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Great Smoky Mountains - A Park for America Back to search results
WCU - Great Smoky Mountains - A Park for America

Park dedication: press release

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Item 1 - Park dedication: press release
wcu_great_smoky_mtns-8370.jpg

Park dedication: press release

GSMNP_12997_04_01
wcu_great_smoky_mtns-8371.jpg

Park dedication: press release

GSMNP_12997_04_02
Item 3 - Park dedication: press release
wcu_great_smoky_mtns-8372.jpg

Park dedication: press release

GSMNP_12997_04_03
Item 4 - Park dedication: press release
wcu_great_smoky_mtns-8373.jpg

Park dedication: press release

GSMNP_12997_04_04
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Item’s are ‘child’ level descriptions to ‘parent’ objects, (e.g. one page of a whole book).

  • protection and administration only, in accordance with Congressional approval of such limited park status upon 'the acquisition by the Federal Government (by donation) of 150,000 acres of land. The Great Smoky Mountains National Park when completed will rank as fifth in size of all national parks in continental United States. When acquisition of all lands \vithin the park area is completed, it will comprise approximately 463,000 acres — an area of 723 square miles. Unlike the national parks of the West which were carved from the Public Domain, all lands in the Great Smokies area were privately owned and consisted of more than 4,000 individual holdings. The task of acquisition appeared almost unsurmountable but was solved by the Park Commissions of the States of North Carolina and Tennessee — one of the largest conservation projects of its kind ever undertaken. Funds amounting to approximately $13,000,000 were provided by the Legislatures of these two States, by the citizens of these States, by the Laura Spelman Rockefeller Foundation, and by the United States. The Great Smokies are the greatest mountain mass east of the Black Hills of South Dakota. Many of the peaks are more than 5,000 feet in altitude, and 16 are over 6,000 feet, In visible height they compare favorably with 14,000-foot peaks in the Rockies, since the latter rise from valleys and plateaus themselves from a mile to 8,000 feet in height. To really see the Smokies at their best, visitors can go afoot or on horseback over some of the more than 500 miles of trails. From June through October, a free Government service of nature-guided walks is maintained whereby the visitors' hikes to outstanding scenic areas are made more enjoyable by the naturalists who explain the interesting natural history features of the trailside. Travel to the Park is large and is rapidly increasing. In the travel year 1939, 761,567 people visited the Park. Travel in June 1940 was Tip 40 percent over
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Object’s are ‘parent’ level descriptions to ‘children’ items, (e.g. a book with pages).

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Great Smoky Mountains - A Park for America

This digital collection was created to contribute to the public's understanding of the forces and ideas that led to the establishment of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in 1934. The most vi...

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