Talk:Cades Cove

last resident dead?
The article says that the last resident of Cades Cove died in 1999. I think what's meant is that the last person who was still living in the cove died, not that the last person who ever lived in the cove died. Is this right? If so, the article could be clearer. --Allen 19:45, 6 September 2006 (UTC)
 * Changed to "last remaining resident" for the sake of clarity. -- Rydra Wong 05:10, 23 April 2007 (UTC)

Kermit Caughorn was the man's name. He lived in the cove with his wife, raising cattle and bees. He did, indeed, die in 1999, and his wife moved out shortly thereafter, and the Park Service has since demolished his house, which was getting pretty dilapidated. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 81.159.46.115 (talk) 22:48, 10 October 2007 (UTC)

Changes 5/25/2007
1. I expanded the geology section, giving a little more detail on limestone windows and the age of the rocks, and mentioning the two caves.

2. I expanded and sub-divided the history section. It probably needs more detail on the period 1865-1900.

3. I added a section for the historical structures. I never figured out who Carter Shields was, but Dunn says the cabin was built in 1830's.

The article might need a section on wildlife (lots of deer and wolves in the cove).

Bms4880 21:19, 25 May 2007 (UTC)

Good article yet?
Came across this article while editing a related article. I think this one might be ready to promote to Good article status. Any comments? Realkyhick 04:45, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Re: Good article yet?
I still think it's B-class, due to several holes:

1. There is no Plants/Wildlife section (a must for any national park area).

2. The post-Civil War part of the history section might be too narrowly focused.

3. The "Touring" section should probably be expanded.

There is a book on CC by Randolph Shields that I (or another editor) will need to consult. It's one of the two authoritative works (along with the Dunn book) on the cove's history, so I'm worried the article may be lacking crucial well-known information without it.

These three issues shouldn't take long, and after they're in place, I would promote it to "good article".

Bms4880 01:19, 20 June 2007 (UTC)


 * Sounds good. Are you going to tackle those three issues? BTW I'd love to see that book. Realkyhick 05:36, 20 June 2007 (UTC)


 * I'll get around to it eventually. I think the Shields book is called _The Cades Cove Story_.  Bms4880 00:41, 22 June 2007 (UTC)

How Many Visitors ???
This article states that there are two million (2,000,000) visitors to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park each year. Either this figure is incorrect, or badly outdated. The current number of visitors to the National Park is ten million (10,000,000) visitors per year.

Despite this large number of visitors, the Park is still a delightful place if you will just park and hike a short distance off the roads. There are a few trails in the Cades Cove area, such as the Abrams Falls Trail that receive a lot of use, but on some of the trails you may hike all day and not see more than 10 or 15 other people.

Larry E. Matthews 19:56, 6 November 2007 (UTC)


 * I believe the writer of that paragraph is stating that *Cades Cove* itself draws 2 million visitors per year, not the park as a whole:
 * Cades Cove Planning. NPS.gov should have more accurate numbers.


 * I'll try to remove the ambiguity.
 * Bms4880 14:37, 7 November 2007 (UTC)

A Visit To Gregorys Cave
I entered Gregorys Cave on May 17, 2008 under a Permit that I had been issued to photograph the cave and conducted historical research. On the right wall, near the only side passage in the cave, I observed classic "Talley Marks" which were left by saltpeter miners to document how many bags of dirt they had removed from a mining site. Further examination showed that the clay soil along the right (south) wall of the cave in this area had been extensively mined and pick marks were visible in places. Clearly, Gregorys Cave was mined for saltpeter, based on this evidence.

The cave was photo-documented by Bob Biddix, photographer, and his assistant Erica Sughrue.

Larry E. Matthews (talk) 20:20, 19 May 2008 (UTC)


 * Larry-- I strongly suggest creating a full article for Gregorys Cave, especially if you have photographs. I'll be glad to help, if necessary.  Also, if you guys publish any findings, be sure to add it to the references section.  Fascinating stuff!  Bms4880 (talk) 21:45, 19 May 2008 (UTC)

The Cables of Cades Cove were NOT Pennsylvania Dutch.
Peter Cable of Cades Cove was the son of Casper (Goebell) Cable who is my 4th Great Grandfather. I am a descendant of Peter’s brother Joseph which make Peter my 4th Great Uncle. Casper was born in 1755 in Germany and was conscripted as a Hessian and was brought to North America to fight for the British Crown during the American War for Independence. He was captured at Trenton (as in Washington crossing the Delaware) and subsequently became a turncoat and joined the Continental Army. He was captured and repatriated to another British unit from which he deserted and rejoined the Continentals as saw action at Gilford Courthouse. After the war he was given land in what is now Johnson County Tennessee (was part of North Carolina at the time).

So Casper and his over 50,000 descendants are NOT Pennsylvania Dutch.

Today, pretty much anyone you meet named Cable in the North America is about 80% likely to be a descendant of Casper the Hessian who had NINE sons who had several sons each. The other 20% of the Cables in North America did come from Pennsylvania but they bred fewer boys so they are not as proliferate.

I will get my cites in order and make the appropriate changes to this article. Eric Cable |  Talk  17:28, 2 March 2015 (UTC)


 * Durwood Dunn describes them as "Pennsylvania Dutch" in his book, Cades Cove: The Life and Death of a Southern Appalachian Community: . Bms4880 (talk) 18:44, 2 March 2015 (UTC)
 * I'll happily look at that book, but like I said, this is my family we're talking about. Eric Cable  |  Talk  19:10, 2 March 2015 (UTC)
 * Here it shows Peter's father Casper in Ashe County, North Carolina in the 1800 census when Peter would have been about 8 years old. The 1810 Census shows then no longer in Ashe County. Here is Peter listed in the 1850 census in Blount County. It says born in 1792 in North Carolina. I will continue to work on this.  Eric Cable  |  Talk  19:37, 2 March 2015 (UTC)


 * I went ahead and changed it to the broader term "of German descent." But please note that genealogy sites are not considered reliable sources.  Bms4880 (talk) 21:54, 2 March 2015 (UTC)


 * Thanks for the change. I will try to find better transcripts of the census records. Please don't lecture me on reliable sources. I am not a Wikipedia newbie. Eric Cable  |  Talk  03:41, 3 March 2015 (UTC)

External links modified
Hello fellow Wikipedians,

I have just modified one external link on Cades Cove. Please take a moment to review my edit. If you have any questions, or need the bot to ignore the links, or the page altogether, please visit this simple FaQ for additional information. I made the following changes:
 * Added archive https://web.archive.org/web/20060714064331/http://eerc.ra.utk.edu/sightline/V3N1/Trapped.html to http://eerc.ra.utk.edu/sightline/V3N1/Trapped.html

When you have finished reviewing my changes, you may follow the instructions on the template below to fix any issues with the URLs.

Cheers.— InternetArchiveBot  (Report bug) 22:52, 28 July 2017 (UTC)