Existing comment:
20th Century Visitors: Early Tourism:
Cumberland Gap began attracting tourists in the 1920s, coinciding with the advent of the automobile. Interest in the pioneer experience was kindled by greater access to the Cumberland Gap via Dixie Highway in 1926 and to the Pinnacle via Skyland Highway in 1929. The historic scenic attractions of the Cumberland Gap were much publicized and in 1940 legislation to create Cumberland Gap National Historic Park was passed.
Since the opening of the Cumberland Gap Tunnel in 1996, the Gap maintains its role as a transportation corridor. |