6 Discover Cocke County 2021
The French Broad was first known by the Indian name “Agiqua” but received the present name from hunters and trappers to distinguish it from the Broad River in eastern Buncombe County that flows into South Carolina. Before 1763, much of the area west of the Appalachian Mountains was controlled by France, thus the “French” Broad river.
Cocke County Rivers And The Conquistadors By Eddie Walker
The French Broad is the largest of the three rivers in Cocke County. Considered to be one of the three oldest rivers in North America, the French Broad is estimated to be between 260 and 325 million years old, making it older than the Appalachian Mountains through which it courses. The other two rivers are the Susquehanna of NY and PA and the New River of NC, VA and WV. These three rivers are the
only ones to bisect the mountain chain. The headwaters of the French Broad are in Transylvania County, NC near the town of Rosman, where the North Fork and West Fork join just west of the Eastern Continental Divide. A few miles downstream, the river is joined by Continue on page 8
