In 1924, the Southern Appalachian National Park Committee was searching for a site for a national park in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia that would be easily accessible from major cities on the East Coast of the United States such as Washington, D.C. and settled on the current site of Shenandoah National Park. As part of the recommendation for the park was the "greatest single feature" to be a "sky-line drive" that would provide views of the Shenandoah Valley to the west and the Piedmont to the east. The idea for the roadway was suggested by committee member William C. Gregg to Board of Shenandoah Valley, Inc. member L. Ferdinand Zerkel during a visit to Skyland. In 1929, President Herbert Hoover, who established a summer home in the area, called for the roadway to be built along the Blue Ridge Mountains. The road was proposed to be named Hoover Highway, but would instead become known as Skyline Drive.