This article is within the scope of WikiProject United States, a collaborative effort to improve the coverage of topics relating to the United States of America on Wikipedia. If you would like to participate, please visit the project page, where you can join the ongoing discussions.
This article is within the scope of WikiProject Georgia (U.S. state), a collaborative effort to improve the coverage of the U.S. state of Georgia on Wikipedia. If you would like to participate, please visit the project page, where you can join the discussion and see a list of open tasks.Georgia (U.S. state)Wikipedia:WikiProject Georgia (U.S. state)Template:WikiProject Georgia (U.S. state)Georgia (U.S. state) articles
This article is within the scope of WikiProject Hiking trails, a project which is currently considered to be inactive.Hiking trailsWikipedia:WikiProject Hiking trailsTemplate:WikiProject Hiking trailsHiking trails articles
This article is within the scope of WikiProject Backpacking, a project which is currently considered to be inactive.BackpackingWikipedia:WikiProject BackpackingTemplate:WikiProject BackpackingBackpacking articles
Benton MacKaye Trail is within the scope of WikiProject Tennessee, an open collaborative effort to coordinate work for and sustain comprehensive coverage of Tennessee and related subjects in the Wikipedia. If you would like to participate, you can edit the article attached to this page, and even become a member. [Project Articles] • [Project Page] • [Project Talk] • [Assessment] • [Template Usage]TennesseeWikipedia:WikiProject TennesseeTemplate:WikiProject TennesseeTennessee articles
This article is within the scope of WikiProject Appalachia, a collaborative effort to increase coverage of Appalachia and the Appalachian Mountains. If you would like to participate, go to the project page to see a list of related articles needing attention.AppalachiaWikipedia:WikiProject AppalachiaTemplate:WikiProject AppalachiaAppalachia articles
Latest comment: 9 years ago4 comments2 people in discussion
I thought "named for Benton MacKaye, the Massachusetts forester and regional planner who first had the idea for the Appalachian Trail in 1921" was odd, because, as I understand it, the trail was established by Native Americans. I marked as dubious. It seems like there would be a better way to word this. Biosthmors (talk) pls notify me (i.e. {{U}}) while signing a reply, thx 01:51, 9 November 2015 (UTC)Reply
There is no doubt. The vast majority of reliable sources attribute the Appalachian Trail's creation to Benton MacKaye and his paper An Appalachian Trail: A Project in Regional Planning. In that paper, he proposed a single trail spanning the Appalachian Mountains, something which did not exist at the time. Native Americans did not establish the Appalachian Trail; however, in a few places, the trail's current route may follow or parallel an old trade route. This is the exception, not the rule. The majority of the trail's length was created in the past century; this is well documented.
You're welcome. I wouldn't be surprised if several people credit Native Americans by word of mouth. The fact some modern day trails and roads got their start as Native American trade routes helps play into this.
.svg){kind=small}
