Grayson Highlands • Hungry Mother • New River Trail Natural Tunnel • Southwest Virginia Museum • Wilderness Road
Visitor Information & Services
SNEEDVILLE Sneedville/Hancock County Chamber & Community Partners P.O. Box 594, Sneedville, TN 37869 423-733-2080 www.hancockcoevents.com info@hancockcoevents.com
parks out e h t e v lo e W ch to do. here. So mu y - Wow ! ener And the sc t time. Join us nex Love, Virginia
Elrod Falls Consisting of two falls, the upper
cascades more than 100 feet to the lower making this one of the most beautiful waterfalls in East Tennessee. Enjoy a swim in the pools at the base of the falls or take one of the hiking trails. Elrod Falls is one of the hidden treasures of Hancock County. Located off Hwy. 31 Sneedville • 423-733-2080
Photo courtesy of Bill Crabtree Jr., Virginia Tourism Corp.
Melungeon Heritage
800-933-PARK (7275) 10 www.netta.com
| www.virginiastateparks.gov
The name Melungeon refers to a people of mixed descent who, according to one theory, are descendants of early Spanish and Portuguese explorers who made settlements in Georgia and the Carolinas prior to the historic Jamestown establishments of 1567 or 1607. Genetic studies give rise to the belief that the Melungeons were originally from northwest Africa who, known as Moors, moved into Spain and Portugal around 710 A.D. Exiled during the Spanish Inquisition, these people may have come to the New World in the 16th Century. Subsequent generations, apparently unaccepted legally or socially by their new country, retreated to the mountains where today some 500 Melungeon descendants still live where their ancestors settled in Northeast Tennessee and extreme Southwest Virginia. Newman’s Ridge is one of the most famous of Melungeon territories. Visit the Vardy Community to learn more about the mystery of the Melungeons. 423-733-2080