george h. thomas led the crew that cut through the cumberland gap.
george h. thomas led the crew that cut through the cumberland gap.
who led the crew that cut through the cumberland gap?
george h. thomas
throughout the years gap cave has had many names. it was named first by dr. thomas walker in 1750, who named it "gap cave". walker was the guardian of young thomas jefferson after jefferson's father's death. daniel boone passed through cumberland gap in 1775 and must have also seen the cave's entrance. boone and his contemporary, an african american, monk estill, are the first on record to have made gunpowder in kentucky. saltpeter mining at cumberland gap may well have begun before 1800. an adjacent cave, sometimes referred to as soldiers cave, was explored by confederate and union soldiers as well as gap cave. local historians say armies used soldiers cave as a military hospital and for storage. names and dates inscribed along the cavern walls document military presence. there is evidence that the greater part of the gap cave system was used to mine for saltpeter in the 1800s and became known as the saltpeter cave.
gap cave
duty at camp dick robinson, ky., until january 1862. battle of logan's cross roads january 19. at london and covering cumberland gap until march. skirmishes at big creek gap and jacksborough march 14 (company b). reconnaissance to cumberland gap and skirmish march 21–23. cumberland gap campaign march 28-june 18. occupation of cumberland gap june 18-september 17. tazewell july 22. skirmish near cumberland gap august 27. operations at rogers and big creek gaps september 10. evacuation of cumberland gap and retreat to greenupsburg, ky., september 17-october 3. operations in kanawha valley, w. va., until november. ordered to louisville, ky., cincinnati, ohio, and thence to nashville, tenn. duty there until january 1863. guard trains from nashville to murfreesboro, tenn., january 2–3. cox's or blood's hill january 3. ordered to lexington, ky., march 11. duty in district of central kentucky until august. at somerset, ky., may. liberty may 25. pursuit of morgan july. operations in eastern kentucky against scott july 25-august 6. burnside's campaign in eastern tennessee august 1863 to february 1864. winter's gap august 31, 1863. expedition to cumberland gap september 4–9. tazewell september 5. capture of cumberland gap september 9. carter's station september 20, 21 and 22. zollicoffer september 20–21 and september 24. jonesboro september 21 and 28. blue springs october 5–10. sweetwater october 10–11. pursuit to bristol october 11–17. blountsville october 13–14. bristol october 15. knoxville campaign november 4-december 23. near london and stock creek november 15. marysville november 15. lenoir station november 15. campbell's station november 16. defense of cumberland gap during siege of knoxville november 17-december 5. walker's ford, clinch river, december 5. rutledge december 7. clinch mountain december 9. moresburg december 10. morristown december 10. cheex's cross roads december 12. russellville december 12–13. bean's station december 14. rutledge december 16. blain's cross roads december 16–19. new market december 25. operations about dandridge and mossy creek december 24–28. mossy creek december 26. talbot's station december 29. shoal creek, ala., january 14, 1864. operations about dandridge january 16–17. kimbrough's cross roads january 16. dandridge january 17. operations about dandridge january 26. fair garden january 27. duty at knoxville and london until august 1864. operations against wheeler in eastern tennessee august 15–31. duty at knoxville and in eastern tennessee until march 1865. ordered to cumberland gap march 16, and duty there until august.
2nd regiment tennessee volunteer infantry