Rendezvous Mountain State Park

Rendezvous Mountain State Park is a 1,800-acre (7.3 km2)[2] North Carolina state park in Purlear, North Carolina. It was originally established as North Carolina's third state park.[4] From 1984 to early 2022, the park was operated by the North Carolina Forest Service as Rendezvous Mountain Educational State Forest.[4][2]

Rendezvous Mountain State Park
Rendezvous Mountain Fire Tower
Map showing the location of Rendezvous Mountain State Park
Map showing the location of Rendezvous Mountain State Park
Location of Rendezvous Mountain State Park in North Carolina
Map showing the location of Rendezvous Mountain State Park
Map showing the location of Rendezvous Mountain State Park
Rendezvous Mountain State Park (the United States)
LocationWilkes, North Carolina, United States
Coordinates36°13′38″N 81°17′34″W[1]
Area1,800 acres (7.3 km2)[2]
Elevation2,469 ft (753 m)
Established1926[3][2]
Named forRendezvous Mountain
Governing bodyNorth Carolina Division of Parks and Recreation
WebsiteRendezvous Mountain State Park

History

Rendezvous Mountain is popularly rumored to have been an assembly point for the Overmountain Men during the Revolutionary War.[5][4] Colonel Benjamin Cleveland is said to have called militiamen from around Wilkes County, by blowing a large ox horn from the mountain's summit.[5][6][4] Cleveland was able to summon over 200 Patriots from the surrounding area to join him on a march to the Battle of Kings Mountain.[5][6] The route they took is now commemorated by the nearby Overmountain Victory National Historic Trail.

In 1926, the park's original 146-acre (0.59 km2) tract was donated to the state by Judge T. B. Finley of North Wilkesboro for inclusion in the State Park System; however, the unit was never opened to the public due to its small size, inaccessible location, and questionable historic significance.[3][2]

The Civilian Conservation Corps constructed roads and trails around the mountain in the 1930s.[4] They also built a cabin near the mountain's summit, which still remains.[4][2]

The land was transferred to the Division of Forestry in 1956.[3][4][2] It was later opened to the public in 1984 as an educational state forest.[7][4][2] In the early 2000s, the forest was greatly expanded when large tracts along its western boundary became available. The state forest grew to a peak size of 3,316 acres (13.42 km2).[7]

The Appropriations Act of 2021 instructed the NC Forest Service to transfer a mutually agreed upon portion of Rendezvous Mountain Educational State Forest to the NC Division of Parks and Recreation by February 1, 2022.[8] Since the forest was already split into two disconnected areas, it was agreed that the original tract and all adjoining tracts, which contained the forest's visitor facilities, would be managed as a state park.[2] Meanwhile, the undeveloped, 1,500-acre (6.1 km2)[2] Little Fork tract would be retained by the Forest Service, and it would be leased to the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission as a public game land.[2]

Nearby state parks

The following state parks and state forests are within 30 miles (48 km) of Rendezvous Mountain State Park:

Elk Knob State Park
Grandfather Mountain State Park
Grayson Highlands State Park, Virginia
Mount Jefferson State Natural Area
New River State Park
Tuttle Educational State Forest
Stone Mountain State Park

References
  1. U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Rendezvous Mountain
  2. Hubbard, Jule (July 10, 2022). "Matheson named Rendezvous superintendent". North Wilkesboro: Wilkes Journal-Patriot. Archived from the original on July 17, 2022. Retrieved September 3, 2022.
  3. "History of the North Carolina State Park System" (PDF). North Carolina Division of Parks and Recreation. August 27, 2015. p. 10. Retrieved September 24, 2015. Rendezvous Mountain was donated in 1926. As its history was questionable and he acreage small, it was transferred to the Division of Forestry in 1956.
  4. "Education". North Carolina Division of Parks and Recreation. August 27, 2015. Archived from the original on September 4, 2022. Retrieved September 3, 2022.
  5. Fay Byrd; Wilkes Community College. Division of Learning Resources (October 19, 2010). Wilkes County Bits and Pieces. Wilkesboro, NC: Lulu. pp. 306–310. ISBN 978-0-557-49244-2. Retrieved September 25, 2015.
  6. Peter J. Barr (2008). "Rendezvous Mountain". Hiking North Carolina's Lookout Towers. John F. Blair, Publisher. pp. 225–232. ISBN 978-0-89587-433-7.
  7. "NC Forest Service Natural Assets" (PDF). North Carolina Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services. January 23, 2014. p. 13. Retrieved September 24, 2015.
  8. "2021 Appropriations Act" (PDF). Raleigh, North Carolina: General Assembly of North Carolina. November 18, 2021. p. 564. Retrieved September 3, 2022.
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