'uns was torn down.
Raymer Brackin
Standing her in 1910 you would have seen a far different landscape than today. You might have seen the Champion Fibre Company . . . — — Map (db m107604) HM
Methodist. Maintained by Holston Conference for Cherokee c.1840-1885. School established 1850. Missionary's house Stands 50 yards north. — — Map (db m12719) HM
Commercial logging became widespread in the Smokies around 1880, about fifty years before the establishment of the national park. Loggers using hand tools an animal teams took maple, poplar, cherry, walnut, and other choice woods.
Mechanized . . . — — Map (db m20043) HM
Rainbow and brown trout, stonerollers, hogsuckers, sculpins, river chubs, and other fish live here in the lower reaches of the Oconaluftee River. But these are just a few of over 85 species found in the Smokies. The park's streams offer multiple . . . — — Map (db m107602) HM
United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization MAB
Program on Man and the Biosphere
By Decision of the Bureau of the international coordinating council of the program on man and the biosphere, duly authorized to that effect by . . . — — Map (db m20061) HM
Hogs were the main source of meat on mountain farms. They could produce several large litters of offspring each year, which helped insure a family's supply of meat. Surplus livestock could also be sold to produce extra income for the family. The . . . — — Map (db m190515) HM
1st resident missionary to Cherokee Indians, appointed by Holston Conference, lived in this log cabin know as the original parsonage. br>
Built 1847.
This log cabin was purchased in 1959 from the Soco Community Club by Dr. Walter Miller then . . . — — Map (db m198003) HM
Shaconage, the Cherokee name for this area, means "land of blue smoke." A smoke-like natural bluish haze, and mist-like clouds that rise following a rainstorm, provide the inspiration for the name Smoky Mountains. During the growing season, the . . . — — Map (db m20058) HM
Few Places in North America sustain a greater variety of life than the Great Smoky Mountains. The forests, streams, and meadows here support more than 100 types of trees, 58 kinds of fish, some 1,500 flowering plants, more than 200 bird species, and . . . — — Map (db m20053) HM
Ani-Gilohi—(Cherokee language translation)
People in this clan wore their hair long. They walked with confidence and were often leaders.
(Cherokee language translation)
CLAN FACTS: Throughout the large . . . — — Map (db m73920) HM
The high, rounded mountain in front of you is Clingmans Dome (6,643 feet elevation), the highest mountain in Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the highest in Tennessee, and the third highest in the eastern United States. It bears the name of . . . — — Map (db m67901) HM
You didn't make it without corn....everyone ate cornmeal, sometimes two and three times a day. -George Moore, local resident
For 50 years, nearby farmers brought their corn and wheat to Mingus Mill, built in 1886. The miller usually . . . — — Map (db m111965) HM
Clingmans Dome is a sacred mountain to the Cherokees, where the Magic Lake was once seen. The Great Spirit told the Cherokees that, “if they love me, if they love all their brothers and sisters, and if they love the animals of the earth, when . . . — — Map (db m43851) HM
"To preserve and perpetuate the history, culture, and stories of the Cherokee people."
To accomplish this mission, the museum maintains a permanent exhibit, extensive artifact collection, archives, education programs, artist series, and . . . — — Map (db m134805) HM
Principal Chief, Eastern Band of Cherokee, 1880-1891. Led incorporation of Band & centralization of Tribal government on his property, here. — — Map (db m73919) HM
Oconaluftee Indian Village is an authentic replica of a Cherokee Indian Town of 1750. Here you will see life as it was carried on 200 years ago. Ancient arts of the Red Man such as basket weaving, wood-carving, finger-weaving, pottery, weapon making . . . — — Map (db m96642) HM
Wodi refers to the paint made from red ochre. In the legend of monster Stoneman, a lump of this paint remained when the monster burned up. When the medicine man painted people with it, their wishes came true: to be a great hunter, or warrior, or . . . — — Map (db m150430) HM
The rugged terrain of the Smoky Mountains determined patterns of human settlement. Residents of the Smokies - be they native Cherokees or European emigrants and their descendants - gravitated to valleys or coves. Settlement was confined to areas far . . . — — Map (db m20054) HM
Qualla Arts and Crafts Mutual, Inc. was founded in 1946, with the goal of promoting the development, production, and marketing of unique and authentic Cherokee arts and crafts. Known locally as the "co-op," Qualla Arts and Crafts is one of the . . . — — Map (db m140706) HM
This statue honoring Sequoyah. The Cherokee genius who invented the Cherokee Alphabet. was sculpted from a single great California Sequoia (Redwood) Log which was donated and shipped by Georgia-Pacific.
