The city of Soddy Daisy hosted a kickoff celebration Friday afternoon to introduce the newly acquired land that will forever be preserved as a wilderness area for the public to use and enjoy. The generosity of the last owners and their desire to keep the land pristine and undeveloped led to the offer of selling it to the city for one-third of the appraised value.
The 285 acres borders the Justin P. Wilson State Park which the Cumberland Trail runs through. The trail is just 300-400 feet from the edge of the new park property known locally as the Big Soddy Creek Gulf. Flat Top Mountain runs along one side of the land and the Big Soddy Creek runs through the valley that contains rock formations, a waterfall, and wildlife and has beautiful mountain and gorge views.
The property has not always been the way it appears today. According to longtime residents and a local historian, in 1904-1906 the New Soddy Coal Company owned and operated a deep coal mine in the mountain. It was bought by the Durham Land Company in 1910 which strip mined coal on the mountain top. The coal was taken out of the valley on a railroad that was located where the gravel road is today. The strip mining continued until 1923.
The next owner was the Varner family which allowed the public to use the land. Charles Cauffman owned it during the 1980s. Next, it was purchased by Steve and Tiffany Quarfordt who have owned it for the last 10 years. Dr. Quarfordt said when they first saw the property they believed they were in the wrong place because it was so pretty that they thought it was part of the state park.
During the time they owned it, the property was used for personal recreation. Improvements were made but the house they considered building was never done. With three small children and not enough time to devote for maintaining the property they realized it was not feasible to keep it. Tiffany felt it should be appreciated and used by the public and began trying to find a way to preserve it. The area was offered to the state of Tennessee but that deal did not materialize.
It was then put up for auction through Henry Glascock. Before the auction took place, he had the foresight to ask the city of Soddy Daisy if it would be interested. The response was an enthusiastic yes. Most people that grew up in the city who knew about this beautiful land. “I am relieved”, said Ms. Quarfordt. Steve gave me a deadline for getting it preserved.” One of the happiest days, she said, was when she got the phone call from Soddy Daisy saying that it wanted to buy it. Now it will be treated the way it should be and everybody can use and enjoy it, she continued.
The interest that has been created by this transaction was evident by the number of officials from conservation and land use organizations and from local, state and county governments. U.S. Congressman Chuck Fleischmann, Patsy Hazelwood, newly elected to the State House of Representatives, Jeff Lewis from Lamar Alexander’s office, County Commissioner Randy Fairbanks, Hamilton County Sheriff Jim Hammond and John Bridger from the Hamilton County Regional Planning Agency joined the Soddy Daisy Commissioners and city officials at the introduction ceremony. Rick Wood with the Trust for Public Land, Tyler Jeffrey with TDEC and members from both the Cumberland Trail Association and the North Chickamauga Creek Conservancy came as representatives from conservation organizations.
Mr. Wood spoke as a “cheerleader” and to offer thanks and congratulations to both the Quarfordts and the city for putting together this project. He said it already looks like a state park and will prove to be an asset for future generations. He said that land conservation is all about setting up the conservation then making sure that people have access to it. As cities expand, places like this wilderness become more important, he added.
As her very first official act as a state representative, Ms. Hazelwood presented a resolution signed by herself and Beth Harwell, speaker of the House, to honor the city and the Quarfordts who are both responsible for creating this newly designated wilderness area and providing access to the public.
On Nov. 13 Chairman of the Soddy Daisy Parks Board, Pam Glaser will hold a public meeting at city hall to get input of ideas of how to proceed with work on this new park. Potential activities under consideration include hiking trails, swimming, fishing, cycling and camping. City Attorney Sam Elliott will work to develop the rules and regulations for use of the land.