Great Smoky Mountain National Park Looking For Your Help

The Great Smoky Mountains National Park is looking for some help and some Cocke County residents might be able to assist. The park is seeking help to identify and document former homesite locations in the park. Volunteer-in-Park Frank March, in conjunction with Park Archeologist Allison Harvey, are leading those research efforts which includes documenting field locations with associated historic records. March estimates that more than 2,400 former homesites can be found in the park. Seventy percent of those homesites have been identified, but more remain. Records associated with the purchase of approximately 1,200 farms between 1920 and 1940 for the creation of the park are preserved in the park’s Collections Preservation Center. However, the history of European habitation in the park dated to the 1790’s and many of these pre-20th century homesites are not documented. The public is invited to come to the Blount County Library this Saturday, June 4, from 10: a.m. to 2:00 p.m. to learn more about the project and to bring historic photos of old homesites, hand drawn maps or other documents that will help the park identify those undocumented homesites that once existed in the park.