Landscape Management Overview for Purchase Knob, Great Smoky Mountains National Park

Coffin Brown, Margie; Super, Paul

This document provides guidance on the seasonal and long-term landscape management for the Purchase Knob tract including the management of viewsheds, open field and lawn areas, the forest edge, tree plantations, aged apple trees, vegetation surrounding buildings and structures, landscape-related use of buildings and structures, roads, trails, and small-scale features. Guidance is framed within the management objectives for the property—including natural, cultural, recreational, educational, research, and operational objectives. The Olmsted Center for Landscape Preservation provided technical assistance to develop this landscape management overview in July 2012. The document also includes an illustrated chronology, recommendations for further research, proposals for the Project Management Information System (PMIS), and links to Facility Management Software System (FMSS). The project team divided the 535-acre Purchase parcel into eight active management areas and five peripheral and predominantly forested management areas. Within each area, management goals were identified and tied to the mission and objectives for the property. Implementation of recommendations can be partially carried out by volunteer or education groups seeking to learn about resource management, completed by park staff, or be contracted to professionals. Established in 2001, the Appalachian Highlands Science Learning Center at Purchase Knob serves as a residential research, education, and science center within Great Smoky Mountains National Park and is one of five pilot Research Learning Centers nationwide. After ten years of deliberation, the 535-acre Purchase Knob parcel was donated to the park in 2001 by Voit Gilmore and Kathryn McNeil, who had bought the property in 1964, built a summer retreat, and operated an extensive tree farm. Located in Haywood County, North Carolina along the eastern boundary of the park, the parcel is noteworthy for its rich soils, montane ecosystem, grassland and old growth forest habitats, panoramic views, chestnut-log cabin, agricultural history, and presence of rare and uncommon species.

Landscape Management Overview for Purchase Knob, Great Smoky Mountains National Park

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