Cades Cove - Cable Mill Historic Area

First, a little history -- the first known people in the Cades Cove area were Cherokee. They called it Tsiyahi, meaning otter place. They used the Cove to gather food and hunt. Later, pioneers from Virginia and North Carolina settled in the Cove.

Gristmills became the first industry there, followed by blacksmith shops, wood workers, storekeepers and distillers. By the 1850’s, Cades Cove supported about 132 families or 685 people.

Most of the buildings that are now in the Cable Mill Historic Area were moved there from other locations in the Cove with the exception of the blacksmith shop and the gristmill. The John P. Cable Gristmill still operates today, grinding flour and corn weekdays 9am-5pm.

There were several buildings there, and it was quite an interesting place. I have several pictures - to check out the slide show, just click on the picture below, and it will open a new page. Click on the thumbnail-sized picture in the upper left corner, and that will start the slide show.

I enjoy seeing how farmers lived in the past, and some things are still viable today, but I wouldn’t want to go back to such labor intensive work to do everything!