{"id":362,"date":"2026-05-24T15:09:22","date_gmt":"2026-05-24T15:09:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usmovingexpertss.com\/?p=362"},"modified":"2026-05-24T15:09:22","modified_gmt":"2026-05-24T15:09:22","slug":"great-smoky-mountains-national-park-is-expanding-by-hundreds-of-acres-nps-says-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usmovingexpertss.com\/?p=362","title":{"rendered":"Great Smoky Mountains National Park is expanding by hundreds of acres, NPS says"},"content":{"rendered":"<article><!-- --><!-- --><!-- WPS-5038 -- removed the script from WPS and added the placeholder for trinity player --><!-- --><!-- --><!-- --><!-- --><!-- --><!-- --><!-- --><!-- CONTENT --><!--[--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>Great Smoky Mountains National Park is making a rare expansion, with more than 600 acres soon to be added to the nation\u2019s most visited National Park.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/usmovingexpertss.com\/?p=361\">Tremors return to South Carolina as earthquake rumbles beneath Columbia area<\/a><\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>Known as the \u201cOliver Tract,\u201d the block of wilderness includes \u201cintact forest,\u201d ridgelines, and headwaters for several streams that contribute to The Little River, which is itself a key tourist attraction in the region.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s being transferred to the National Parks System by the Foothills Land Conservancy, which set out to protect a site linked to the park\u2019s Cades Cove settlement, dating to the 1820s.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe tract\u2019s name reflects its previous owner, John Oliver, one of the earliest permanent European settlers in Cades Cove and a foundational figure in the region\u2019s history,\u201d the conservancy reported in a May 14 news release.<\/p>\n<p><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>\u201cOliver family legacy remains deeply connected to the cultural identity of the Smokies, making the preservation of the property significant not only environmentally but historically.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>The land near Townsend along the park\u2019s western border, which is becoming heavily developed due to booming tourism. Great Smoky Mountains National Park attracted 11,527,939 visitors in 2025, which is more than double the 2025 visitation at Yellowstone National Park or the Grand Canyon, the NPS says.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>Protecting the 600 acres \u2013 about a 22-mile drive southwest from Gatlinburg \u2013 means park visitors won\u2019t be seeing motels, vacation homes and parking lots as they look into the horizon.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/usmovingexpertss.com\/?p=359\">SC Senate pushes redistricting debate to after start of in-person early voting<\/a><\/p>\n<p><!--]--><!--[--><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe Smokies are part of the identity of East Tennessee. Protecting land of this scale, in a location this important, is rare. Opportunities like this do not come around often,\u201d conservancy Executive Director Mark Stevans said in the news release.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>\u201cOne day, people will hike these ridges, experience these forests and never realize how close this land came to becoming something else. That\u2019s the goal. That\u2019s conservation at its best.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>The property transfer closes on June 8, and the National Park Service has not announced specifics of what will happen once the land falls under federal protection.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>Great Smoky Mountains is currently 522,427 acres, \u201cdivided almost evenly between\u201d Tennessee and North Carolina, the NPS says.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>The park\u2019s last major expansion was a purchase of 627 acres in Blount County from The Nature Conservancy in January 2009, officials said.<\/p>\n<p><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>Great Smoky Mountains National Park is bout a 150-mile drive northwest from uptown Charlotte.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/usmovingexpertss.com\/?p=358\">Man found shot outside 7-Eleven in South Carolina, Lexington County sheriff says<\/a><\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><!-- --><!--]--><!--]--><!-- --><!-- --><!-- --><\/article>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>600 acres of wilderness purchased by conservationists will soon become part of Great Smoky Mountains National Park, National Park Service says.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":355,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-362","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-north-carolina"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.6 - 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