There's a very helpful brochure at the entrance and if they're out of stock, I've added a picture…read more The brochure tells the story of this cemetery that dates back to 1785 when the oldest church in the county was organized by Scots-Irish in a log building that stood at the north side of the graveyard called Francis Dean's or Robert Henderson's Lower Meeting House. Dean owned the land and Henderson was the first pastor of the church. The brochure continues, "When the church was founded in 1785, Dandridge was just a small western outpost nestled along the French Broad River in Caswell County, State of Franklin, where most people were living in scattered log cabins. The ace of cession by North Carolina paved the way for the formation of the State of Franklin which almost became the nation's 14th state and survived for four years under its own government even though North Carolina would never officially recognize the Franklinites." It was peaceful and interesting and quite historic. If you're heading to Dandridge, stop in and visit the final resting place of these pioneers. [Review 20105 overall - 461 in Tennessee - 1081 of 2023.]

So old. Yeah, this is pretty neat. Dating back to around 1785, interred here are the graves of…read moreRevolutionary War veterans and early citizens of Dandridge. The are only a handful of headstones and they are all unmarked and weathered - in a really cool historic way. There are several stone benches and the grounds are well maintained. The local attendant at the visitor center told me much more oral history; apparently you may never guess it by the size of this little hill mound but approximately 200 unknown graves lie underneath. Oh my.

While visiting in the area we stopped at the Fort Watauga replica at the Sycamore Shoals State Park…read morein Elizabethton, TN near Johnson City, TN. It is located along the Watauga River. Fort Watauga, more properly Fort Caswell, was an American Revolutionary War fort that once stood at the Sycamore Shoals of the Watauga River in what is now Elizabethton, Tennessee. The fort was originally built in 1775-1776 by the area's frontier government, the Watauga Association, to help defend Watauga settlers from Native American (primarily Cherokee) attacks, which were in part instigated by the British. Fort Watauga was originally named Fort Caswell after North Carolina Governor Richard Caswell Link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_Watauga Sycamore Shoals State Historic Park 1651 W. Elk Avenue Elizabethton, Tennessee FREE Park. Free to view and tour the Fort Watauga, and FREE to tour the Visitors Center. The visitors center was not open when we stopped there but we did walk around the Fort.

Toured the Carter Mansion today ($7 per person) Tours are not everyday. Call Sycamore Shoals, or…read morecheck their Facebook site for tour days, and time. We got to see every room in the house, except the basement, which has wood floors. A painting over the fireplace was pretty cool. It was painted over with white paint years ago, and while the restoration group was taking paint "samples", they realized something was under the white paint, which turned out to be a painting. Only one piece of furniture was original to the house, which was a chair. We checked out the family cemetery, and walked down to the Watauga river which is actually in front of the house. This is the oldest framed house in Tennessee. Interesting piece of history.

So they give tours about every hour or so. I think it was about 45 minutes. They had 2 tour guides…read morewhile we were there . But our tour guide complained alot about his life. We did joke around about some things, but at least pretend you enjoy your job. They had a couple cute doggos that greet you while you are there. They also have a little store with a lot of different kinds of rocks if that is your thing.

Had great time at this cavern. We were greeted warmly by the staff.. walk inside building and…read moredecent sized gift shop with lots of gemstones and different things to see. We were only ones there at time and we had great conversations with staff before we started our journey into cave. I think we paid 13-15 a person fairly cheap for cave. So our guide took us thru a door down a ramp and into the start of cave tour. Even saw a salamander under some of rocks at start of cave. Lots of walkways and formations to see.. lot of history too. On way back our guide have us each a flashlight and let us see cave our way with lights off. It was so cool! There is different types of tours where you can crawl thru holes in caves and thru water but I just wanted easy walking tour lol.. definitely a must see.. glad we came!

Big thanks to Richard R. for adding this one that did not come up in the usual searches and yet, it…read morewas the main reason I passed through the DuPont Forest. I love bridges and I love covered bridges even more! And wow, thanks for the amazing writeup of all the drama on this property that was an eye-opener. I parked the van at the High Falls Trailhead (there are restrooms and even a wifi here!) and made my way along the trail to the bridge. It's about 0.75 of a mile on a path through the woods. I am apparently not as delicious as usual as I earned zero mosquito bites despite sweating a lot in the humidity. I'd call this walk "easy plus." The bridge itself is impressive and quite modern. And I would suggest not missing the nearby Falls though I was simply too tired and it was getting too late for me. I'll need to plan better next time! The walk back was much easier as I opted to take the gravel road that is easy and smooth, but only open for emergency vehicles and the forest rangers. I would rate the hike as "easy" for 0.6 miles though not wheelchairable. You can ask the rangers for access by vehicle for handicapped but they're only open regular hours. [Review 20030 overall - 3463 in North Carolina - 1005 of 2023.]

