Cumberland Gap National Historical Park Foundation Document Overview
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Topography Along the Virginia-Kentucky Border
Preface: Topography along the Virginia-Kentucky border. It took a long time for the Appalachian Mountain range to attain its present appearance, but no one was counting. Outcrops found at the base of Pine Mountain are Devonian rock, dating back 400 million years. But the rocks picked off the ground around Lexington, Kentucky, are even older; this limestone is from the Cambrian period, about 600 million years old. It is the same type and age rock found near the bottom of the Grand Canyon in Colorado. Of course, a mountain range is not created in a year or two. It took them about 400 years to obtain their character, and the Appalachian range has a lot of character. Geologists tell us this range extends from Alabama into Canada, and separates the plains of the eastern seaboard from the low-lying valleys of the Ohio and Mississippi rivers. Some subdivide the Appalachians into the Piedmont Province, the Blue Ridge, the Valley and Ridge area, and the Appalachian plateau. We also learn that during the Paleozoic era, the site of this mountain range was nothing more than a shallow sea; but during this time, as sediments built up, and the bottom of the sea sank. The hinge line between the area sinking, and the area being uplifted seems to have shifted gradually westward. At the end of the Paleozoric era, the earth movement are said to have reversed, at which time the horizontal layers of the rock were uplifted and folded, and for the next 200 million years the land was eroded, which provided material to cover the surrounding areas, including the coastal plain. -
Cumberland Gap, Tennessee : Building Community Identity Along the Wilderness Road, 1880-1929
University of Tennessee, Knoxville TRACE: Tennessee Research and Creative Exchange Masters Theses Graduate School 8-1991 Cumberland Gap, Tennessee : Building community identity along the Wilderness Road, 1880-1929 Rebecca Vial University of Tennessee Follow this and additional works at: https://trace.tennessee.edu/utk_gradthes Recommended Citation Vial, Rebecca, "Cumberland Gap, Tennessee : Building community identity along the Wilderness Road, 1880-1929. " Master's Thesis, University of Tennessee, 1991. https://trace.tennessee.edu/utk_gradthes/5827 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate School at TRACE: Tennessee Research and Creative Exchange. It has been accepted for inclusion in Masters Theses by an authorized administrator of TRACE: Tennessee Research and Creative Exchange. For more information, please contact [email protected]. To the Graduate Council: I am submitting herewith a thesis written by Rebecca Vial entitled "Cumberland Gap, Tennessee : Building community identity along the Wilderness Road, 1880-1929." I have examined the final electronic copy of this thesis for form and content and recommend that it be accepted in partial fulfillment of the equirr ements for the degree of Master of Arts, with a major in History. Susan D. Becker, Major Professor We have read this thesis and recommend its acceptance: Accepted for the Council: Carolyn R. Hodges Vice Provost and Dean of the Graduate School (Original signatures are on file with official studentecor r ds.) To the Graduate Council: I am submitting herewith a thesis written by Rebecca Vial entitled "Cumberland Gap, Tennessee: Building Community Identity on the Wilderness Road, 1880-1929." I have examined the final copy of this thesis for form and content and recommend that it be accepted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts, with a major in History. -
Cumberland Gap National Park
Cumberland Gap Throughout the ages, poets, songwriters, novelists, journal writers, historians and artists have captured the grandeur of the Cumberland Gap. James Smith, in his journal of 1792, penned what is perhaps one of the most poignant descriptions of this national and historically significant landmark: "We started just as the sun began to gild the tops of the high mountains. We ascended Cumberland Mountain, from the top of which the bright luminary of day appeared to our view in all his rising glory; the mists dispersed and the floating clouds hasted away at his appearing. This is the famous Cumberland Gap..." Thanks to the vision of Congress, who in 1940 authorized Cumberland Gap National Historical Park, visitors today can still bask in its beauty and immerse themselves in its rich history. The story of the first doorway to the west is commemorated at the national park, located where the borders of Tennessee, Kentucky, and Virginia meet. Carved by wind and water, Cumberland Gap forms a major break in the formidable Appalachian Mountain chain. First used by large game animals in their migratory journeys, followed by Native Americans, the Cumberland Gap was the first and best avenue for the settlement of the interior of this nation. From 1775 to 1810, the Gap's heyday, between 200,000 and 300,000 men, women, and children from all walks of life, crossed the Gap into "Kentuckee." The Path of Buffalo and Warriors During the 17th century, the American bison, after a 1,100 year hiatus, resumed a migratory pattern into the southeast portions of North America. -
