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"Walls of Jericho" Permanently Protected

The Nature Conservancy purchases 21,453 acres in Tennessee & Alabama

Nashville, Tennessee—6 January 2004— A unique natural area once the home of Davey Crockett’s family and known throughout Tennessee and Alabama as the "Walls of Jericho" was purchased in late December by The Nature Conservancy.

The huge tract of 21,453 acres of rivers, forested uplands and caves spreading across the Alabama and Tennessee state line contains an extraordinarily diverse array of plants and animals. The actual "Walls of Jericho" is a large, bowl-shaped amphitheater that shoots water out of holes and cracks in the canyon wall during times of high flow. The history behind the site and the unspoiled natural beauty is known to provide a mystical feel for visitors.

"This is truly a unique place, spiritual almost. It’s like walking into a giant redwood forest — you just want to be quiet," said Scott Davis, The Nature Conservancy’s Tennessee state director.

The Nature Conservancy bought the land from Stevenson Land Company. The Alabama Division of State Lands through the Forever Wild program intends to buy from the Conservancy the 12,510 acres of land in its state. The Nature Conservancy will hold the 8,943 acres in Franklin County, Tennessee and the Tennessee Chapter will continue fundraising for the site.

Since 1970, public and private partners have been working to protect the "Walls of Jericho" in the Southern Cumberland Plateau. Once part of Texas oil baron Harry Lee Carter’s 60,000-acre property, the site was open for public access. When Carter died in 1977, the land was divided and officially closed to public visitors.

Not only does the purchase restore public access to the site, it protects the headwaters of the Paint Rock River. In addition, the protected acreage links other large intact forestlands within the Jackson Mountain landscape for a total of more than 50,000 acres. Nearby protected sites include Carter Caves State Natural Area, Franklin State Forest, The Nature Conservancy’s David Carter Tract and the Skyline Wildlife Management Area.

The Upper Paint Rock watershed, including the Jackson Mountains, is one of the very few intact large functional landscapes remaining in the Southeast. The Paint Rock River is home to 100 species of fish and about 45 different mussel species. Five globally imperiled mussels and 12 globally rare mussels are found in the Paint Rock River and its tributaries. Two of the mussel species are found nowhere else in the world. Another three globally imperiled fish occur in the river.

The Nature Conservancy’s Tennessee and Alabama chapters are part of a three year, $2.5 million grant from the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation to work on the Cumberland Plateau. The multi-year initiative focuses on conserving natural areas, protecting working landscapes and strengthening efforts already under way in the region. The Lyndhurst Foundation in Chattanooga, Tennessee has also provided funding support for the project.

For more information about the Walls of Jericho, including directions to the trails, click here.

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The Nature Conservancy is a leading international, nonprofit organization that preserves plants, animals and natural communities representing the diversity of life on Earth by protecting the lands and waters they need to survive. The Conservancy has helped protect almost 200,000 acres in Tennessee since 1978. Visit us on the Web at nature.org/tennessee.