Cumberland Gap
Cumberland Gap in winter
Elevation	1600 ft./488 m.
Location	Kentucky/Virginia/Tennessee,  United States
Range	Cumberland Mountains
Coordinates	36.6038° N 83.6742° W
Traversed by	U.S. Highway 25E

Daniel Boone Escorting Settlers through the Cumberland Gap (George Caleb Bingham, oil on canvas, 1851–52)

Cumberland Gap (el. 1600 ft./488 m.) is a pass through the Cumberland Mountains region of the Appalachian Mountains, also known as the Cumberland Water Gap. Famous in American history for its role as the chief passageway through the central Appalachians, it was an important part of the Wilderness Road, an old Indian path which Daniel Boone widened with 35 axmen, thus opening up the western frontiers of Kentucky and Tennessee for pioneer settlement. National Park Service photograph of Cumberland Gap in winter. ... A topographical summit is a point on a surface which is higher in elevation than all points immediately adjacent to it. ... Official language(s) English[1] Capital Frankfort Largest city Louisville Area  Ranked 37th  - Total 40,444 sq mi (104,749 km²)  - Width 140 miles (225 km)  - Length 379 miles (610 km)  - % water 1. ... This article is about the U.S. state. ... Official language(s) English Capital Nashville Largest city Memphis Largest metro area Nashville Area  Ranked 36th  - Total 42,169 sq mi (109,247 km²)  - Width 120 miles (195 km)  - Length 440 miles (710 km)  - % water 2. ... Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... For exotic financial options, see Mountain range (options). ... Cumberland Mountains is a region in the southeastern section of the Appalachian Mountains. ... Map of Earth showing lines of latitude (horizontally) and longitude (vertically), Eckert VI projection; large version (pdf, 1. ... U.S. Route 25 is a north-south US highway in the eastern United States of America that now connects Cincinnati, Ohio, at the Ohio River to Brunswick, Georgia, near the Atlantic Ocean. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (826x605, 52 KB) Summary Daniel Boone Escorting Settlers through the Cumberland Gap, George Caleb Bingham, oil on canvas, 1851–52 Licensing The two-dimensional work of art depicted in this image is in the public domain in the United States and... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (826x605, 52 KB) Summary Daniel Boone Escorting Settlers through the Cumberland Gap, George Caleb Bingham, oil on canvas, 1851–52 Licensing The two-dimensional work of art depicted in this image is in the public domain in the United States and... Fur traders on Missouri River, c. ... Cumberland Mountains is a region in the southeastern section of the Appalachian Mountains. ... Appalachians in North Carolina The Appalachian Mountains (French: les Appalaches) are a vast system of mountains in eastern North America. ... Water gap is a term geologists use to describe a notch which flowing water has carved into a mountain. ... The Wilderness Road was the principal route used by settlers to reach Kentucky for more than fifty years. ... This 1820 oil painting by Chester Harding is the only portrait of Daniel Boone made from life. ...

Cumberland Gap is located just north of the spot where the current-day states of Kentucky, Tennessee, and Virginia meet. The nearby town of Cumberland Gap, Tennessee takes its name from the pass. Official language(s) English[1] Capital Frankfort Largest city Louisville Area  Ranked 37th  - Total 40,444 sq mi (104,749 km²)  - Width 140 miles (225 km)  - Length 379 miles (610 km)  - % water 1. ... Official language(s) English Capital Nashville Largest city Memphis Largest metro area Nashville Area  Ranked 36th  - Total 42,169 sq mi (109,247 km²)  - Width 120 miles (195 km)  - Length 440 miles (710 km)  - % water 2. ... This article is about the U.S. state. ... Cumberland Gap is a town located in Claiborne County, Tennessee. ...

The gap was formed by an ancient creek, flowing southward, which cut through the land being pushed up to form the mountains. As the land rose even more, the creek reversed direction flowing into the Cumberland River to the north. The gap was used by Native Americans and migrating animal herds. The Cumberland River is an important waterway in the southern United States. ... This article is about the people indigenous to the United States. ...

