The Locust Fork is an ancient river with a surprising history. The river and its tributaries have carved a path through the surrounding ridges of sandstone and chert at least a dozen times - geological evidence that this river is older than the hills through which it flows. That geology demonstrates that across the millennia as the Appalachians and other uplifts of the land slowly took place, the river cut through. Today it exhibits hairpin curves bordered by steep bluffs, called “entrenched meanders”. Together the river and ridges have created an array of habitats for a distinctively rich diversity of life. In spite of threats, the Locust Fork remains free-flowing, preserving some of that rich bio-diversity, although human activity has caused many extinctions of rare and unusual species. The river provided Native Americans ample food and shelter, resulting in abundant artifacts in the watershed. The river's winding course caused the early white settlers to build many bridges, some of which survive from the past:
Swann Covered Bridge,
Horton Mill Covered Bridge, and
Easley Covered Bridge. Today in Blount County, 115 bridges longer than 20 feet currently in operation cross the Locust Fork River. Settlers also built water-powered grain mills in almost every valley. Most of them are gone. == Gallery ==