Southern Appalachian Digital Collections

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Nomenclature notes

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  • July the 19th 1821 Begun at the Cattalucha track to run the line between the State of North Carolina & Tennessee Marked a rock there on North Carolina side N. C. 1821 and on the other side T. E. N 1821- and runs with the line that J M Dowel M. Matthews and D. Vance run in the year 1799 and runs with said line about 2 miles and a half to where they stopped. (Note by H. Kephart:) Map of the McDowell, Vance and Matthews survey, 1799, now in archives of N. C. Historical Commission, in Raleigh, shows that they stopped at what they called "high pinnacle of the Smokey mn.n, about 4 miles west of Pigeon River, which is now easily identified as Sharp Top. ■
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  • These notes on place names in the Smokies were made by Horace Kephart and were collected by George Masa. George Masa (1881-1933) was active in the Appalachian Trail Club and in the movement to establish the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. In 1931, he was named to the three-person nomenclature committee for the North Carolina Park Commission and had the responsibility for accurately naming the peaks, streams, and other features. Mutual interests fostered Masa’s friendship with Horace Kephart (1862-1931), a noted author and promoter of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Kephart and Masa often hiked together with park officials on inspection trips and provided information to stir public interest. Kephart wrote many articles promoting regional conservation and the park movement.