#1 Great Smoky Mountains National Park

The first national park we will explore is the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. It is located within the states of North Carolina and Tennessee at the southern end of the Appalachian Mountains and sees more visitors every year than any other national park—9 million.

HISTORY

This region was originally inhabited by the Cherokee people, but they were forced west in the 1830s. This event is known as "The Trail of Tears."

Those European settlers who lived in the area in the late 1800s and early 1900s lived off the land. They built their houses from the trees in the region and hunted for and planted their own food.

When the logging industry came to the area in the early 1900s, it didn't take long before those living there were heavily reliant on things that were manufactured and food bought in grocery stores instead of being self-sufficient. The industry, also, was decimating the forests. In 1934, the Great Smoky Mountains National Park was established to preserve the remaining woodlands from destruction. Those living here were forced to move. (Does anybody else notice the irony?)

More than 70 structures that were left behind when the inhabitants were evicted have been preserved. Great Smoky Mountains National Park has the largest collection of historic log buildings in the eastern part of the country.

Some of the folks responsible for championing the cause of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park were David Chapman, Ann Davis, Paul Fink, Horace Kephart, George Masa, Ben Morton, Mark Squires, Jim Thompson, and Charles A. Webb.

View some historical photos here.

Learn more about the people responsible here.

NATURE

The Great Smoky Mountains National Park covers 800 square miles. There have been more than 17,000 documented species, including 66 kinds of mammals, 67 fish species, 39 reptiles, 43 amphibians, 200 types of birds, and 100 native species of trees. One species of mammal present in the park is the American Black Bear. This is actually the symbol of the Smoky Mountains. This area is also home to white-tailed deer, coyotes, foxes, bobcats, bats, deer mice, otters, wolves, shrew, and more.

If you want to find out more about the specific animals and plants that live in this park, visit the National Park animal page.

ACTIVITIES

If you are able to visit the park, there are numerous programs available. However, if a visit is not in the near future, consider participating in one of the distance learning programs. These include learning about current research projects and electronic field trips.

Park visitors can participate in the Junior Ranger program, if they are between the ages of 5 and 12. Booklets can be purchased in person and online. Kids can complete the activities in the book to earn a badge.

Other activities that the whole family can enjoy include touring the park in your car. The visitors' center has inexpensive booklets that help to guide the way, as well as numbered posts and landmarks along the way. You can also purchase them online before your trip. Bicycling is a wonderful activity in the park. There are many trails and roadways that allow for a view of the landscape and historical structures that are present throughout the park. There is a road within the park, Cades Cove Loop Road, that is closed to vehicular traffic on Wednesday and Saturday mornings until 10 a.m. so that bicycles need to be concerned with cars. There are no trails specific to mountain biking here, however.

If you're looking to spend some time in the park, camping is an option. If your idea of camping is hiking to a remote location and sleeping under the stars and using the nearest tree as the necessary, Great Smoky Mountains National Park has some rules and regulations. Permits are also required. They want to know you are out there, but they don't want to know you've been there. In other words, they want you to leave the park in better shape than what you found it. The same goes for those who choose to pitch a tent or drive their RV to the front country where there are electric hookups and bathrooms with showers available. There are 10 separate campgrounds located within Great Smoky Mountains National Park. View a map to see where they are located in relation to other points of interest within the park. Each campground has a different number of sites, a slightly different elevation, a different season length, and different restrictions on RV length.

Consider fishing, hiking, picnicking, and watching the wildlife. From mid-March through late November, horseback riding is available at four different locations within the park. The guided trail rides last 45 minutes to a few hours and start at a rate of $30 per hour. You can even bring your own horse. Hayrides and wagon rides are available as well.

Besides the beautiful panoramas that are offered throughout the park, visitors can trek inside to view one of the many waterfalls. The park receives an average rainfall of 85 inches per year. That means that this rain flows down the mountainside and fills the rivers and streams, creating an abundant flow of water to spill over the falls. There are a couple of waterfalls that can be reached by car.

The park offers various workshops and classes for grade-school kids through adults. Some of the programs have a fee associated with them. Call the Great Smoky Mountains Institute at Tremont at 865-448-6709 or the Smoky Mountain Field School at 865-974-0150 to find out what classes are being offered and how much they cost.

I hope you have enjoyed this look at the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The number of activities and beautiful scenery make this a wonderful vacation spot for a weekend, a week, or just a get away for the day.

If there is something else you'd like to see in these national park posts, please let me know. If you have pictures you'd be willing to share, please also let me know that. I haven't been to too many of the parks to share my own photos.



