Stone Mountain facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Stone Mountain |
|
|---|---|
The mountain viewed from a distance
|
|
| Highest point | |
| Elevation | 1,686 ft (514 m) |
| Prominence | 825 ft (251 m) |
| Geography | |
 Stone Mountain
Location in Georgia (U.S. state)
|
|
| Topo map | USGS Stone Mountain, Georgia |
Stone Mountain is a huge, rounded rock mountain in Georgia, near the city of Stone Mountain, Georgia. It's also home to Stone Mountain Park. The state of Georgia owns the park. A company called Herschend Family Entertainment helps manage it.
The top of Stone Mountain is 1,686 feet (514 m) above sea level. It rises 825 feet (251 m) above the land around it. Stone Mountain is famous for its unique rock and a giant carving on its side. This carving is the biggest rock sculpture in the world. It shows three leaders from the Confederate side of the American Civil War: Jefferson Davis, Robert E. Lee, and Stonewall Jackson.
The Venable Brothers once owned Stone Mountain. They wanted it to be a "memorial to the Confederacy." Stone Mountain Park officially opened on April 14, 1965. This was exactly 100 years after Abraham Lincoln was assassinated. By 2015, it was the most visited place in Georgia.
The mountain is made of a type of rock called quartz monzonite. It is more than 5 miles (8 km) around its base. You can reach the top by walking up a trail. Or you can take the Skyride, which is like a cable car.
Contents
How Stone Mountain Was Formed: Geology
Stone Mountain is a pluton. This is a type of igneous rock that forms underground. It's mostly made of quartz monzonite. The mountain was created about 300–350 million years ago. This happened when the Blue Ridge Mountains were forming.
Hot, melted rock called magma rose from deep inside the Earth. This magma cooled and hardened into granite. It formed several miles below the surface. Over a very long time, erosion wore away the softer rock above it. This left the harder granite mountain exposed.
The Stone Mountain rock goes underground for about 9 miles (14 km). Many books say it's the "largest exposed piece of granite in the world." But this isn't quite true. It's often called pink granite, but its rock type can vary. It ranges from quartz monzonite to granite and granodiorite.
The rock contains minerals like quartz, feldspar, and muscovite. You can also find small amounts of biotite and tourmaline. Sometimes, you might see black tourmaline crystals. There are also pieces of other rocks, called xenoliths, stuck inside the granite. These were carried up by the magma.
Stone Mountain formed when North America and North Africa collided. This event is called the Alleghenian Orogeny. This same process also created Panola Mountain and Arabia Mountain. These are smaller rock formations south of Stone Mountain.
Nature and Wildlife at Stone Mountain
The top of the mountain is mostly bare rock. It has many rock pools. These pools are filled by rainwater. They are home to special creatures like clam shrimp and fairy shrimp. These tiny shrimp only appear when it rains. Their eggs can stay dormant for years in dry conditions.
These pools are also home to rare and endangered plants. Examples include black-spored quillwort and pool sprite.
The lower parts of the mountain are covered in trees. The rare Georgia oak tree was first found here. You can see several of these trees along the walking trail. In the fall, the Confederate yellow daisy blooms. It grows in rock cracks and wooded areas. More than 120 types of wildflowers grow on the mountain. Many of these are native to the Southern Appalachian region.
-
Leaves of the Georgia oak
-
Confederate yellow daisy (Helianthus porteri)
-
Pool sprite (Gratiola amphiantha)
-
Quillwort (Isoetes melanospora)
.jpg)
The Confederate Memorial Carving
The Confederate Memorial Carving is the largest bas-relief sculpture in the world. It shows three Confederate leaders from the Civil War. They are President Jefferson Davis and Generals Robert E. Lee and Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson. They are shown on their favorite horses.
The carving is 400 feet (120 m) above the ground. It measures 76 by 158 feet (23 by 48 m). The deepest part of the carving goes 12 feet (3.7 m) into the mountain.
People debated who first thought of carving a memorial on Stone Mountain. Some evidence points to Francis Ticknor, a poet, in 1869. Later, William H. Terrell suggested it publicly in 1914.
Mrs. C. Helen Plane, a member of the United Daughters of the Confederacy (UDC), helped the project a lot. She chose the sculptor Gutzon Borglum for the job. Borglum also worked on Mount Rushmore.
Borglum's first idea was much bigger. He wanted to carve many figures and a large room inside the mountain. In 1916, the Venable family gave the north face of the mountain to the UDC. They asked that a large Civil War monument be finished within 12 years.
Money and technical problems slowed the work. The U.S. Mint even made a special silver half dollar coin in 1925 to help raise money. This coin was the largest issue of commemorative coins by the U.S. government at that time.
Borglum was fired in 1925 due to money disagreements. He destroyed his models. He then left Georgia and could not return. The part of Lee's face he had started was blasted off the mountain in 1928.
After Borglum, Augustus Lukeman took over in 1925. He had a different, smaller design. But fundraising was still hard, and work stopped in 1928. In 1941, Governor Eugene Talmadge tried to restart the project. But World War II caused more delays.
