US Route 441 runs through the center of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and crosses the border between North Carolina and Tennessee at Newfound Gap. This 5,048 foot high mountain pass is the lowest elevation pass through the National Park. The name "Newfound" stems from the fact that the pass was not recognized as the lowest until 1872 when the elevation was measured by Swiss geographer Arnold Henry Guyot. Nearby Indian Gap was thought to be the lowest pass until this "new found" gap was discovered. A new road over the pass, Newfound Gap Road now Route 441, appeared shortly afterward. I've stopped here before and decided to check it out again on my way back from Clingmans Dome, (Newfound Gap is only 7 miles from Clingmans Dome Road). The gap itself features a parking area, informative displays, and several mountain overlooks. But the most distinctive feature is the Rockefeller Memorial.

The idea of creating a national park in the Great Smoky Mountains had been around since the 1890s. But nothing happened until 1926 when President Calvin Coolidge signed a bill that provided for the creation of the park once land had been acquired. This was not going to be easy because a lot of the land needed was in private hands. By 1928, government funding coupled with private donations raised $5 million for land acquisition. A matching $5 million grant from the Laura Spelman Rockefeller Memorial Fund guaranteed that all the necessary land could be purchased. The memorial shown above was built in honor of the Rockefeller grant. After several years of acquiring land and building facilities, President Franklin D. Roosevelt officially dedicated the park from the Rockefeller Memorial on September 2, 1940.

The photo above is from the US National Park Service website and shows President Franklin D. Roosevelt dedicating the Great Smoky Mountains National Park from the Rockefeller Memorial at Newfound Gap on September 2, 1940.

The memorial sits at the end of the parking area next to Newfound Gap Road/US Route 441.

Looking west from atop the Rockefeller Memorial into Tennessee.

Looking west from atop the Rockefeller Memorial into Tennessee.

Newfound Gap is not quite equidistant from Gatlinburg, Tennessee and Cherokee, North Carolina.

The Appalachian Trail passes through the area and can be accessed in several places throughout the Park, including here at the Rockefeller Memorial at Newfound Gap.

The northern end of the Appalachian Trail at Mount Katahdin in Maine is a mere 1,972 miles north from this point.

I wandered around the overlooks and historical markers next to the parking area. Among the many markers telling the stories of the people from this region was the marker shown in the photo above that told the story of why the Great Smoky Mountains are named "Smoky."

Looking east into North Carolina from the parking area of the Rockefeller Memorial at Newfound Gap.

I spent some time enjoying the views before heading back to Cherokee for dinner.

I departed Newfound Gap and headed south on US Route 441 toward Cherokee, North Carolina and stopped at another overlook. This one told the story of the "transition zone" where the hardwoods end and the Evergreens begin with regard to elevation.

The photos above and below show the valley as seen from the overlook.

This is the valley as seen from the overlook.