Cumberland Gap National Historical Park

The Cumberland Gap National Historical Park is a United States National Historical Park located at the border between Kentucky, Tennessee, and Virginia, centered on the Cumberland Gap, a natural break in the Appalachian Mountains.

The park lies in parts of Bell and Harlan counties in Kentucky, Claiborne County in Tennessee, and Lee County in Virginia. The park contains the Kentucky-Virginia-Tennessee tripoint, accessible via trail.<ref name="nhpmap"/>

The town of Cumberland Gap, Tennessee, is located inside of the park's territory.<ref name="nhpmap">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

The Cumberland Gap Visitor Center is located on U.S. Highway 25E just southeast of the city of Middlesboro, Kentucky, and just northwest of the Cumberland Gap Tunnel and the town of Cumberland Gap, Tennessee. The visitor center features a museum with interactive exhibits about the Gap's role as a transportation corridor, an auditorium that shows films about the area's cultural and natural history, a book store and the Cumberland Crafts gift shop with crafts from Appalachia.<ref name="center">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Physical geography

The park covers Template:Convert and is among the largest national parks in the eastern United States.<ref name="Wiley2014">Template:Cite book</ref>Template:Rp As of 2010, Template:Convert of this was designated as Recommended Wilderness.<ref name="mgmt"/>Template:Rp Elevation varies from a low of Template:Convert to a high of Template:Convert.<ref name="nat"/>Template:Rp

The park runs along the Cumberland Mountains, stretching about Template:Convert with an average width of Template:Convert.<ref name="kgs"/> The park straddles a tri-state area encompassing land from Kentucky, Tennessee, and Virginia.<ref name="Wiley2014"/>Template:Rp It includes the area of the Wilderness Road running through the passage across the Cumberland Plateau and through the Cumberland Gap, an important geological feature that facilitated travel for American settlers and Native Americans.<ref name="nat"/>Template:Rp<ref name="brit"/><ref name="kgs"/> It includes 24 known cave features ranging in size from around Template:Convert to more than Template:Convert in length.<ref name="mgmt"/>Template:Rp<ref name="form"/>

There are a number of large cliff systems in the park, the most prominent of which is the Template:Convert cliffs of White Rocks, located in the eastern portion of the area.<ref name="mgmt"/>Template:Rp<ref name="form">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> At the northeastern end, the park sits adjacent to the Sillalah Creek Wildlife Management Area and the Martin's Fork Wildlife Management Area and State Natural Area.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="mgmt"/>Template:Rp

The climate of the area is mild, with hot and humid summers and mild winters, and an average annual temperature of Template:Convert.<ref name="nat"/>Template:Rp

File:CumberlandGapWhiteRocks.jpg

Winter view from beneath the White Rocks cliffs, in the far eastern portion of the park

Hydrology

The park contains over Template:Convert of streams.<ref name="nat"/>Template:Rp With the exception of one, Little Yellow Creek, all of these originate from within the park, with those to the north of the main ridge flowing into the Cumberland River, and those to the south flowing into the Powell River.<ref name="nat"/>Template:Rp Overall water quality in the park is good to fair, with some areas falling below recommended pH levels, likely due to natural causes, and others exceeding recommended levels of microorganisms, possibly due to contamination from campgrounds.<ref name="nat"/>Template:Rp

Ecology

The area of the park is 97% forested and contains 970 species of vascular plants, 90 of which are classified as sensitive or rare species.<ref name="nat"/>Template:Rp These include 108 non-native species of plants, and 31 considered to be highly aggressive invasive plants.<ref name="nat"/>Template:RpTemplate:Efn

The park is home to at least 145 species of birds, and 40 species of mammals, including the near-threatened bat, Myotis sodalis (Indiana bat).<ref name="nat"/>Template:Rp The streams in the park house around 27 species of fish, including Chrosomus cumberlandensis (blackside dace), federally listed as an endangered species. Additionally, surveys have identified at least 36 species of reptiles and amphibians.<ref name="nat"/>Template:Rp

Ecosystems in the park are threatened by a number of insect infestations from non-native pest species, including Dendroctonus frontalis (southern pine beetle), and Adelges tsugae (hemlock woolly adelgid). The species Agrilus planipennis (emerald ash borer) and Lymantria dispar dispar (gypsy moth) also represent imminent threats from surrounding areas.<ref name="nat"/>Template:Rp

History

File:HPC-001317 (26975446814).jpg

Vice President Richard Nixon at the Pinnacle Interpretive Shelter, attending the dedication of the park's Visitor Center (Mission 66 project), July 1959.

