Measuring the Mountain
(Mountains)

This is the story of one of North Carolina’s greatest teachers and explorers, Elisha Mitchell, and the mountain that bears his name.

One of the greatest teachers in the history of the University of North Carolina was Elisha Mitchell. Mitchell was no “ivory tower” guy! Three decades before the Civil War he was teaching math, science, botany, and geology at Chapel Hill. He will forever be remembered, however, as the man who measured the mountain that later bore his name, Mt. Mitchell. In 1834 the tallest mountain east of the Mississippi was believed to be Mount Washington in New Hampshire. Mitchell’s discoveries in North Carolina’s Black Mountains proved this to be wrong, a finding of significance for North Carolina and the nation. Using primitive instruments, Mitchell climbed and measured many of the peaks of the “Black Mountains” with astonishing accuracy. At age 63, in 1857, he died from a fall on Mount Mitchell and was later buried at its summit. At the time of his death and even today, however, some scholars question the events that credit Mitchell with visiting and measuring the peak that bears his name.

In this show we will look at the life and tragic death of Elisha Mitchell. ENC will also examine the natural and social history of the Black Mountains.

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Resources:

North Carolina State Parks and Recreation
Mount Mitchell State Park
“The Trees of Mount Mitchell” by Alan Anderson
Sherpa Guide to Mount Mitchell
Sherpa Guide to the Black Mountains