Rendezvous Mountain State Park is a North Carolina state park in Purlear,

North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...

. It was originally established as North Carolina's third state park. From 1984 to early 2022, the park was operated by the

North Carolina Forest Service The North Carolina Forest Service, formerly known as the North Carolina Division of Forest Resources is a North Carolina state government agency responsible for providing land management assistance to landowners. The agency's primary responsibili ...

as Rendezvous Mountain Educational State Forest.

History

Rendezvous Mountain is popularly rumored to have been an assembly point for the

Overmountain Men The Overmountain Men were American frontiersmen from west of the Blue Ridge Mountains which are the leading edge of the Appalachian Mountains, who took part in the American Revolutionary War. While they were present at multiple engagements in t ...

during the Revolutionary War. Colonel

Benjamin Cleveland Benjamin Cleveland (May 28, 1738 – October 1806) was an American pioneer and officer in the North Carolina militia. He is best remembered for his service as a Colonel (United States), colonel in the Wilkes County Regiment of the North Carolin ...

is said to have called

militiamen A militia ( ) is a military or paramilitary force that comprises civilian members, as opposed to a professional standing army of regular, full-time military personnel. Militias may be raised in times of need to support regular troops or serve ...

from around Wilkes County, by blowing a large ox horn from the mountain's summit. Cleveland was able to summon over 200

Patriot A patriot is a person with the quality of patriotism. Patriot(s) or The Patriot(s) may also refer to: Political and military groups United States * Patriot (American Revolution), those who supported the cause of independence in the American R ...

s from the surrounding area to join him on a march to the

Battle of Kings Mountain The Battle of Kings Mountain was a military engagement between Patriot and Loyalist militias in South Carolina during the southern campaign of the American Revolutionary War, resulting in a decisive victory for the Patriots. The battle took pl ...

. The route they took is now commemorated by the nearby

Overmountain Victory National Historic Trail The Overmountain Victory National Historic Trail (OVHT) is part of the U.S. National Trails System, and N.C. State Trail System. It recognizes the Revolutionary War Overmountain Men, Patriots from what is now East Tennessee who crossed th ...

. In 1926, the park's original tract was donated to the state by Judge T. B. Finley of North Wilkesboro for inclusion in the State Park System; however, the unit was never opened to the public due to its small size, inaccessible location, and questionable historic significance. The

Civilian Conservation Corps The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) was a voluntary government unemployment, work relief program that ran from 1933 to 1942 in the United States for unemployed, unmarried men ages 18–25 and eventually expanded to ages 17–28. The CCC was ...

constructed roads and trails around the mountain in the 1930s. They also built a cabin near the mountain's summit, which still remains. The land was transferred to the Division of Forestry in 1956. It was later opened to the public in 1984 as an educational state forest. In the early 2000s, the forest was greatly expanded when large tracts along its western boundary became available. The state forest grew to a peak size of . The Appropriations Act of 2021 instructed the NC Forest Service to transfer a mutually agreed upon portion of Rendezvous Mountain Educational State Forest to the NC Division of Parks and Recreation by February 1, 2022. Since the forest was already split into two disconnected areas, it was agreed that the original tract and all adjoining tracts, which contained the forest's visitor facilities, would be managed as a state park. Meanwhile, the undeveloped, Little Fork tract would be retained by the Forest Service, and it would be leased to the

North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission The North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission is a state government agency created by the General Assembly in 1947 to conserve and sustain North Carolina's fish and wildlife resources through research, scientific management, wise use, and pub ...

as a public game land.

Nearby state parks

The following state parks and state forests are within of Rendezvous Mountain State Park: :

Elk Knob State Park Elk Knob State Park is a North Carolina state park in Watauga County, North Carolina, in the United States. Opened in 2003, it is one of North Carolina's newest state parks. Elk Knob State Park was established to preserve the natural state of ...

Grandfather Mountain State Park Grandfather Mountain is a mountain, a non-profit attraction, and a North Carolina state park near Linville, North Carolina. At 5,946 feet (1,812 m), it is the highest peak on the eastern escarpment of the Blue Ridge Mountains, one of the major ...

Grayson Highlands State Park Grayson Highlands State Park is a state park located in Grayson County, Virginia, Grayson County, Virginia, United States. It is adjacent to the Mount Rogers National Recreation Area and lies within the Jefferson National Forest. The park was e ...

, Virginia :

Mount Jefferson State Natural Area Mount Jefferson State Natural Area is a List of North Carolina state parks, North Carolina state park in Ashe County, North Carolina, Ashe County, North Carolina in the United States. Located near Jefferson, North Carolina, it includes the peak ...

New River State Park New River State Park is a North Carolina state park in Ashe County, North Carolina in the United States. Located near Jefferson, North Carolina, it covers in the protected New River watershed. The New River is one of the oldest rivers in the U ...

Tuttle Educational State Forest Tuttle Educational State Forest (TESF) is a North Carolina State Forest near Lenoir, North Carolina. It was named for American missionary educator Lelia Judson Tuttle, who donated the first of land for the park in 1956. Nearby state parks ...

Stone Mountain State Park Stone Mountain State Park is a List of North Carolina state parks, North Carolina state park in Alleghany County, North Carolina, Alleghany County and Wilkes County, North Carolina. Stone Mountain The centerpiece of the park is Stone M ...

References

External links

*
Rendezvous Mountain Educational State Forest
- Former state forest website {{Piedmont Triad North Carolina state forests Protected areas of the Appalachians Protected areas of Wilkes County, North Carolina Education in Wilkes County, North Carolina Open-air museums in North Carolina Former state parks of North Carolina 1926 establishments in North Carolina Protected areas established in 1926 State parks of North Carolina State parks of the Appalachians