The plan to revive a historic site and beloved state park
When Hurricane Helene arrived in the Smokies, it unleashed a torrential hell that claimed dozens of mountain lives. Communities were wiped out because some mountain waterways had been rerouted. It was an unprecedented combination of storm and timing. It hit on the heels of what would have been, under normal circumstances, a pretty significant rainfall.
The mountains of Western North Carolina were the hardest hit, but East Tennessee was not spared. The swift-moving Nolichucky River, which runs through and alongside the mountains into Douglas Lake, swelled to 30 feet in some areas. That was 8 feet more than the previous known record. Bridges, roadways, businesses, and more were destroyed. You may remember images of people being evacuated from the roof of an upper East Tennessee hospital as the water rose.
What happened to the Davy Crockett Birthplace State Park?
In the wake of all that destruction, it went relatively unnoticed that the Davy Crockett Birthplace State Park – which had been a state park since 1973 and a regional tourist attraction since the mid 1880’s because of the legendary Crockett’s fame – was all but washed away.
It makes sense. As important as the historic site is, people’s lives and the necessary infrastructure to rebuild them takes precedence. But now, roughly 16 months after the storm, a plan is afoot to not only return the park to its former glory but to rebuild it and enhance it. It will be “Six Million Dollar Man” style – which ironically starred Lee Majors who grew up about an hour and a half away in Middlesboro, Kentucky.
Who is David Crockett?
I feel like if you’ve made it this far, you don’t need the Crockett deep dive. Born in what was the newly formed Greene County, Tennessee, Davy Crockett became a legend in his own time. He was a living person upon whom tall tales were eventually built. His father fought with the Overmountain Men during the Revolutionary War. And he moved his family to several locations in East Tennessee…