It was 1923, when Willis Davis, President of Knoxville Iron Company, and his wife Anne Davis began a crusade for the establishment of a National Park in the Smoky Mountains region of Tennessee and North Carolina. Inspired by their trips to Parks in the Western U.S., the Davises became instrumental in what eventually became Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

The Smokies were already a popular vacation spot for Knoxville businessmen and others when the Davises began introducing the idea to civic organizations around East TN. As it was, the area was being slowly deforested by lumber companies and the Davises and others knew if something wasn’t done to preserve the region it’s beauty would soon be destroyed by the lumber and mining interests. They quickly established the Great Smoky Mountains Conservation Association and then in 1924, Anne Davis was elected to the Tennessee legislature.

Once in the legislature, Anne sponsored legislation that allowed for the purchase of 78,000 acres of land from the Little River Lumber Company. This became the first large parcel of land set aside for the creation of Great Smoky Mountains National Park.