This is sculptor Peter wolf Toth's 63rd . . . — — Map (db m19736) HM
Sorghum cane descended from wild grasses that are native to parts of Africa and Asia where humans have cultivated it for more than 4000 years. It was introduced to this country in the 1700s. Through the centuries, various types of sorghum have been . . . — — Map (db m190510) HM
A reliable source of drinking water was important in selecting a house site. A good spring met that need and also provided a means for keeping perishable foods.
Water from a spring flowed through the springhouse in a rock-lined channel in the . . . — — Map (db m190525) HM
You are standing alongside the Appalachian Trail, one of the longest continuous footpaths in the world. The trail winds more than 2,150 miles through 14 states. Few stretches are more remote or difficult than the section through the Great Smokies. . . . — — Map (db m20064) HM
(Side One):
The Great Smokies: scenic, diverse, culturally rich.
The scenic view here are well known; lesser known is the abundance of life. The Smokies' rugged topography creates a diversity of species found in few other places in North . . . — — Map (db m20066) HM
At 6,643 feet, Clingmans Dome is the highest mountain in Great Smokey Mountains National Park and is one of the highest peaks in the eastern United States.
An observation tower at the summit takes you above the treetops for a panoramic view. . . . — — Map (db m43856) HM
In 1838, the United States government deported more than 16,000 Cherokee Indian people from their homelands in Tennessee, Alabama, North Carolina and Georgia, and sent them to Indian Territory (now Oklahoma). Thousands of Cherokees perished during . . . — — Map (db m73923) HM
In front of you is a very special place - part of the park's "backcountry," a place without roads, wires, houses...
Here you - or your children, or theirs - may walk for days, largely free of the sights, sounds, and smells of the everyday world. . . . — — Map (db m20049) HM
The wild potato refers to a native plant whose root is a good food source, also known as the Jerusalem artichoke. Some oral traditions say there were originally fourteen clans, including the Savannah and Wild Holly, whose members all became part of . . . — — Map (db m134821) HM
The Blue Ridge Parkway is a collection of diverse and inspiring places. The 469-mile road links Shenandoah National Park to Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Like a long beautiful ribbon connecting distinctive gems, the Parkway joins high . . . — — Map (db m150299) HM
The Wolf Clan was known for its medicine people and its warriors.
(Cherokee language translation)
Clan Masks:
In the early twentieth century, Cherokee artists began carving masks representing the clans. These also symbolized . . . — — Map (db m134820) HM
on Southern Boundary Line of lands allotted to the earl of Granville, one of the lords proprietors, in 1743 by the British Crown.
The dividing line between Burke and Rutherford counties ran here until after 1792.
Beginning corner of grants 501 . . . — — Map (db m61479) HM
Fontana DamFontana Dam, a multi-purpose dam on the Little Tennessee River, is 480 feet high, TVAs highest. Begun soon after Pearl Harbor, it was completed in less than three years. Water stored here helps control floods. Released water . . . — — Map (db m160563) HM
Fontana is the highest concrete dam east of the Rocky Mountains. Construction of Fontana Dam began in 1942 and was completed in 1944. Fontana provides 238 miles of shoreline and 10,230 acres of water surface for recreation activities. . . . — — Map (db m160573) HM
On a clear day you can see Mount Mitchell, the highest peak in the eastern United States, 73 miles (117km) away in North Carolina's Black Mountains. Can you see Mount Mitchell today? clear days can allow views that exceed 100 miles (161km). On other . . . — — Map (db m107193) HM
People come to Clingmans Dome to experience the 360-degree view but how does the view today compare to centuries ago? We really don't know, but we do know that haze, largely caused by air pollution, can greatly diminish your view.
