mantle Rock
and
James Hughes
Recently (summer 08), a visitor to this website emailed a copy of a post card from 1912, showing the arch as you see it here. For a larger view, click here.
I made the following pictures in the 1980s, with the exception of one I think. I last went to Mantle Rock in the early 90s.
Mantle Rock is located in Livingston county Kentucky, off
state road 133, near the community of Joy. This is a natural arch
next to a cliff line in a rocky hollow. This piece of topo map
shows a 
dashed line going
from the paved road 133 down to the arch. This represents an old
dirt road that has been blocked off for years. It's been years
since I last went down there. Back then a person could drive down
there with 4x4, although I didn't. I walked. Since then, the
Nature Conservancy bought the land and made it a nature preserve.
On the map, you can see a circular area in the fork of two creeks.
This is known as "Flat Rock" by the locals. Part of
Flat Rock is shown at right. The creeks have cut down through the
rock and made rocky hollows, and left this roundish hump of
wooded land in their fork. Flat Rock has a rock wall all around,
and there are a couple ways to get up. I got up their once. There
are rock walls along the other sides of the creeks. The whole
place is interesting, with the walls, and boulders, and rock
strewn creeks. It is all wooded too, with lots of moss and ferns,
and lichens, and flowers when they bloom. Cactus too.
I first went to Mantle Rock in the late 1970s. I happened to meet James Hughes, of Carrsville, Ky, at his home. Eventually he took me to Mantle Rock to show me around there, and told me about its history, that this place was part of "The Trail Of Tears". It was a stopover for the Cherokee who were forced to leave their homes in North Carolina and were marched to another place in the Oklahoma Territory in 1838. That winter of 1838-1839, the Ohio River was "frozen and impassible" when 3,000 Cherokee arrived at the river not far from Mantle Rock, so they camped out at the arch area until they could be moved across. Two hundred and sixty of them died there, according to information on a website by Native Americans:
http://mantlerock.org/mrc-history.htm
I looked up websites on the Cherokee and found a long list. I looked into some of them trying to find information about Mantle Rock, but found very little. I did find a poignant personal account by a yount Native American boy who was part of the Trail Of Tears, retold by his great-great-grandson on the website at this address: http://cherokeehistory.com/samuel.html It was touching to read, and I thought I'd include this link, so others might get an idea of what it was like.
I met Mr. James Hughes of
Carrsville, Ky in March of 1977. I lived in Paducah, Ky at the
time, and liked to get out to Livingston county some times and
ride the roads. That March I bought a new Honda motorcycle and
went riding one Saturday. It was cool and by the time I got up
into Livingston county, I was wishing I had brought another
jacket. I started looking for a yard sale to buy something extra
to put on. I wound up in Carrsville and happened to see James
working in his front yard. I stopped and introduced myself and we
talked. He told me about his house, which he was working on, the
front porch in particular. It used to belong to one of Samuel
Clemens' (Mark Twain) brothers. I told James I had been looking
for a yard sale to buy another flannel shirt or something, and he
went inside and came back out with one of his flannel shirts, a
red one. He gave it to me. We talked more about his house, and
the area in general. I think it was then that he mentioned Mantle
Rock. That was the beginning of a friendship that lasted years. I
used to drive out to that area now and then to see some country,
and would usually go out to his house and visit with James and
his wife Hellen.
One weekend I met with James and he took me out to Mantle Rock, and we walked through part of that area. I made some pictures then, and subsequently went back other times and made more pictures. I think on two occasions James and I both went out there. He told me some of his own history, and that he used to live on a farm close to Mantle Rock. He told me about the Trail of Tears too, that this area was part of it.
This picture at
left is the same spot as in the picture above. I think there is
always water flowing in the creeks there. With all the rock and
cliffs, and running water, it is a special place.
You can follow along a wall on one side
of a creek and cross and follow another wall. There are many
overhangs. There is lots to see out there. It is a peaceful,
serene place.
You can find huge boulders scattered along the walls and creeks there.
This is the top of Mantle
Rock, and James was standing about midway when this picture was
made.
This is a view underneath
Mantle Rock.
One morning I was out at the Mantle Rock
area by myself, just easing along, enjoying the morning, and I
saw this fox lying on the ground. It didn't see me at first. It
rose up and scratched itself. I think I had to put my camera on a
tripod, and the fox stayed put during all that. It seemed like it
became aware of me, but didn't get alarmed. I managed to get four
pictures, and then it walked away. This is the best. I did get
one of it scratching, but it isn't as good.
At right is a picture of
James at Mandy Falls, which is alongside road 133 near the Mantle
Rock area. The Native American website that I gave the first link
to gives a little history on this place.
This and another picture were
scanned from 110 size negatives, and they didn't come out real
well, but they will serve the purpose. This is James by the
tractor and boat he used to have. One day he took me out on the
river for a ride. We went to look for arrowheads or whatever
along the riverbank in a couple places, but didn't have any luck.
James operating his boat.
aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa
This is James and his wife
Hellen, in front of their home in Carrsville. This picture was
made in 1990 I think. They have been my friends for a long time,
and I wish them many more years together. For me, James and
Mantle Rock go together. He first showed me the place, and told
me its history. He will always be part of it.