Cumberland Gap is a pass through the Appalachian highlands near the border of Virginia, Kentucky and Tennessee.  The gap was discovered by Thomas Walker in 1750, but it was Daniel Boone who in 1775 marked the trail the pioneers would follow as they headed west.

Historian Frederick Jackson Turner,  whose Turner Thesis explained westward migration, said, “Stand at Cumberland Gap and watch the procession of civilization, marching single file---the buffalo following the trail to the salt springs, the Indian, the fur-trader and hunter, the cattle-raiser, the pioneer farmer---and the frontier has passed by.”

Native Americans following paths marked by bison and deer created the Warrior’s Path that led south from the Potomac River through the gap and north to Ohio.  When European settlers first discovered the trail it was said to be strewn with the bleached bones of the enemies of the raiding parties from the five tribes who fought for control of the area: Cherokee, Miami, Shawnee, Delaware and Wyandot.  The first white man through the gap was Dr. Thomas Walker who, after discovering this passage through the Appalachians, named it in honor of the Duke of Cumberland, son of King George II.  But it was Daniel Boone, with 30 men, who marked it and created the Wilderness Road in 1775. The narrow winding 208-mile-footpath Boone created took pioneers six to eight months to travel. After crossing through the gap, there were three options: trails led to what would become Boonesboro, Kentucky; Nashville, Tennessee; and Louisville, Kentucky.

During the American Revolution, Great Britain enlisted help from the indigenous tribes to keep pioneers from moving west.  But from 1775 through 1796, the gap was crossed by between 200,000 and 300,000 settlers.  The westward groups often met farmers driving herds of livestock heading east.

In the 1820s and 1830s new routes to the west supplanted the route through Cumberland Gap.  The National Road, a 1796 wagon road that extended north of the Ohio River was an easier route.  The Chesapeake and Ohio Canals, the Pennsylvania Main Line and the Erie Canal.  Steamboats also plied the Mississippi carrying settlers westward.

During the Civil War, Cumberland Gap was a strategic point dividing North and South---it was called the Gibraltar of America and the Keystone of the Confederacy.  Union troops under Brigadier General Robert L. McCook built Fort McCook (earthworks of their fort can be seen from the park’s Pinnacle Overlook).  It proved too difficult to provision the fort and McCook evacuated his men.  The Confederates soon occupied the fort, renaming it Fort Rains.  Over three years the fort changed hands four times, with occupying troops never managing to maintain a defensive position due to supplying difficulties.  The invasion that both sides feared might come through the gap never materialized.

The 1860s were the military years, while the 1870s heralded the industrial years.  In 1875 coal, iron and timber were reported to be abundantly available in the Cumberland Gap area.  A railroad was built and the “Industrial Boom” of the early 1880s began.    Local fires, bank failures and other unexpected setbacks heralded the end of the economic growth and it wasn’t until the early 1900s when roads began to open the gap to traffic that the area began recovering.

The visitor center for this 20,279 acre park, the nation’s largest National Historical Park, is on the Kentucky side of the park (just to the south of the park is Tennessee).  Exhibits and displays at the center, open daily 8:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M. (except Christmas, New Year’s Day, Martin Luther King’s Birthday and President’s Day), detail the history of Cumberland Gap.  An audio- interpreted diorama reveals Daniel Boone and his crew blazing the Wilderness Road.  On his exploration of the gap, Boone said, “I can’t say as ever I was lost, but I was bewildered once, for three days.”  At the center you can view two short videos on the history of the park and on Hensley Settlement.

You can hike to the early 20th century Hensley Settlement by taking the 3.5 mile Chadwell Gap trail up the mountain from Caylor, Va., or during the summer months by park shuttle (reservations can be made up to a week in advance by calling, (606) 248-2817).  The Hensleys and their relatives, the Gibbons, moved to Brush Mountain, northeast of the gap, in 1903.  They built log houses on their mountaintop and lived without modern conveniences.  The last family member left this rural Appalachia community in 1951. 

Cumberland Gap National Historical Park has restored three farmsteads at Hensely Settlement.  You’ll see houses, barns, fences and farm and pasture land.  Also restored  is a one-room schoolhouse, where all the grades were taught by one teacher.  Students had to haul water from the well and bring in coal and wood for the pot-bellied stove.  There was no church in the settlement but services were held in the schoolhouse by preachers of various denominations.  During the time the Hensleys and Gibbons lived here, there were no roads to the settlement.  Access was by foot, horseback or mule-drawn sleds.

The best spot to gain an overview of the park is from the Pinnacle Overlook.  Getting to this high ground reinforces the concept that pioneers desperately needed a route through the mountains, rather than a trail over them.  After parking, you’ll see a bronze relief mural of the pioneers trekking through Cumberland Gap.  A short walk along the paved Overlook Trail will bring you to the stone overlook platform.   A map will indicate Virginia, Kentucky and Tennessee, the town of Cumberland Gap and the city of Middlesboro.

There are more than 50 miles of park trails.  The 21-mile Ridge Trail is the longest; it is of medium difficulty and runs the length of the park.  A spur off Ridge Trail leads to Sand Cave, located in the White Rocks on top Cumberland Mountain.  This is not literally a cave, but rather an enormous opening 150 feet wide and 40 feet high.  Sand is deposited in this opening which extends 160 feet into the mountain.  The ceiling is of gold, red and green shades of rock.   The easy Tri-state Peak Trail lets you stand in three states at the same time.

The park plans restoration work at Cudjo’s Caverns, located beneath Pinnacle Overlook on the east side of Route 25E.  These caverns boast the tallest stalagmite in the world and the many cavern chambers have fascinating formation.  When this work is complete the caverns will reopen. 

The park has five backcountry campsites and the 160-site Wilderness Road Campground.  There is also Martin’s Fork Cabin, a one-room primitive cabin with six board bunks and a fireplace, call (606) 248-2817 for reservations. 

Directions: Follow I-81 to Morristown, Tennessee.  At Morristown take Route 25E north to Cumberland Gap National Historical Park.