File:NPS cumberland-gap-horse-trail-map.jpg

National Park Service map of horse trails within the park

Business leaders from Middlesboro, Kentucky, meeting in Cincinnati for the Appalachian Logging Conference, proposed a Lincoln National Park, centered around Fern Lake as early as 1922.<ref name="nat"/>Template:Rp<ref name="tenn"/> However, two bills introduced into the Kentucky State Legislature the following year by State Congressman John Robison both failed. Later attempts in 1929 sought to create memorials for Civil War battles fought in the area, and also failed. In 1938, the National Park Service agreed to support a park if the lands were donated to form one, and the Cumberland Gap National Historical Park Association was created, sparking more unsuccessful attempts in Kentucky, and then passage of a bill in Virginia in 1939 that paved the way for federal authorization.<ref name="nat"/>Template:Rp<ref name="tenn"/>

The park was established on June 11, 1940, by Franklin Roosevelt in order to "commemorate the story of the first doorway of the west".<ref name="brit">Template:Cite encyclopedia</ref><ref name="kgs">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="mgmt"/>Template:Rp It was authorized by Congress to occupy an area not to exceed Template:Convert.<ref name="mgmt">Template:Cite book</ref>Template:Rp The surrounding states purchased and deeded the land of the park to the federal government in 1955, and the official opening took place in 1959.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="tenn">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

In 1992, the park purchased the area surrounding Gap Cave, which had previously been privately owned.<ref name="mgmt"/>Template:Rp By 1996, the park had undergone some $280 million in improvements, including construction of the Cumberland Gap Tunnel.<ref name="mgmt"/>Template:Rp

Toward the southern end of the park lies Fern Lake, created by an earthen dam in 1890, which provides water to the nearby town of Middlesboro, Kentucky.<ref name="Shattuck2005"/>Template:Rp The area surrounding the lake was purchased by the park in four phases following the passage of the Fern Lake Conservation and Recreation Act, increasing the overall size of the park by 20%:

• Phases I and II, Template:Convert of land purchased in 2008 from Ataya Hardwoods by The Trust for Public Land and transferred to the park
• Phase III, Template:Convert of land purchased in 2009 from Molpus Woodlands Group
• Phase IV, Template:Convert of land purchased in 2009 from Molpus Woodlands Group<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref>

As of 2010 there were plans to acquire an additional Template:Convert of land surrounding the lake.<ref name="mgmt"/>Template:Rp As of 2018, the park had an estimated $15 million in deferred maintenance.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Accommodations

File:Cumberland Gap National Historical Park visitors center.jpg

The exterior of the visitor center in 2008

The park includes a visitor center, renovated in 2004, which features a museum and auditorium, providing exhibits on the areas cultural and natural history, as well as book and gift shops.<ref name="Shattuck2005">Template:Cite book</ref>Template:Rp

Guided tours of the Hensley Settlement and Gap Cave are provided from the tourist center.<ref name="Shattuck2005"/>Template:Rp Around Template:Convert from the center, along the Skyland Road, lies the Pinnacle Overlook, which, at an elevation of Template:Convert, overlooks the gap and the surrounding country.<ref name="Shattuck2005"/>Template:Rp<ref name="aaa">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

There are Template:Convert of hiking trails, ranging from shorter routes such as the Template:Convert Sugar Run Trail, to the Template:Convert Ridge Trail, which spans the park and reaches an elevation of Template:Convert.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The nearby Wilderness Road Campground includes 160 campsites.<ref name="aaa"/> No hunting is permitted within the park.<ref name="mgmt"/>Template:Rp

Tri-State Peak is located in the park, and is accessible by trail. A marker designating the tripoint of the states of Kentucky, Tennessee, and Virginia, is located at the peak of the mountain.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Tourism

The park saw 737,547 visitors in 2017, according to statistics by the National Park Service.<ref name =visitation/> According to one federal study, in 2013 visitor spending amounted to $46 million in nearby communities, supporting 639 local jobs.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Peak rates of visitation normally occur during the seasons of spring, summer and fall.<ref name="nat">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>Template:Rp

Recognition

In 2017, the park received the Keeper of the Light Award from the Southeast Region of the National Park Service, which recognizes excellence in education.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In 2016, the United States Mint released a commemorative quarter as part of the America the Beautiful series honoring the park.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

See also

• Big South Fork of the Cumberland River
• Cumberland Falls State Resort Park
• Lists of state parks by U.S. state
• List of areas in the United States National Park System
• List of Kentucky state parks
• List of mountain passes
• List of national parks of the United States
• List of Tennessee state parks
• List of Virginia state parks
• Mammoth Cave National Park
• Pine Mountain State Resort Park

External links

• Template:Wikivoyage inline
• Official Cumberland Gap National Historical Park website
• American Byways: Cumberland Gap