Black Mountain (Kentucky) - Wikipedia

Mountain in Kentucky, United States

Black Mountain
Black Mountain, April 2010
Highest point
Elevation	4,145 ft (1,263 m)[1]
Prominence	1,905 ft (581 m)[2]
Listing	U.S. state high point 27th
Coordinates	36°54′51″N 82°53′38″W / 36.91417°N 82.89389°W / 36.91417; -82.89389
Geography
Black MountainHarlan County, Kentucky, U.S.
Parent range	Cumberland Mountains
Topo map	USGS Benham
Climbing
First ascent	unknown
Easiest route	Hike

Black Mountain is the highest mountain peak in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, United States, with a summit elevation of 4,145 feet (1,263 m) [1] above mean sea level and a top-to-bottom height of over 2,500 feet (760 m). The summit is located at approximately 36°54′51″N 82°53′38″W / 36.91417°N 82.89389°W / 36.91417; -82.89389 in Harlan County, Kentucky near the Virginia border, just above the towns of Lynch, Kentucky and Appalachia, Virginia.

Description

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Route 160 east of Lynch and west of Appalachia crosses the mountain. The summit is reached by a narrow road that turns off to the right if coming from Lynch or to the left if coming from Appalachia, at the Kentucky-Virginia line (the gap that is the highest part of Route 160) and leads past a Federal Aviation Administration radar dome. There is a one lane dirt road to the left not far past the radar dome that leads to the summit. The summit is marked with an abandoned metal fire lookout tower (the cab and wooden steps are missing from the tower). There are also multiple radio towers along with transmitter buildings around the summit and a National Geodetic Survey benchmark is located on a large rock over the hill to the left of the fire tower. This benchmark is 6 feet (1.8 m) below the highest point;[1] a second is directly under the old lookout tower, marking the latest survey of the highest natural point.

The FAA Radar dome is nearby, but below the summit. Trees on both sides of the radar dome have been cleared, so views of other mountains are visible. On a clear day the Great Smoky Mountains on the Tennessee and North Carolina border are clearly visible.

Black Mountain's history is intimately tied to the coal mining of the surrounding region. Lynch, Kentucky, was once one of the largest coal mining towns in the nation. In 1998, Jericol Mining, Inc., petitioned to use mountaintop removal methods in the area of Black Mountain. Though the summit itself was not directly threatened, many people protested this action due to the peak's status as the state's highest point. In 1999, Kentucky purchased mineral and timber rights to the summit and prevented future large scale mining. Coal companies have alleged that mined coal veins converge beneath the summit of Black Mountain and that the summit is prone to collapse.

A coal company named Penn Virginia Resources of Radnor, Pennsylvania formerly owned the summit, but allowed public access with the completion of a waiver. Now, however, the Commonwealth of Kentucky owns the land and no waiver is required.[3]

Ecology

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Black Mountain is one of the few sites in Kentucky supporting a Northern Hardwood Forest at higher elevations. Numerous rare plants are found here, including Red Elderberry and Hobblebush. Like many areas of Northern Hardwood Forest in Southern Appalachia, fires swept across the mountain after intense logging. Black Mountain has a documented fire that occurred in the fall of 1896.[4]

See also

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• List of mountains of Kentucky
• List of U.S. states by elevation

References

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1. ^ a b c "Science In Your Backyard: Kentucky" U.S. Department of the Interior | U.S. Geological Survey, July 3, 2006, retrieved August 25, 2006
2. ^ "Kentucky 50 Finest Mountains". www.peaklist.org.
3. ^ "New Address for Black Mountain, Kentucky Waiver". highpointers.org. February 5, 2010. Archived from the original on May 10, 2013. Retrieved April 16, 2013.
4. ^ Clark, Thomas Dionysius (2004). The Greening of the South: The Recovery of Land and Forest (New Perspectives on the South), p. 47. University Press of Kentucky. ISBN 0-8131-9082-7.

External links

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• Media related to Black Mountain (Kentucky) at Wikimedia Commons
• Required waiver for summit access Note: The waiver has a drawing that shows the elevation of Black Mountain as 4,139 feet (1,262 m). As shown on the USGS website, this is incorrect. The correct elevation is 4,145 feet (1,263 m) at the summit. A USGS benchmark is located on a large rock over the hill at 4,139 feet (1,262 m), but it is not on the summit. The summit is apparently under the old fire lookout tower.
• Black Mountain Recreation Park

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Museums	Barthell Coal Mining Camp Bell County Coal House & Museum Bell County Historical Society Museum Big Sandy Heritage Center Blue Heron Coal Mining Camp Bobby Davis Museum and Park Breathitt County Museum C.B. Caudill Store & History Center Cloverfork Museum Coal Miners' Museum Cumberland Inn Museum David A. Zegeer Coal-Railroad Museum East Kentucky Science Center Elkhorn City Railroad Museum F.M. Stafford House Harland Sanders Café & Museum Hensley Settlement Highlands Museum and Discovery Center Kentucky Coal Mining Museum Kentucky Folk Art Center Knox Historical Museum Magoffin County Pioneer Village and Museum Marie Stewart Museum & Craft Shop McCreary County Museum Morgan County History Museum Mountain Homeplace Mountain Life Museum Northeastern Kentucky Museum Samuel May House Swamp Valley Museum U.S. 23 Country Music Highway Museum Wolfe County History Museum
Festivals	Hillbilly Days Kentucky Apple Festival Poage Landing Days
Forests	Daniel Boone Dewey Lake Jefferson Kentenia Kentucky Ridge Robinson Tygarts
Reservoirs	Buckhorn Lake Carr Creek Lake Cave Run Lake Cranks Creek Lake Lake Cumberland Dewey Lake Fishtrap Lake Grayson Lake Greenbo Lake Laurel River Lake Martins Fork Lake Paintsville Lake Yatesville Lake
Natural features	Black Mountain Cumberland Falls Cumberland Gap Dog Slaughter Falls Eagle Falls Middlesboro crater Pine Mountain Pound Gap Raven Rock Red River Gorge Tri-State Peak Yahoo Arch Yahoo Falls
Miscellaneous	Bad Branch Falls State Nature Preserve Bat Cave and Cascade Caverns State Nature Preserves Big South Fork Scenic Railway Black Mountain Off-Road Adventure Area Cumberland Gap Tunnel Furnace Mountain Kentucky Reptile Zoo Mayo Mansion Middle Creek Battlefield Nada Tunnel Pikeville Cut-Through Pilot Knob State Nature Preserve Sheltowee Trace Trail