Floyd County Farmer
' - 0 \. Colonel Andrew Jackson !i.§1. : Eastern Kentu~' ~ Plumed Knight of the Confedera~ by Robert Perry If large families are a sign of marital bl iss, the per i od from 1809 to 1833 Nas a happy one for Samuel May and his wife Catherine . Records s how that during those years she bore him six sons and eight daughters. Nine of t hese children) including his fourth , fifth , and sixth sons, were born at the May House in North Prestonsburg , which in those days was the hub of his four- hundred- acre farm . Like most frontiersmen, Samuel was a loyal Democrat and a strong supporter of Andrew Jackson, the champion of backwoods causes on Capitol Hi l l . Therefore , when Catherine bore him his fourth son on January 28 , 1829, he named the boy after his hero , who was just beginning his first term as president . In thirty-two years the boy would become Colonel Andrew Jackson May, the man Henry Scalf called "the plumed knight of the Southern cause in the Big Sandy Valley .« Like his father , Jack May was a man of exceptional courage, unbending integrity , and driving ambition . He had the bad luck, however , to come of age when his father ' s business empire was collapsing. Dealt such a hand, it was inevitable that he should dream of recouping the family fortune . When ne ws reached Prestons burg in 1849 that gold had been discovered in California , it was probably twenty-year- old Jack May, not his father, who first rose to the bait. Whatever the case, we know with certainty that when Samuel headed west in 1849, he took Jack with him, and "another young man named White ." A photograph of Jack from this period shows a sharp- featured young man with a determined expression and a glorious mane of red hair. -
The Development of Old-Growth Structural Characteristics in Second-Growth Forests of the Cumberland Plateau, Kentucky, U.S.A
Eastern Kentucky University Encompass Online Theses and Dissertations Student Scholarship January 2012 The evelopmeD nt Of Old-Growth Structural Characteristics In Second-Growth Forests Of The Cumberland Plateau, Kentucky, U.s.a. Robert James Scheff Eastern Kentucky University Follow this and additional works at: https://encompass.eku.edu/etd Part of the Forest Sciences Commons Recommended Citation Scheff, Robert James, "The eD velopment Of Old-Growth Structural Characteristics In Second-Growth Forests Of The umbeC rland Plateau, Kentucky, U.s.a." (2012). Online Theses and Dissertations. 116. https://encompass.eku.edu/etd/116 This Open Access Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Student Scholarship at Encompass. It has been accepted for inclusion in Online Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Encompass. For more information, please contact [email protected]. THE DEVELOPMENT OF OLD-GROWTH STRUCTURAL CHARACTERISTICS IN SECOND-GROWTH FORESTS OF THE CUMBERLAND PLATEAU, KENTUCKY, U.S.A. By ROBERT JAMES SCHEFF, JR. Master of Arts Washington University St. Louis, Missouri 2001 Bachelor of Science Webster University St. Louis, Missouri 1999 Submitted to the Faculty of the Graduate School of Eastern Kentucky University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF SCIENCE December, 2012 Copyright © Robert James Scheff, Jr., 2012 All Rights Reserved ii DEDICATION This work is dedicated to all of the individuals and organizations whose tireless efforts to protect and preserve our forests has allowed us to experience the beauty and wonder of the deciduous forests of eastern North America. And To the Great Forest, who’s resiliency speaks volumes of the richness of the past and gives hope for the future. -
Cumberland Gap National Historical Park
Creating a Legacy: Cumberland Gap National Historical Park July 4, 2009 marked the 50th anniversary of the dedication of Cumberland Gap National Historical Park, located at the junction of Tennessee, Virginia and Kentucky. The idea of creating a park around Cumberland Gap was talked about as early as the 1920s by the Middlesboro Kiwanis Club. Motives behind the creation of the park included saving the mountains from the continued effects of coal mining and providing additional revenue for the area. Although the creation of the park was authorized in 1940, the visitor center in Middlesboro did not open until 1955 due to World War II. When the park was officially dedicated on July 4, 1959, Vice President Richard Nixon, Secretary of the Interior Fred Seaton and Director of the National Park Service Conrad L. Wirth were among the dignitaries at the dedication. While the establishment of a national park in their community excited the residents of Middlesboro, families who lived in the rural areas of the three states felt it forever changed their traditional ways of life. Recollections of people who used to call the park lands their home sharply contrast with the stories of those who were passionate about the park’s creation. Oral history interviews with former residents and people involved with the creation of the park can be found at http://passtheword.ky.gov. (Photo courtesy of Cumberland Gap National Historical Park) Pass the Word” is a discovery tool for oral histories throughout the state of Kentucky. To learn more about this topic, visit http://passtheword.ky.gov. -
