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Black Mountains > Mount Mitchell > Additions and Corrections
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| e-doc | Untitled Comment | |
Hasn't voted | The BRP access from NC 80 is closed due to construction on the Twin tunnels. South Toe Rd is still closed from hurricane damage in 2004. The only vehicular access is via the BRP from Asheville, which is often closed in winter due to ice. | |
| Posted Dec 31, 2005 11:56 pm | ||
| e-doc | Untitled Comment | |
Hasn't voted | History: The mountain was heavily logged (stripped) in the early 1900's by the logging companies Brown Bothers, Carolina Spruce, Dickey and Campbell, and Perley and Crockett (the largest). The slopes of the Blacks were denuded of most trees as they were transported by RR to the towns Pensacola (west of the Blacks) and Black Mt (south of the Blacks). A narrow gauge RR line had been built up the mountain from both places. In 1909 John Silcox Holmes (for whom Holmes State Forest is named), the newly appointed state forester for the North Carolina Geological and Economic Survey, toured and prepared a report on the conditions of the mountain forests. The logging continued unabated. Locke Craig was elected governor of NC in 1913. In the US, momentum was gathering for the preservation of Americas wild lands. Through the work of Holmes and Craig, the state of NC passed a bill March 3, 1995 to establish a park on Mt Mitchell. This was likely the first state (or federal) park in the SE US. Many of the original names of the Blacks have changed also. Clingmans Peak became Black Dome then Mitchells High Peak and finally Mt Mitchell; Mt Mitchell--Clingmans Peak, Haul Back--Hallback, Guyots Peak--Mt Craig, Hairy Bear-- Big Tom, and Black Brother--Balsam Cone. Even during the logging years, Pearley and Crockett offered visitor access by the RR from Black Mt. After establishment of the park, and logging ended, the train continued to transport visitors to the mountain slopes. The tracks were removed in 1922 and replaced by a toll road, then finally replaced by the Blue Ridge Parkway from Buck Creek Gap to Black Mt Gap in 1939. These facts, and much more, can be found in A History of Mt Mitchell and the Black Mountains by Kent Schwarzkoph and Mt Mitchell and the Black Mountains by Timothy Silver. | |
| Posted Feb 3, 2006 12:25 am | ||
| big_g | summit closure | |
Voted 10/10 | Be advised that the summit is closed while construction of the new observation tower is going on. | |
| Posted Apr 12, 2007 6:50 pm | ||
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| Redwic | Re: summit closure | |
Voted 10/10 | I just called the Mount Mitchell State Park and found out the latest construction updates: The Blue Ridge Parkway construction/ detour will last a little beyond Summer (2008). The Mount Mitchell summit, itself, is closed until at least mid-to-late July (2008), due to construction at the summit observation deck. | |
| Posted Feb 12, 2008 2:22 pm | ||
| Eleutheros | Factual Error | |
Voted 10/10 | Just noted that you mention Clingman's Dome is the "second" highest mountain east of the Mississippi. That title in fact belongs to nearby Mount Craig (6,645'). Clingman's Dome should be 3rd on that list. See This Link | |
| Posted Feb 18, 2008 6:39 pm | ||
| eric-griz | Re: summit closure | |
Voted 10/10 | The Mount Mitchell State Park website now claims that the summit will be closed until fall 2008. I guess they are experiencing construction delays. | |
| Posted Aug 2, 2008 9:34 pm | ||
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