Records show . . . — — Map (db m107194) HM
Notice the forest that surrounds the tower. This is a spruce (Picea rubens) and Fraser fir (Abies fraseri). It is a forest under stress. The dead trees you see are Fraser fir, victims of a European insect. Another threat, with far . . . — — Map (db m107192) HM
Looking west you can track the course of the North Carolina-Tennessee boundary. Through most of Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the state boundary also marks the course of the Appalachian Trail, which passes just below this tower. The trail . . . — — Map (db m107196) HM
For the mountain family, apples were a staple-eaten raw and used to make cider, vinegar, apple sauce, apple butter, and pies. Storing them was important, as evidenced by this substantial apple house. Summer apples were stored on the upper floor; . . . — — Map (db m12754) HM
This shop was used by the farmer to make repairs to tools or to forge his own ironwork. Iron could be scarce, so a worn-out horseshoe might become part of a door hinge, as you can see here. This blacksmith shop was brought here from Cades Cove, . . . — — Map (db m12818) HM
In Honor of the Civilian Conservation Corps 1933 – 1942 whose hands built roads, trails, bridges, buildings, campgrounds, and picnic areas in Great Smoky Mountains National Park for the benefit and enjoyment of the people. . . . — — Map (db m58439) HM
Corn cribs housed the family's most important crop. Corn fed humans and livestock. Families consumed it both fresh and as cornmeal cooked into dishes such as mush and cornbread. After allowing corn to dry on the stalk, farmers stored it on the cob. . . . — — Map (db m12815) HM
Nature forged the Great Smokies, but the hands of the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) helped shape the national park we know today. During the 1930s, enrollment peaked as 4,300 men worked here, building roads, campgrounds, trails, and buildings. . . . — — Map (db m99065) HM
On this spot
Horace Kephart - Dean of American Campers
and one of the Principal Founders of the
Great Smoky Mountains National Park -
pitched his last permanent camp. — — Map (db m12751) HM
For over fifty years the mill you are approaching ground corn into meal and wheat into flour for the mountain community near Mingus Creek. In place of wooden water wheel, a small steel turbine provided power to run the mill's stones and machinery. . . . — — Map (db m43850) HM
Most of the buildings on a mountain farm related
to the most basic of all needs; preserving food.
The historic buildings at the Mountain Farm
Museum were moved here from throughout the
national park in the early 1950s. These buildings
reflect . . . — — Map (db m12747) HM
Sorghum cane, a corp grown on many mountain
farms, was used to produce sorghum molasses.
The cane fed between the rollers of the
animal-powered cane mill, which squeezed out
the juice.The juice was then boiled over the
furnace until it turned . . . — — Map (db m12814) HM
Look out across the forested mountains of Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The mountains are ancient, but much of the forest is young. Very little is old-growth, or ancient—never cut. But the time the park was established, as much as 80 . . . — — Map (db m99067) HM
This building protected one of the most valuable commodities on a mountain farm: the meat supply. The most common meat was pork. Without refrigeration, salting and smoking were the most common means of preserving meat and protecting it from insects . . . — — Map (db m12753) HM
Today, members of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians continue to honor and cultivate the traditions which have guided their culture for thousands of years. The Qualla Boundary, as it has been known for generations, is a small fragment of the . . . — — Map (db m99076) HM
(preface)
In 1838, the United States government deported more than 16,000 Cherokee Indian people from the homelands in Tennessee, Alabama, North Carolina, and Georgia, and sent them to Indian Territory (now Oklahoma). Thousands of Cherokees . . . — — Map (db m190503) HM