A Native History of Kentucky
A Native History Of Kentucky by A. Gwynn Henderson and David Pollack Selections from Chapter 17: Kentucky in Native America: A State-by-State Historical Encyclopedia edited by Daniel S. Murphree Volume 1, pages 393-440 Greenwood Press, Santa Barbara, CA. 2012 1 HISTORICAL OVERVIEW As currently understood, American Indian history in Kentucky is over eleven thousand years long. Events that took place before recorded history are lost to time. With the advent of recorded history, some events played out on an international stage, as in the mid-1700s during the war between the French and English for control of the Ohio Valley region. Others took place on a national stage, as during the Removal years of the early 1800s, or during the events surrounding the looting and grave desecration at Slack Farm in Union County in the late 1980s. Over these millennia, a variety of American Indian groups have contributed their stories to Kentucky’s historical narrative. Some names are familiar ones; others are not. Some groups have deep historical roots in the state; others are relative newcomers. All have contributed and are contributing to Kentucky's American Indian history. The bulk of Kentucky’s American Indian history is written within the Commonwealth’s rich archaeological record: thousands of camps, villages, and town sites; caves and rockshelters; and earthen and stone mounds and geometric earthworks. After the mid-eighteenth century arrival of Europeans in the state, part of Kentucky’s American Indian history can be found in the newcomers’ journals, diaries, letters, and maps, although the native voices are more difficult to hear. -
Cumberland Gap National Historical Park (PDF)
A fact sheet from 2018 National Park Service Almost $1 million is needed to fix a leak in the visitor center’s roof. iStockphoto Cumberland Gap National Historical Park Kentucky, Tennessee, and Virginia Overview Cumberland Gap National Historical Park spans a prominent V-shaped notch in the Appalachian Mountains that is known as the first gateway to the West. Dr. Thomas Walker discovered the pass in 1750 while searching for a settlement beyond the mountains. Twenty-five years later, a group of investors looking to colonize the Kentucky region hired Daniel Boone and 30 men to create a trail later known as the Wilderness Road. Long used by Native Americans, the path became the main artery for 300,000 pioneers who migrated west over the next 50 years. The National Park Service (NPS) established the Cumberland Gap National Historical Park in 1940. The 24,000- acre park tracks the Cumberland Mountains along the borders of Kentucky, Tennessee, and Virginia for 26 miles. Visitors can enjoy 85 miles of hiking trails, scenic views, and historical sites. Unfortunately, the park has almost $15 million in deferred maintenance. Maintenance challenges Cumberland Gap’s roads, trails, and historic sites all need repairs. The park needs almost $1 million to resurface the famed Wilderness Road so that visitors can better access campgrounds and picnic areas. The Wilderness Road Trail, which parallels its namesake road, needs more than $100,000 in repairs. Three-quarters of needed infrastructure repairs are for historic sites. Among them is the Hensley Settlement, an Appalachian living history museum that includes 12 log cabins, a one-room schoolhouse, and a blacksmith shop. -
The Assimilation of Captives on the American Frontier in the Eighteenth and Nineteenth Centuries
Louisiana State University LSU Digital Commons LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses Graduate School 1977 The Assimilation of Captives on the American Frontier in the Eighteenth and Nineteenth Centuries. Joseph Norman Heard Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.lsu.edu/gradschool_disstheses Recommended Citation Heard, Joseph Norman, "The Assimilation of Captives on the American Frontier in the Eighteenth and Nineteenth Centuries." (1977). LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses. 3157. https://digitalcommons.lsu.edu/gradschool_disstheses/3157 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate School at LSU Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses by an authorized administrator of LSU Digital Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. INFORMATION TO USERS This material was produced from a microfilm copy of the original document. While the most advanced technological means to photograph and reproduce this document have been used, the quality is heavily dependent upon the quality of the original submitted. The following explanation of techniques is provided to help you understand markings or patterns which may appear on this reproduction. 1. The sign or "target" for pages apparently lacking from the document photographed is "Missing Page(s)". If it was possible to obtain the missing page(s) or section, they are spliced into the film along with adjacent pages. This may have necessitated cutting thru an image and duplicating adjacent pages to insure you complete continuity. 2. When an image on the film is obliterated with a large round black mark, it is an indication that the photographer suspected that the copy may have moved during exposure and thus cause a blurred image. -
