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Cades
Cove located in the Great Smokey Mountains. It is one of the best places
to absorb nature at its finest. Surrounded mountains on every side,
the cove is only 5 miles long and 2 miles wide. It was home to the
Cherokee Indians until the Treaty of 1819 when it was opened to settlers.
What remains today are the homes of those settlers, telling a story of
character and fortitude.
Cades
Cove, a 6,800-acre valley near Townsend, Tennessee provides a
representative sample of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park's natural
and cultural history as well as its recreational opportunities.
With
over two million visitors each year, Cades Cove is one of the most heavily
used park areas anywhere in the United States.
Prior
to 1819, Cades Cove was part of the Cherokee Nation. The Cherokee called
the cove Tsiyahi, "place of the river otter." In addition to river otters,
elk and eastern bison lived in the Cove. Most large animals were
extirpated before white settlement. The Cherokee tried to integrate
European technologies and culture with their own. They built log and frame
houses, attended school and by 1820 had a written language. The 1830 U.S.
census showed more than 1,000 slaves working on Cherokee plantations.
Many thanks to Glenda, the 'other Robin Hood,' for sending these
spectacular pictures. I had the honor of meeting Glenda this summer,
2004, a true Southern Lady!
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