BOOKS

Your Guide to Great Smoky Mountains National Park'

Great Smoky Mountains National Park (National Geographic: Trails Illustrated Map #229) (National Geographic Maps: Trails Illustrated)

Great Smoky Mountains National Park: Thirty Years of American Landscapes

Top Trails: Great Smoky Mountains National Park: Must-Do Hikes for Everyone

References:

http://www.nps.gov/grsm/historyculture/people.htm

50 States: Tennessee

TENNESSEE

Tennessee (TN) is our nation's 16th state. It was granted statehood on June 1, 1796. The name originated from a Cherokee word, Tanasie, meaning "the meeting place." The capital is Nashville, and the largest city is Memphis. Tennessee is roughly 42,146 square miles, making it the 36th biggest state. As of 2013, there are nearly 6.5 million residents who are called Tennesseans. 

Some famous people born here include: 

Allman Brothers...singers, musicians

Hattie Ophelia Caraway...first woman elected to Senate

Roseanne Cash...songwriter, singer

Kenny Chesney...country singer

Davy Crockett...folk hero

Mark Dean...computer programmer

David Farragut...military leader

Nathan Bedford Forrest...general

Morgan Freeman...actor

Jack Hanna...zoologist

Michael Oher...football player

Dolly Parton...singer

Alvin C. York...folk hero

The economy of Tennessee is driven by coal mining, uranium production, automobile manufacturing, electric production, farming, tourism. The nickname is the "volunteer state." It received this nickname during War of 1812 because of the many volunteer soldiers from Tennessee who fought in the Battle of New Orleans. The motto is "Agriculture and Commerce."

The flag of Tennessee was adopted on April 17, 1905. It was designed by a member of the Tennessee Infantry, LeRoy Reeves. The three white stars represent the three distinct geographical areas of the state: the Great Smoky Mountains, the highlands, and the lowlands. The blue stripe was added so that the flag would stand out when it was flying.

The state symbols are as follows:

Bird...Mockingbird

Wild Animal...Raccoon

Insects...Firefly and ladybug

Agricultural insect...Honeybee

Butterfly...Zebra swallowtail

Amphibian...Tennessee Cave salamander

Reptile...Eastern box turtle

State sport fish...Largemouth bass

Commercial fish...Channel catfish

Flower...Iris

Wildflower...Passion flower

Tree...Tulip Poplar

What is there to do in Tennessee? Visit these sites:

Great Smoky Mountains National Park

Dollywood in Pigeon Forge

Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum in Nashville

Graceland in Memphis

The Hermitage (President Andrew Jackson's home) in Nashville

Belle Meade Plantation

National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis

Pink Palace in Memphis

Grand Ole Opry in Nashville

The Parthenon replica in Nashville

Lookout Mountain is a site in itself, but located within Lookout Mountain are Rock City and Ruby Falls.

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., was assassinated at a hotel in Memphis on April 4, 1968.

The expulsion of Cherokee from Tennessee and other southern states in 1838 resulted in the "Trail of Tears."

The New Madrid Earthquake took place in the northwestern area in the winter of 1811-1812.

Check out the site, Tennessee History for Kids. There are virtual tours and some books about Tennessee that you can order. It is also arranged according to grade level. Very interesting!

The following items can be found at christianbook.com.

James Robertson, Father of Tennessee and Founder of Nashville - eBook By Bill Bays / WestBowPress

More Than Petticoats: Remarkable Tennessee Women, 2nd Edition By Susan Sawyer / Globe Pequot

Onward Southern Soldiers: Religion and the Army of Tennessee in the Civil War By Traci Nichols-Belt & Gordon T. Belt / History Press

It Happened in Tennessee By James Ewing / Thomas Nelson

Faithful Volunteers: The History of Religion in Tennessee By Stephen Mansfield / Cumberland House Publishing Faithful Volunteers: The History of Religion in Tennessee celebrates the unique history and character of religion in Tennessee, from the earliest pioneer days to the present. The book covers the state's spiritual topography, from the earliest days of the Cherokees and Chickamaugas to the coming of the pioneer Presbyterians and Baptists, from the earliest Jewish communities to the great Pentecostal Backwater Revivals, and from the incursions of Eastern ethnic religions to the great Restoration movements. Since the book proceeds chronologically, religious events are put into their proper cultural context, and the state's cultural events are put into their proper religious and spiritual context. Thus, it is a general history of Tennessee written from a religious perspective. With more than 100 lithographs, engravings, line drawings, and photographs, the text also includes sidebars of key persons and movements, an index, and a bibliography for further study and reading.