High Falls Covered Bridge (also known as Buck Forest Covered Bridge) is one of my favorite bridges…read morein the Southern United States. It is a modern structure that has an interesting history. It is an example of the power of the people versus the dollar power of a developer. HISTORY In 1999, Sterling Diagnostic Imaging decided to sell their interest in the land that holds Triple Falls and High Falls, two of the most gorgeous waterfalls you will ever visit this side of the Mississippi. For reasons still unknown, the company decided to use an unusual bidding method by choosing to keep the bidding private and secretive. The State offered up a bid in efforts to save the land for public use, but Sterling announced a developer by the name of Jim Anthony won with a bid of 6.35 million. The developer initially announced in the Hendersonville Times News that he had no plans to develop the land, but instead wanted to use it as a private retreat. However, it soon became apparent Anthony was indeed planning a massive upscale gated community. The fact that the deed he purchased from Sterling Diagnostics stating the land could not be used for residential purposes at the Transylvania Courthouse did not seem to matter. It was later discovered the complex legal agreement between the two was unenforceable and the battle began between the state and Anthony. Anthony proceeded to begin building the roads and this gorgeous covered bridge as part of his planned community, but thankfully he was ultimately defeated. On October 23, 2000 Governor Jim Hunt and the Council of State unanimously voted to invoke eminent domain on the tract of land owned by developer Anthony. In many ways Anthony still won big, because the State paid him 24.5 million dollars in an out of court settlement. WOW! The Falls opened to the public on December 17, 2000. Since then, the entire 2200 acres has been integrated into Dupont State Forest. [History Reference: Romantic Asheville - "How Dupont State Forest was saved"] FINAL THOUGHTS Aside from being one of the most beautiful covered bridges you will ever see, it also is part of a trail system that includes arguably the most beautiful waterfalls in the South. If that is not enough of a reason to come here, let me give you movie fans one more reason. Many scenes from the 1st Hunger Games were filmed right here in this forest. The scene were Katniss finds Peeta camouflaged in the ground at the waterfall is located on the second tier of Triple Falls... just a half mile downstream of High Falls Covered Bridge. Movie scene: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UxvyMiwhJWw Year Built: 2000 Obvious materials: Wood, stone, concrete Spans over: Little River at the top of High Falls Location: Dupont State Forest @ Buck Forest Road

Thanks to Google Maps (and my thorough trip itinerary planning), I had discovered the historic…read more(once a) "ghost town" of Elkmont. For America's most visited national park, it can be difficult to escape the crowds within the Great Smoky Mountains--yet Elkmont is one place to do just that! This Little River Valley was once home to a pioneer Appalachian community, a logging town, and later a resort community. To this day, old relics and abandoned buildings from the past remain--awaiting to be explored. The area was settled in the 1840s as the town of Little River when a logging company was formed. A railroad was later constructed to transport timber for the Little River Lumber Company. This eventually allowed the wealthy from Knoxville to visit what eventually became a resort town. When the Great Smoky Mountains National Park was was established in 1934, residents were given the option to sell their homes at full price and relocate, or sell to the National Park Service (NPS) for a discounted price allowing them to live there until they become deceased. By 1992, most of the homes remained vacant or with expired leases leading 70+ historic buildings into a state of deterioration. Thankfully the NPS decided to renovate and preserve 19 buildings in Elkmont for public visitation. You can now find the Elkmont Historic District with cabins along Jakes Creek Road that were completed around 1997. They attempted to keep the buildings in the closest original condition--even their exterior paint colors! Each cabin has information about the tenants and any unique features. Unfortunately, the cabins cannot be brought up to code for renting or staying inside. However, the largest lodge known as the Appalachian Club is available as an event venue. Continue to explore the Old Elkmont Cemetery up a rocky road near the beginning of Elkmont Road, or choose to hike the Jakes Creek or Little River Trails where you will venture past less discovered old chimneys, walls and tractors that still remain. Directions: Coming from Gatlinburg/Pigeon Forge or Cherokee, turn to go west on Fighting Creek Gap Road toward Cade's Cove (turn off near the Sugarlands Visitor Center). After the Laurel Falls trailhead, watch for signs to Elkmont Campground. Follow Elkmont Road all the way til it becomes a loop drive at Jakes Creek Trail Trailhead.

I saw this place on tiktok by Daisytown and also Elkmont. The drive out here is a lil wonky and…read morewill take a long time to get out here. If you are handicap, you dont have to pay for parking. But otherwise you need to get a day pass at the visitor center.

Very nice historical landmark in a quaint, beautiful town. On our way from NC to Knoxville we…read moredecided to stop and are glad we did. Like others, I didn't know much about President Johnson. I knew he had some difficulties, but his life is interesting. He went from being a tailor to the President. Life was hard back then, and he made the most of it. Very tumultuous time in our country. Nice gift shop and a lot of interesing things to see. We were there on a Sunday so most of the town was closed up. Great place to walk and enjoy the natural beauty.

This was great tour! About 45 minutes long, but we got to walk through the entire house and get a…read moresense of what living there would have been like around the time of the civil war.

Worth the drive to see and walk through the tunnel…read more Read the history, it's really a sad story. They call it the stolen highway

If you didn't know the history of this spot, you might not think it's a big deal but if you do know…read morethe history, it becomes more relevant. Yes, it literally is a road that ends in a very long, dark and wet tunnel. There are also several walking trails nearby. We drove back on the road a little bit and did one of the shorter hikes that leads to a section of the lake. There are other trails that are more strenuous. This is more of an oddity than anything else, but still an interesting place to visit.

Beautiful falls. Trail was good shape for healthy senior walking. Strenuous but not exhausting or…read moreunbearable. Everyone on trail & parking lot were polite & helpful

We enjoyed our hike - from car, to falls and back was a little over 3 miles. It is a great hike but…read morebring a walking stick to help navigate some of the rocky areas- you do cross a creek but the rocks were easy to cross without getting wet and were not slippery. On the way down you really tend to enjoy the views - because you aren't focused on getting to the end ;) my husband and I - are out of shape lol but it was not that bad of a hike - our daughter , who is an athlete had no issues - but there is a good 30 ye diff between us ha! I highly recommend spending a few hours enjoying nature ;)