The gap was named for Prince William Augustus, Duke of Cumberland, who had many places named for him in the American colonies after the Battle of Culloden. The explorer Thomas Walker gave the name to the Cumberland River in 1750, and the name soon spread to many other features in the region, such as the Cumberland Gap. The Prince William Augustus, Duke of Cumberland, KG, KB, PC (15 April 1721–31 October 1765), a younger son of King George II of Great Britain and Queen Caroline, was a noted military leader. ... Combatants British Army Jacobites Commanders William Augustus, Duke of Cumberland Charles Edward Stuart, the Young Pretender Strength 8,000 ca. ... Dr. Thomas Walker (January 15, 1715 – November 9, 1794) was an physician and explorer from Virginia who led an expedition to what is now the region beyond the Alleghany Mountains area of British North America in the mid-18th century. ... The Cumberland River is an important waterway in the southern United States. ... Events March 2 - Small earthquake in London, England April 4 - Small earthquake in Warrington, England August 23 - Small earthquake in Spalding, England September 30 - Small earthquake in Northampton, England November 16 – Westminster Bridge officially opened Jonas Hanway is the first Englishman to use an umbrella James Gray reveals her sex...

In 1775, Daniel Boone, hired by the Transylvania Company led a company of men to widen the path through the gap to make settlement of Kentucky and Tennessee easier. The trail was widened in the 1790s to accommodate wagon traffic. This 1820 oil painting by Chester Harding is the only portrait of Daniel Boone made from life. ... Transylvania was a short-lived colony primarily in what is now the U.S. state of Kentucky. ... Events and Trends French Revolution (1789 - 1799). ...

It is estimated that between 200,000 and 300,000 immigrants passed through the gap on their way into Kentucky and the Ohio Valley before 1810. Official language(s) English[1] Capital Frankfort Largest city Louisville Area  Ranked 37th  - Total 40,444 sq mi (104,749 km²)  - Width 140 miles (225 km)  - Length 379 miles (610 km)  - % water 1. ... View of Pittsburgh, the largest metropolitan area on the Ohio River, where the Allegheny River (left) and the Monongahela River (right) join at Point State Park to form the Ohio River Cincinnati, Ohio is a well known city along the Ohio River, historically known for its riverboats. ...

U.S. Highway 25E passed overland through the gap before the completion of the Cumberland Gap Tunnel in 1996. The original trail was then restored. U.S. Highway 25 is a north-south US highway in the eastern United States of America that now connects Cincinnati, Ohio at the Ohio River to Brunswick, Georgia near the Atlantic Ocean. ... The Cumberland Gap Tunnel is a tunnel that carries U.S. Highway 25E under Cumberland Gap National Historical Park near the intersection of Kentucky, Tennessee, and Virginia. ... Year 1996 (MCMXCVI) was a leap year starting on Monday (link will display full 1996 Gregorian calendar). ...

Geological Features

A foggy morning at the Pinnacle at Cumberland Gap National Historic Park.

The 12-mile long Cumberland Gap consists of four geologic features: the Yellow Creek valley, the natural gap in the Cumberland Mountain ridge, the eroded gap in the Pine Mountain, and Middlesboro crater, the 3-mile diameter impact crater in which Middlesboro, Kentucky is located. Shatter cones, a type of rock fragment naturally found only during meteor impact events, were found in abundance. Without this crater, it would have been difficult for packhorses to navigate this gap and improbable for wagon roads to be constructed at an early date. Middlesboro is the only place in the world where coal is mined inside a meteor crater. In September 2003 it was designated by the Kentucky Society of Professional Geologists as a Distinguished Geologic Site. Image File history File links Cumberland_Gap_foggy. ... Image File history File links Cumberland_Gap_foggy. ... Middlesboro is a meteor crater in Kentucky, United States. ... Tycho crater on Earths moon. ... Middlesborough, also spelled Middlesboro, is a city located in Bell County, Kentucky. ... Shatter Cone from the Steinheim Basin, Germany A shatter cone is that rare fragment of stone whose origin is from the very center of an meteorite impact crater. ... Photo of a burst of meteors with extended exposure time A meteor is the visible path of a meteoroid that enters the Earths (or another bodys) atmosphere, commonly called a shooting star or falling star. ... Coal Coal (IPA: ) is a fossil fuel formed in swamp ecosystems where plant remains were saved by water and mud from oxidization and biodegradation. ...