In 1958, the Georgia legislature bought Stone Mountain. This was during the Civil Rights Movement. In 1963, Walker Hancock was chosen to finish the carving. Work began in 1964. The carving was officially dedicated on May 9, 1970. Roy Faulkner completed the carving on March 3, 1972.
Stone Mountain Park opened on April 14, 1965. This was 100 years after Lincoln's assassination. Four flags of the Confederacy are flown at the site. The Stone Mountain Memorial Lawn has thirteen terraces. Each one represents a Confederate state and flies its flag.
History of Stone Mountain and the Park
People have lived around Stone Mountain for a very long time. When European explorers first saw the mountain, there was a rock wall around its top. Native Americans likely built this wall. By the 1900s, the wall was gone. Visitors took rocks as souvenirs, or they were removed by quarrying.
Europeans first heard about the mountain in 1567. Spanish explorers were told of a mountain that "shining when the sun set like a fire." At that time, the Creek and Cherokee peoples lived in the area.
In the early 1800s, the area was called Rock Mountain. It was a popular spot for recreation. People would ride horses to the mountain. It's easy to climb, and there has been a path since the 1800s.
In 1838, Aaron Cloud built a 165 feet (50 m) wooden observation tower on top. A storm destroyed it. A smaller tower replaced it in 1851. Visitors would travel by train or road, then walk up the 1.1-mile (1.8 km) trail. Cloud also had a restaurant at the top.
Quarrying, which is cutting and removing stone, began in the 1830s. It became a big business after a railroad line was built in 1847. Stone Mountain granite was used in many famous buildings. This includes the locks of the Panama Canal and steps at the United States Capitol. Quarrying also destroyed some natural features on the mountain.
In 1887, the Venable Brothers bought Stone Mountain for $45,000. Their family owned it until the state of Georgia bought it in 1958.
Martin Luther King Jr. mentioned Stone Mountain in his "I Have a Dream" speech in 1963. He said, "let freedom ring from Stone Mountain of Georgia!"
During the 1996 Summer Olympics, Stone Mountain Park hosted events. These included tennis, archery, and track cycling.
Some outdoor scenes for the Netflix series Stranger Things were filmed in the park.
How the Park is Managed
The state of Georgia owns Stone Mountain Park. The Stone Mountain Memorial Association, a state group, manages it. Herschend Family Entertainment Corporation runs the park's attractions. They have a long-term contract and pay Georgia $11 million each year. Herschend also manages other famous parks like Dollywood.
Things to See and Do at Stone Mountain Park
Confederate Hall is a museum. It teaches visitors about the geology, nature, and history of Stone Mountain. A short film about the Civil War in Georgia is shown there. The education department teaches thousands of students each year.
The Antebellum Plantation and Farmyard is an outdoor museum. It has 19 historic buildings from 1790 to 1875. These buildings were moved here to show what a pre-Civil War Georgia plantation was like. The houses have old furniture and decorations. The farm also has a petting zoo.
A grist mill from 1869 was moved to the park in 1965. A covered bridge from 1892 also moved here. It used to cross the Oconee River in Athens, Georgia.
A 732-bell carillon gives a daily concert. It came from the 1964 New York World's Fair.
Broadcast Tower
There is a short broadcast tower on top of the mountain. It sends out signals for two non-commercial stations. These are television station WGTV TV 8 and weather radio station KEC80.
Stone Mountain Trails for Hiking
The Walk Up Trail is 1.3-mile (2.1 km) long. It goes to the top of Stone Mountain. You climb 786 ft (240 m) to reach a height of 1,686 ft (514 m). The trail is steep, but the views from the top are amazing.
The Cherokee Trail is a 5-mile (8 km) National Recreation Trail. It goes around the base of the mountain. Part of it goes up and over the west side. You will see oak-hickory forests, lakes, and streams.
The Nature Garden Trail is a 3⁄4 mile (1.2 km) loop. It goes through a forest with many native plants that like shade. There's a small garden at the start with signs about the plants.
The Songbird Habitat Trails have two loops, each 1 mile (1.6 km) long. One is good for bird watching. The other has shade and many native plants. Dogs are not allowed on these trails.
Park Attractions and Fun Activities
Herschend Family Entertainment Corporation operates many attractions in the park. The Skyride is a Swiss-built cable car. It takes you to the top of the mountain and passes by the carving.
Historic Square has old buildings from around Georgia. These include three plantation houses and two slave cabins. The Farmyard has old breeds of sheep, goats, and pigs.
Crossroads is like an 1872 southern town. It has a 4-D movie theater and a mini-golf course. The Rockin’ Land and Lake Tour uses a double-decker bus and a pontoon boat. You can also watch people doing crafts like glass blowing and candy-making.
The Dinotorium is a children's play area. It has many interactive games, climbing structures, and slides. Sky Hike is a ropes course for families. Geyser Towers is a playground with a large fountain.
On summer evenings, the mountain hosts the Stone Mountain Laser Show Spectacular. This show uses fireworks and laser lights. It projects images of the Deep South and Georgia history onto the carving. In 2011, they updated the show to "Mountainvision." It uses digital projections, lasers, and special effects.
