Exploring the Cataloochee Valley

Exploring the Cataloochee Valley

Friday, July 13, 2012

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Cataloochee is a beautiful, fairly remote valley nestled on the North Carolina side of Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Known today for the elk reintroduction program, Cataloochee was once a farming community complete with a school, church, post office, and store. Of the nearly 200 structures that once stood in Cataloochee, only a handful remain. This is the park's best remaining example of historic frame construction.

Explore this relatively little visited part of the park with the Great Smoky Mountains Association. Hattie Caldwell Davis was born in Cataloochee and shares some of her memories and knowledge of its history in this video:


© GSMA 2012. All rights reserved.


Jeff
HikingintheSmokys.com

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Noted Author to Present History of Cataloochee

Noted Author to Present History of Cataloochee

Saturday, April 10, 2010

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Great Smoky Mountains National Park will host author Hattie Caldwell Davis on Saturday, April 17, from 10:30 a.m. – 2 p.m. at the Oconaluftee Visitor Center.

Ms. Davis was born in Cataloochee Valley and attended the Beech Grove School. She has written four books about life in Cataloochee: Reflections of Cataloochee Valley and its Vanished People in the Great Smoky Mountains; Step Back in Time to See Historic Cataloochee Valley of the Elk; Historic Cataloochee Tour Guide; and Civil War Letters and Memories from the Great Smoky Mountains. She will be available to sign books, which can be purchased at the center’s bookstore, and talk with visitors about her life in Cataloochee and the history of the people in the valley.

Ms. Davis’ written works detail life in Cataloochee Valley from 1834-1934. She tells family stories of how her ancestors settled in the valley, how they lived, and of the heartbreak of having to leave Cataloochee for the establishment of the park. She also describes the scenery when Cataloochee was a farming settlement, the virgin forests and the animals that once roamed the area, but later vanished, such as the panther and wolf. Her books include a number of historic photographs that help tell the stories of the people of Cataloochee Valley.

Contact the Oconaluftee Visitor Center at 828-497-1904 for additional information.


Jeff
HikingintheSmokys.com Detailed information on trails in the Smoky Mountains; includes trail descriptions, key features, pictures, video, maps, elevation profiles, news, hiking gear store, and more.

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