Recently Karen Graham came down to visit us. It was the first time that Karen has been able to visit us at a park where we have been working. We were delighted to have her come and spend time with her. During her visit, she and I joined Karen Blondell at the Nineteen 19 Grill …
General Longstreet Museum in Russellville, TN
One day, when Tom and I were doing living history at Cumberland Gap, two men from the General Longstreet Museum in Russellville, Tennessee stopped by. We talked to both of them for quite a while. They were preparing for the fund-raising bus tour given by the museum once a year. The younger man, the sole …
85 Miles of Trails at Cumberland Gap
Cumberland Gap National Historical Park has 85 miles of trails. This makes it the park with the most trails of any that we have worked at except for Death Valley. Over our four months at Cumberland Gap, Tom and I have hiked on most of the trails. In fact, the only one we haven’t been …
Cumberland Falls State Park
On one of our adventure days, Tom, Robin, and I went to Cumberland Falls State Resort Park. Sometimes we have visitors come in to Cumberland Gap National Historical Park and say that they want to see the falls. At first that question threw me, because we don’t really have any waterfalls in the park. But …
Levitt AMP Middlesboro Music Series
One of the things we have really enjoyed about living here is attending the Levitt AMP Middlesboro Music Series. This is a series of free concerts held on Thursday nights in downtown Middlesboro. We attended six of the ten concerts this year. The Levitt AMP Middlesboro Music Series has been held every summer since 2015. …
Montgomery Grocery Store
Montgomery Grocery Store is the closest grocery store to where Tom and I are living while we work at Cumberland Gap National Historical Park. Ranger Lucas told us about it on our first day of work so we stopped by there shortly after. We have been back several times, but not usually for groceries. Montgomery …
Bison Hair and Stinging Nettles
The I have been conducting experimental archaeology with bison hair and stinging nettles in my textile lab at Cumberland Gap National Historical Park. I didn’t realize I was doing experimental archaeology until our park superintendent, Lisa Baldwin, took an interest in my experiment. I just thought I was doing living history. The experiment started with …
Middlesboro, Kentucky: Crater City
Middlesboro, Kentucky, is the largest town within an hour of where Tom and I are living this summer. Fortunately, it has about 10,000 residents, so it has three grocery stores including a Walmart and a Kroger. Although I consider 10,000 people to be a good-sized small city, Middlesboro has more of a village or small-town …
Mr K’s Used Books and Music
When Tom and I went to Elizabethton and Sycamore Shoals, we stopped by Mr K’s Used Books and Music on our way home. Ranger Lucas had recommended it. We had never heard of it, but are always happy to go to a bookstore. Mr K’s Used Books and Music is a small chain, with four …
White Rocks and Sand Cave Trail
All summer Tom has wanted to hike up the White Rocks and Sand Cave trail. Cumberland Gap National Historical Park has over 85 miles of trails, including the 26-mile Ridge Trail which runs the length of the park. The only problem with most of these trails is their change in elevation. After all, we are …