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Cumberland Gap: A small town with a big history

Cumberland Gap's history goes back thousands of years.

"Cumberland Gap goes back to literally when these mountains were some of the tallest mountains in the world," said John Ravnum, business owner and alderman.

The Cumberland Gap is a narrow pass through the Cumberland Mountains where Tennessee, Kentucky and Virginia meet.

Today, it is a national park surrounded by highways, but it started as the easiest way to get from Point A to Point B.

"The buffalo were coming through North Carolina, and it was reported that one herd took a week to pass through," added Ravnum.

Following the buffalo were the Native Americans, long hunters and more.

The Gap was an intersecting point between the Wilderness Road and the Tennessee Road.

"During the Prohibition times, this was Thunder Road," said Ravnum. "This was where the moonshine out of North Carolina came through."

Cumberland Gap is now a town of 210 people.

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