Confirmation of the meteor crater came in 1966 when Robert Diaz discovered shatter cones inside sandstones specimens that led to the identification of shocked quartz. Special mining techniques must be used in the complicated strata of this crater. It is thought that similar techniques will be used in future mining of planets (Mars), satellites (Moon) and asteroids where craters occur in large numbers. (Milam & Kuehn, 36). Shatter Cone from the Steinheim Basin, Germany A shatter cone is that rare fragment of stone whose origin is from the very center of an meteorite impact crater. ... Shocked quartz is a form of quartz that has a microscopic structure that is different from normal quartz. ... Adjectives: Martian Atmosphere Surface pressure: 0. ... This article is about Earths moon. ... Asteroids is a popular vector-based video arcade game released in 1979 by Atari. ...

References in Popular Culture

• The Gap features in the song "Mighty Joe Moon" on the album of the same name by American band Grant Lee Buffalo. As well as in the song "Wagon Wheel " by Bob Dylan.
• Woody Guthrie sings "Cumberland Gap" on his album, "Pastures of Plenty".
• The gap became known in the United Kingdom as the result of a song sung by the skiffle artist Lonnie Donegan.
• A style of beard with sideburns that has a "gap" cut through it about an inch wide right below each earlobe is colloquially known by some as a "Cumberland Gap".^{[citation needed]}
  

  

  Panoramic view from Pinnacle Overlook at Cumberland Gap National Historic Park

Second album by alternative rock group Grant Lee Buffalo, released in 1994. ... Grant Lee Buffalo was a Los Angeles-based rock band, consisting of Grant-Lee Phillips (vocals and guitar), Paul Kimble (bass) and Joey Peters (drums). ... This article is about the recording artist. ... Woodrow Wilson Guthrie (July 14, 1912–October 3, 1967) was a prolific American songwriter and folk musician. ... Doghouse Skiffle Group Skiffle is a type of folk music with a jazz and blues influence, usually using homemade or improvised instruments such as the washboard, tea chest bass, kazoo, cigar-box fiddle, musical saw, comb and paper, and so forth, as well as more conventional instruments such as acoustic... Lonnie Donegan MBE (29 April 1931 – 3 November 2002) was a skiffle musician, possibly the most famous of them all, with more than 20 UK Top 30 hits to his name. ... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 800 × 149 pixelsFull resolution (5692 × 1058 pixel, file size: 744 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 800 × 149 pixelsFull resolution (5692 × 1058 pixel, file size: 744 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ...

See also

• Cumberland Gap National Historical Park
• Rear Admiral Samuel P. Carter
• Melungeon

The Gap is referenced in the song 'The Ballad Of Thunder Road' (from the Rober Mitchum movie 'Thunder Road'). Established on June 11, 1940, Cumberland Gap National Historical Park is a United States National Historical Park located in southeastern Kentucky. ... Samuel Powhatan Carter (August 6, 1819 – May 26, 1891) was a United States Rear Admiral and later served the Union as a Major General during the American Civil War. ... Melungeon (mɛlʌndʒʌn) is a term traditionally applied to one of a number of tri-racial isolate groups of the Southeastern United States, mainly in the Cumberland Gap area of central Appalachia: east Tennessee, southwest Virginia, and east Kentucky. ...

External links

• Maps and aerial photos for 36°36′14″N 83°40′27″W / 36.6038, -83.6742Coordinates: 36°36′14″N 83°40′27″W / 36.6038, -83.6742
  • Maps from WikiMapia, Google Maps, Live Search Maps, Yahoo! Maps, or MapQuest
  • Topographic maps from TopoZone or TerraServer-USA
• Rickie Longfellow, Back in Time: The Cumberland Gap, United States Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration