Maybe you think I have written enough about Josephus Daniels, the founder and longtime editor of the Raleigh News & Observer.
Nope.
One more column about Josephus Daniels. This one prompted by a recent article about the Blue Ridge Parkway.
In the June 16 New York Times reporter Gabe Castro-Root wrote, “When Hurricane Helene ravaged much of the Southeastern United States in September, the scenic Blue Ridge Parkway also took a beating.”
“Most years, the 469-mile parkway, which winds through the Appalachians in North Carolina and Virginia, tops the list of the most visited National Park Service properties, dazzling travelers with waterfalls, mountain vistas and lush forests. Despite the storm, the parkway still ranked second last year, with nearly 17 million visitors, after the Golden Gate National Recreation Area in the San Francisco Bay Area.
“Landslides, flooding and fallen trees caused by the hurricane’s heavy rain and high winds caused extensive damage to the parkway, closing the entire road for about two weeks.
“Maintenance crews have repaired much of the damage over the last several months, despite layoffs and budget cuts at the N.P.S. [National Park Service], though sections of the roadway as well as some campsites and a destroyed visitor center remain closed indefinitely.”
This recent attention is a reminder of the important role Josephus Daniels played in the Parkway’s location. Only a few older folks remember that North Carolina would have lost much of the parkway to Tennessee if Daniels had not gone to bat in 1934. We should recognize that although Daniels held and exploited the racist views of his times, his foresight and advocacy are still improving the lives of North Carolinians of all races.
What Josephus Daniels has to do with the parkway’s location is a part of the story Anne Mitchell Whisnant tells in her 2006 UNC Press book, “Super-scenic Motorway: A Blue Ridge Parkway History.”
In 1933, the new President Franklin Roosevelt believed a program of massive public works would help the nation recover from the Great Depression. Whisnant explains, “The Parkway was authorized under the National Industrial Recovery Act, signed in June 1933, which created the Public Works Administration (PWA) to finance large-scale public works projects as a way of pumping money into the sagging economy and creating jobs in the construction of substantial structures that would be of long-term value to the nation.”
Roosevelt approved a scenic roadway connecting Shenandoah National Park in Virginia and Great Smoky Mountains National Park located along the North Carolina-Tennessee border. All agreed that the parkway would run from Virginia down to Linville. From there it would either cross the mountains into Tennessee and end at the Tennessee park entrance near Gatlinburg or continue in North Carolina through Asheville and then to the park entrance near Cherokee.
The experts recommended the Tennessee route. But when Josephus Daniels had been Secretary of the Navy during World War I, Roosevelt was assistant secretary, and the two men remained close. After Daniels weighed in, Roosevelt’s Secretary of the Interior Harold Ickes overruled the experts and selected the North Carolina route. North Carolinians who enjoy traveling the parkway from Linville through Asheville owe Josephus Daniels a strong thank you.
D.G. Martin, a lawyer, retired as UNC system vice president for public affairs in 1997. He hosted PBC-NC’s “North Carolina Bookwatch,” for more than 20 years.
Chapelboro.com does not charge subscription fees, and you can directly support our efforts in local journalism here. Want more of what you see on Chapelboro? Let us bring free local news and community information to you by signing up for our newsletter.
One on One: Josephus Daniels and Blue Ridge Parkway Chapelboro.com.
Read More Details
Finally We wish PressBee provided you with enough information of ( One on One: Josephus Daniels and Blue Ridge Parkway )
Also on site :
- Morning Report — Texas braces for more flood danger after Hill Country tragedy
- Bangladesh lawyers challenge ex-PM Hasina’s murder trial charges
- Ukraine plagued by ‘palace politics’ and purges – Economist