During the 1790s white settlers moved into the Smoky Mountain area of Cades Cove. This Tennessee cove, a sheltered valley, is surrounded by high Appalachian peaks. The valley is filled with fertile land and the peaks are covered with the most diversified forests in all the world.
     Early settlers inched their way into Cherokee Indian territory, forcing competition for prime agriculture land. Today, the Cherokee Reservation is just south of the Great Smoky Mountain National Park.
     Commercial logging forced Congress to convert private land into a national park. The park was created in 1926 and a few of the original homes and buildings still remain.