Thanks, Lee; good information. For twenty years I lived immediately off the road through Crab Orchard Gap 60 miles west of Knoxville through the Cumberlands. That "road" was widened from a bridle/foot trail to "9 ft in width suitable for the passage of carts" by act of the NC Legislature in 1796. That act opened a more direct road to Nashville, the Southwest, and beyond and was shorter than the Wilderness Rd. and then south toward TN/GA. 20 miles west of that Gap the new road (now US70 - I-40) intersected with now US #127, that being and ancient Indian trading trail between the KY/NW Territory Indians and the Cherokees of Chattanooga area and Choctaws south. From there, the old road went on south into GA, however that was a longer route, again, than down the east side of the Blue Ridge and thence west to GA. Paul It would depend what part of Virginia one was traveling from to Ga as to the route taken. Virginia and NC were settled from East to the West, generally speaking, however by 1800 several roads had been opened across the Blue Ridge Mountains which allowed movement from the Valley of Virginia southward toward NC and beyond. After 1800 these roads allowed many who settled in southside Va and NC to move west to Tennesse, Ky, Indiana and beyond. The Cumberland Gap was definitely not on any road or trail one would have traveled from VA or NC to Ga. Most people who have never seen the Blue Ridge Mountain do not realize the barrier it presented between the Valley of Virginia and southside Va. and NC. There were few gaps or passes in the mountain chain which would allow wagon travel. There were two near Roanoke, Va., one near Bedford, Va. and the other between Rocky Mount and Salem Va. The latter was the pass through which the Great Wagon Road was built. This road took pioneers to Surry Co., NC and the Yadkin River area and from there to Georgia. Another gap in the Blue Ridge was near present day Hillsville, Va. Lead mined on the New River was hauled through this gap to the Moravian Towns at Winston Salem, NC and used to make pottery. Many pioneers crossed the mountain at this point after 1800 as they moved to Grayson co., Va. and later to east Tennessee and westward. The road from Salem Va. southwest into Tennessee is sometimes called the Wilderness Road or the Great Stage Road. It does not cross the Blue Ridge Mountain but does cross a couple of small mountains in the Valley of Virginia. This road originally went to Fort Loudon near the Cherokee Towns at the foot of the Smokey Mountains. The section of this road from Fort Chiswell on the New River to Ft. Loudon was impassable by wagon when the army tried to rescue the men at Ft. Loudon and could not be fixed in time to bring the men relief. Remember, this was some 25 years before settlers made their way through Cumberland Gap to homestead in Kentucky. Contrary to popular belief, Daniel Boone did not build the road through Cumberland Gap. End of history lesson for today! G. Lee Hearl Authentic Appalachian Storyteller Abingdon, Va.