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Thousands unite for Smoky Mountain Park celebration

By TESA NAUMAN
Tennessee Correspondent

NEWFOUND GAP, Tenn. — Dignitaries from the federal government, Tennessee, North Carolina, singer Dolly Parton and 2,000 members of the public and invited guests gathered Sept. 2 to commemorate the dedication of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park (GSMNP) 69 years ago.

The rededication took place at Rockefeller Memorial, located at Newfound Gap on the Tennessee/North Carolina border. The site is the same place where, on Sept. 2, 1940, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt presided over the dedication of the six-year-old park, established in 1934. During last Wednesday’s event, the chair FDR sat in during the ceremony was placed next to the podium as a symbolic nod to the late president.

The Great Smokies, the most-visited national park in the continental United States, is the only one that does not charge an entrance fee. Despite that, it is the park that makes the greatest economic impact, according to U.S. Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar, who attended the event on behalf of President Obama.
The park, which plays host to nearly 10 million visitors each year, gave birth to the tourism industry in the area that, in turn, has created much-needed jobs.

The idea for a national park here began in the late 1890s. By the early 20th century, more people were pushing for it, but there was disagreement within groups of supporters whether it should be a national park or a national forest.

In a national forest, consumptive use of renewable resources is allowed. In a national park, however, the land, flora and fauna are protected and nature is allowed to run its course, according to park officials.

By the mid-1920s, the idea of a national park prevailed, but money was needed to purchase land. To obtain the land, schoolchildren donated their lunch money and hundreds of families in Tennessee and North Carolina gave up their homes and farms.

The rededication ceremony acknowledged and honored the sacrifices made by those people and their descendants. GSMNP Superintendent Dale Ditmanson acknowledged those in the audience who had lived in the park or were descendants by asking them to stand up. Roughly one-third of the audience stood.

Three groups of special guests who attended the event wore ribbons to identify themselves: Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) members wore green; people born within the park borders wore red; and those who attended the 1940 dedication wore blue.
Members of the CCC helped build most of the walls, bridges and buildings in the park.

Cherokee elder Jerry Wolfe said a prayer and gave a special blessing by “smudging” in the direction of the four compass points. Smudging is a Native American tradition to ward off evil by burning incense.

During the event, comments were given by Salazar, U.S. senators Bob Corker, Lamar Alexander and Kay Hagen; acting director of the National Park Service Dan Wenk; North Carolina and Tennessee governors Bev Perdue and Phil Bredesen; and U.S. representatives Heath Shuler, John J. Duncan Jr. and Phil Roe.
Alexander said the people of Tennessee and North Carolina share a unique attitude toward the park.

“We feel like we own it, because our families once did. We love it because we grew up hiking here, or we adopted it as our home. And, we’re proud we gave this park to our country so that everybody can enjoy it,” he said.

Dolly Parton, who was born and reared in Sevier County, Tenn., bordering the park, performed two songs from her latest CD, Sha-Kon-O-Hey: “My Mountain, My Home” and “Forever Home.” The CD’s title is the phonetic spelling of the Cherokee word that means “land of blue smoke.”

She has spent the year as the park’s official 75th anniversary ambassador. Ditmanson said when the park was looking for someone to be ambassador, they didn’t have to look far.

“When we first sat down with our partners and began brainstorming how the anniversary could best gain national stature, we asked ourselves, ‘If we could pick one person who’s most recognized and personifies love of the Smokies, who would it be?’ “Can you guess?” Ditmanson quipped.

He added that Parton has raised more than $200,000 for the park through her donation of the proceeds from the premiere of the stage production of Sha-Kon-O-Hey and from sales of the CD.
“It has been quite an honor to serve as the ambassador for the 75th anniversary. I took this job very seriously. I had a lot of help, but I did not just sit on my Metcalf Bottoms,” Parton joked, referring to a section of the park so named.

The Gatlinburg-Pittman High School Band and the Swain County High School Band provided music in addition to Parton’s. As the ceremony came to end after the performance of her last song, fog rolled in over the Smokies, partially obscuring the blue sky – just like the “blue smoke” in the title of Parton’s CD.

9/9/2009