A Treasury of Tennessee Tales: Unusual, Interesting, and Little-Known Stories of Tennessee Rev Edition By James Ewing, James A. Crutchfield & James A. Crutchfield / Thomas Nelson

Tennessee Poster Map By Carole Marsh / Gallopade International This oversized map features key cities, landmarks, historic sites, rivers, regions, borders, and major geographic features plus an array of state "must-haves", including state symbols, as well as fascinating state trivia, a timeline of important state events, and more. Excellent as a classroom, library, or resource center's primary visual focus. Available for all 50 states! All ages. 34" x 22"

Tennessee Big Activity Book, Grades K-5 By Carole Marsh / Gallopade International Whether you're visiting a new state or starting a state studies course, The Big Tennessee Reproducible Activity Book will fulfill your wishes for a fun and educational way to learn state facts! Featuring worksheets on Tennessee's history, geography, famous people, places, legends, and much more, you'll get a thorough introduction to what makes this state unique. Crosswords, dot-to-dots, mazes, coloring, word jumbles, writing, hidden pictures, and other fun activities will make your students want to learn more and more. Great for review and research! 96 reproducible pages, softcover. Answers are printed upside down at the bottom of the page. Activities range in difficulty; Grades K-5.

Moon Over Tennessee: A Boy's Civil War Journal By Craig Crist-Evans / Houghton Mifflin Harcourt In the spring of 1863, a thirteen-year-old boy leaves his home on a farm in northern Tennessee with his father, who has joined the Confederate army. The boy will ride with him to care for the horses and help with camp duties. A moving personal narrative in the form of a journal, this powerful poem tells the story of one boy's journey into war and the horrible climax at Gettysburg. Illustrated with striking black and white woodcuts, this is a vivid, lyrical, and intensely human document of the terrible personal cost of the Civil War.

Scots-Irish in the Hills of Tennessee By Billy Kennedy / Ambassador-Emerald, Intl. This is the absorbing story about a race of people who created a civilization in a wilderness and helped lay the solid foundations for present-day America. The Scots-Irish Presbyterians who settled in the American frontier lands during the 18th century were a unique breed of people with an independent spirit which boldly challenged the arbitrary powers of monarchs and established church prelates. 224 pages, indexed, softcover.

Tennessee My First Book, Grades K-8 By Carole Marsh / Gallopade International Introduce young kids to the state they call home. Mazes, coloring pages, word searches, writing, matching, and other fun activities will help kids learn about what makes their state unique, as well as information like the state motto and flag. Grades K-8. 32 pages, softcover.

Who Was Davy Crockett? By Gail Herman, Robert Squier(Illustrator) & Nancy Harrison(Illustrator) / Grosset & Dunlap Now kids can learn all about the real story versus the legend of the King of the Wild Frontier! Davy Crockett, the King of the Wild Frontier, is said to have killed 105 bears—his first when he was three years old. His smile alone killed another, and he skinned a bear by forcing him to run between two trees. Fact or fiction? In this biography, kids will learn who Davy Crockett really was—a man who did love to hunt, who served as a congressman for Tennessee, and who fought and died at the Alamo in Texas.

Around the Opry Table: A Feast of Recipes and Stories from the Grand Ole Opry - eBook By Kay West / Center Street

MLK: A Celebration in Word and Image By Martin Luther King Jr / Beacon Press This small but powerful book sets a quote from Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. against a photo that captures the spirit, energy, and determination with which he pushed for civil rights. A timeline is included in the back. 54 pages, hardcover with dust jacket. Approximately 6.33" x 8.25".

King for Kids, School and Family Edition Audiobook on CD By Martin Luther King Jr. / Hachette Audio This audiobook features speeches and sermons from the late Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., edited for children. This edition is designed for families and schools to introduce the great Civil Rights leader to children in a format they can understand and appreciate. 2 CDs.

Hiking Great Smoky Mountains National Park, 2nd Edition By Kevin Adams / FalconGuides

The Fly Fisherman's Guide to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park By H. Lea Lawrence / Cumberland House Publishing The native Americans who inhabited what is now the Great Smoky Mountains National Park called it "the land of the eagles and the gods." It was also a land of plenty, with streams teeming with brook trout and forests populated with elk, bison, black bear, deer, and turkey. Today this area remains a paradise for trout fisherman that is unparalleled in the eastern United States. The Fly Fisherman's Guide to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park is filled with a wealth of information about the park and what a fly fisherman needs to know in order to fish it successfully.