CULTURAL HISTORY:
The Smokies also have a rich cultural history. Cherokee Indians moved into the area about 1,000 years ago, and permanent white settlement began around 1800. Most families depended on farming for their livelihood. Life for many of these families changed with the coming of commercial logging operations around 1900 that stripped trees from two-thirds of what is now park land. Established in 1934, the park was created from more than 6,000 tracts of private and commercial land that was bought with money raised by public and private donations.
BIOSPHERE RESERVE:
The park is designated as an International Biosphere Reserve by the United Nations. The international system contains 323 reserves in 83 countries with the primary objectives of conserving genetic diversity and coordinating environmental education, research, and monitoring. The park is also a unit of the Southern Appalachian Man and Biosphere Reserve cluster. This membership enhances the park's commitment to cooperative efforts in environmental education, research, resource management, and public involvement. The park's designation as a World Heritage Site and a State Natural Heritage Area by both Tennessee and North Carolina reinforces the value of its natural and cultural resources.
VISITATION:
Centrally located within a two day's drive for half of the nation's population, Great Smoky Mountains National Park has the highest visitation of all the national parks in the country. There are between eight and ten million visits to the park annually, and these people come to take advantage of a wide range of activities in the park and surrounding communities. Programs offered by rangers and interpretive displays located at the visitor centers and roadside exhibits explain the unique aspects of the park so that visitors may better understand the environment around them. More importantly, these programs stress why it is crucial to preserve environments such as the Great Smoky Mountains.
UNIQUE FEATURES:
The park's wide recognition as a unique sanctuary is well deserved when one considers just a few of its features:
FLORA:
During the Ice Age, the Smokies were a refuge for hundreds of plant and animal species retreating before the glaciers. These species found suitable living conditions in the upper elevations of the Smokies. Because the park contains a variety of habitats, it is now home for over 1,500 species of vascular plants, 10% of which are considered rare, and well over 4,000 non-flowering plant species.
TREES:
The park has more tree species than northern Europe and contains one of the largest blocks of virgin temperate deciduous forest in North America. Almost 95% of the park is forested, and about 25% of that area has not been disturbed. Some trees attain record size in the Smokies and have diameters of almost ten feet.
ECOSYSTEMS:
Because of the elevation and orientation of the Great Smoky Mountains, there is a wide variety of plant and animal communities. In a small distance, changes in altitude, temperature and moisture create entirely different ecosystems from surrounding areas.
ENDEMIC SPECIES:
 The Smokies provide the only habitat in the world for several plant and animal species, including Cain's reed-bent grass, Rugel's ragwort, and Jordan's (red-cheeked) salamander. Species new to the scientific community are found nearly every year, especially in the lesser-studied groups, such as the invertebrates.
MONITORING:
To better manage its unique flora and fauna, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, in cooperation with The Nature Conservancy, became the first national park in the country to set up a National Heritage Data Center. The Natural Heritage Program gives the park the ability to inventory and monitor its rare plants, animals, and ecosystems.
FAUNA:
At least 60 native mammals live in the Smokies, along with over 200 species of birds, many of which are here on a seasonal basis. There are 38 reptilian species which include turtles, lizards and snakes. Amphibian species number 40, and of that figure 27 are salamanders. This gives the Smokies the unique distinction of having the most diverse salamander population anywhere in the world. The park has about 48 species of fish, including several species of game fish. Numerous species of land snails, insects, and spiders are also found in the park.
HISTORIC STRUCTURES:
Culturally, the park has an unequaled collection of log buildings, including large two-story dwellings and working grist mills -- over 75 historic structures. Designated historic districts preserve buildings that reflect the southern Appalachian way of life in the Great Smoky Mountains.
The Smoky Mountain Mall would like to thank the Great Smoky Mountains National Park for supplying us with this information.
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