A Brief History of the Hensley Settlement, Cumberland Gap
A BRIEF HISTORY of !'ENSLEY SETTLEMENT by Robert Ward Munck Park Historian Cumberland Gap National Historicel Park 3<66 j t-lSo RESOURCE MANAGEMENT INFORMATION • I. Background and Land Ownership Nestled confortably atop Brush Mountain in the southeast Cumberland range sets Hensley Settlement. The community was located on the R. M. Bales survey of 508 acres which was purchased by Burton Hensley as part of a 2,000 acre parcel of land he purchased in Bell County, Kentucky, May 4, 1903. Mr. Hensley didn't live on Brush Mountain. He sold 100 acres to his son Andrew Jackson Hensley, 5 acres to his son Albert and 38,2 acres to Sherman Hensley and divided the rest of the land among his 16 children,giving each the 16th part or 21 acres apiece. The people who came to live in Hensley Settlement were of English and Scotch Irish descent according to J. Emerson Miller, a local genealogist. The first ~ record of a Hensley living 1n Kentucky was Lawis Hensley who came to Knox County in 1782, soon after the Wilderness Road was widened for wagon traffic. He married Nancy Hoard, September 1, 1803 and apparently Lawis made frequent trips to North Carolina, his former home, because most of his children were born there. Samuel Hensley, Lewis's eldest son was born in 1805. He had a number of children, among them Washington, who was born about 1809 and was the second son. He married Ruth Edwards, born about 1815. Their children were B?rton, Wilson, Mary, Washington, Henry, Nicy, James Madison, Josephua. -
Cumberland Gap Master Plan and Trailhead Development Plan
Cumberland Gap Master Plan and Trailhead Development Plan Community Development Partners Cumberland Gap Master Plan and Trailhead Development Plan TABLE OF CONTENTS Community Vision ............................................................................. 33 Executive Summary ............................................................................. 1 Steering Committee ........................................................................ 33 The Historic Town of Cumberland Gap .......................................... 2 Cumberland Gap Master Plan Survey ......................................... 33 Community Need................................................................................. 3 Public Meetings .............................................................................. 35 What is the Cumberland Gap Master Plan? ..................................... 5 Vision Statement ............................................................................ 36 How Will the Plan Be Used? .......................................................... 6 Mentor Communities ......................................................................... 37 Plan Consistency .............................................................................. 7 Banner Elk ....................................................................................... 37 Project Area ...................................................................................... 8 Damascus ....................................................................................... -
They Say in Harlan County
They Say in Harlan County They Say in Harlan County An Oral History ALESSANDRO PORTELLI 1 2011 1 Oxford University Press, Inc., publishes works that further Oxford University’s objective of excellence in research, scholarship, and education. Oxford New York Auckland Cape Town Dar es Salaam Hong Kong Karachi Kuala Lumpur Madrid Melbourne Mexico City Nairobi New Delhi Shanghai Taipei Toronto With offi ces in Argentina Austria Brazil Chile Czech Republic France Greece Guatemala Hungary Italy Japan Poland Portugal Singapore South Korea Switzerland Thailand Turkey Ukraine Vietnam Copyright © 2011 by Oxford University Press, Inc. Published by Oxford University Press, Inc. 198 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10016 www.oup.com Oxford is a registered trademark of Oxford University Press All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of Oxford University Press. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data They say in Harlan County : an oral history / Alessandro Portelli. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978–0–19–973568–6 1. Harlan County (Ky.)—History. 2. Harlan County (Ky.)—Social conditions. 3. Harlan County (Ky.)—Economic conditions. 4. Harlan County (Ky.)—Social life and customs. 5. Harlan County (Ky.)—Biography. 6. United Mine Workers of America—History. 7. Labor unions—Organizing—Kentucky—Harlan County—History. 8. Working class— Kentucky—Harlan County. 9. Oral history—Kentucky—Harlan County. 10. Interviews—Kentucky—Harlan County. I. Portelli, Alessandro. F457.H3T447 2010 976.9'154—dc22 2010010364 987654321 Printed in the United States of America on acid-free paper Frontispiece: Employees’ homes in the west end of Benham, Harlan County.