View source for Mount Mitchell

{{short description|Highest mountain in North Carolina, United States}}
{{About|the North Carolina mountain}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2025}}
{{Infobox mountain
| name = Mount Mitchell
| photo = File:Mount Mitchell from Mt. Mitchell overlook NC.jpg
| photo_caption = Mount Mitchell, viewed from [[Blue Ridge Parkway|the Blue Ridge Parkway]] in [[North Carolina]]
| elevation_ft = 6684
| elevation_ref = <ref name="pb" />
| prominence_ft = 6089
| prominence_ref = <ref name="pb">{{cite peakbagger |pid=7822 |name=Mount Mitchell, North Carolina |access-date=2008-12-28}}</ref>
| isolation = {{convert|1189|mi|km}}
| listing = {{unbulleted list
|[[Topographic isolation|World most isolated peaks]] 31st
|[[List of the most isolated major summits of North America|North America isolated peaks]] 4th
|[[List of the most prominent summits of the United States|US most prominent peaks]] 62nd
|[[List of U.S. states by elevation|U.S. state high points]] 16th
|[[Ultra-prominent peak|Ultra]]
}}
| location = [[Yancey County, North Carolina]], U.S.
| range = [[Appalachian Mountains]]
| map = USA North Carolina#USA
| map_caption = North Carolina, U.S.
| label_position = right
| coordinates = {{coord|35.764839|N|82.2651221|W|type:mountain_region:US-NC_scale:100000|format=dms|display=it}}
| range_coordinates = 
| coordinates_ref = <ref name="gnis">{{cite gnis |id=1013745 |name=Mount Mitchell |access-date=2008-12-28}}</ref>
| topo = [[United States Geological Survey|USGS]] Mount Mitchell
| first_ascent = 
| easiest_route = Hike
}}

'''Mount Mitchell''' (''Attakulla'' in [[Cherokee language|Cherokee]])<ref name="Bradford">{{Cite web|url=https://ncpedia.org/gazetteer/search/Mount%20Mitchell/0%C2%A0|title=North Carolina Gazetteer|last=Bradford|first=Erin|date=2019-12-05|work=NCpedia|access-date=2020-11-22|language=en-US|archive-date=2021-01-14|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210114150845/https://ncpedia.org/gazetteer/search/Mount%20Mitchell/0%C2%A0|url-status=live}}</ref> is the highest peak of the [[Appalachian Mountains]] and the highest peak in mainland [[North America]] east of the [[Mississippi River]]. It is located near [[Burnsville, North Carolina|Burnsville]] in [[Yancey County, North Carolina|Yancey County]], [[North Carolina]] in the [[Black Mountains (North Carolina)|Black Mountain]] subrange of the Appalachians about {{convert|19|mi|km|0}} northeast of [[Asheville, North Carolina|Asheville]]. It is protected by [[Mount Mitchell State Park]] and surrounded by the [[Pisgah National Forest]]. Mount Mitchell's elevation is {{convert|6684|ft|m|0}} <!----  NOTE: The recent "6699" elevation given on some USGS sites apparently includes the tower atop the mountain.  ----> above sea level.<ref name="pb"/> Mount Mitchell is ranked 31st by [[topographic isolation]].

==Geography==
[[File:MountMitchellSurveyorsMark.jpg|thumb|Surveyor's mark embedded in the observation tower notes the elevation of 6684-feet above sea level]]
[[File:Mount Mitchell Fall Foliage.JPG|thumb|Fall foliage at Mount Mitchell]]
The peak is the highest mountain in the United States east of the [[Mississippi River]],<ref>{{cite book |last1=Davis |first1=Donald E. |last2=Colten |first2=Craig E. |last3=Nelson |first3=Megan Kate |last4=Saikku |first4=Mikko |last5=Allen |first5=Barbara L. |title=Southern United States: An Environmental History |date=2006 |publisher=ABC-CLIO |isbn=9781851097807 |page=261 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kZsqfbPPHRcC&q=Mount+Mitchell+highest+peak+east+mississippi&pg=PA261 |access-date=22 April 2019 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Mount Mitchell State Park {{!}} NC State Parks |url=https://www.ncparks.gov/mount-mitchell-state-park |website=www.ncparks.gov |publisher=State of North Carolina |access-date=22 April 2019 |archive-date=21 April 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190421033925/https://www.ncparks.gov/mount-mitchell-state-park |url-status=live }}</ref> and the highest in all of eastern North America south of the [[Arctic Cordillera]]. The nearest higher peaks are in the [[Black Hills]] of South Dakota and the highland foothills of [[Colorado]]. The mountain's [[topographic isolation]] is calculated from the nearest discernible single higher point: [[Lone Butte, Colorado|Lone Butte]], which is 1,189 miles (1,913&nbsp;km) away in southeastern Colorado.{{Citation needed|date=July 2024}}

==History==
Mount Mitchell was the highest mountain of the [[United States]] from 1789 until the [[Louisiana Purchase]] in 1803 when [[Mount Elbert]] became the highest mountain claimed by the United States. Mount Mitchell was also the most isolated peak in the United States from 1789 until the [[Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo]] in 1848 when [[Mount Whitney]] became the most isolated.
 
The [[Cherokee people]], who long occupied this area as part of their homeland, called the mountain ''Attakulla.''<ref name="Bradford"/> European-American settlers first called the mountain Black Dome for its rounded shape. They later named it after [[Elisha Mitchell]], a professor at the [[University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill|University of North Carolina]], who first explored the Black Mountain region in 1835. He determined that the height of the range exceeded by several hundred feet that of [[Mount Washington]] in [[New Hampshire]]. The latter had been commonly thought at the time to be the highest point in the United States east of the [[Rocky Mountains]]. Mitchell fell to his death at nearby [[Mitchell Falls]] in 1857, where he had returned to verify his earlier measurements.{{Citation needed|date=August 2021}}

<!-- When established as a state park? -->
A {{convert|4.6|mile|km|adj=on}} road ([[North Carolina Highway 128|NC 128]]) connects the scenic [[Blue Ridge Parkway]] to a parking lot where a steep paved {{convert|980|ft|m|-1|adj=on}} trail leads through a [[conifer]] forest to the summit. The {{convert|40|ft|m|0|adj=on}} stone observation tower on the summit was torn down in late 2006. A new observation deck was constructed and opened to visitors in January 2009.<ref>{{cite web
  | url = http://ncparks.gov/Visit/parks/momi/main.php
  | title = Mount Mitchell State Park
  | publisher = North Carolina State Parks
  | access-date = 2008-12-28
  | archive-date = 2008-12-26
  | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20081226024244/http://www.ncparks.gov/Visit/parks/momi/main.php
  | url-status = dead
  }}</ref>

==Description==
Mount Mitchell was formed during the Precambrian when marine deposits were metamorphosed into [[gneiss]] and [[schist]]. These [[metasedimentary]] rocks were later uplifted during the [[Alleghenian orogeny]].<ref name="Silver2003">{{cite book|author=Timothy Silver|title=Mount Mitchell and the Black Mountains: An Environmental History of the Highest Peaks in Eastern America|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iIn6nE0QLNYC&pg=PP1|year=2003|publisher=Univ of North Carolina Press|isbn=978-0-8078-5423-5}}</ref> The soils are well drained, dark brown and stony with fine-earth material ranging in texture from sandy clay loam to loam or sandy loam; Burton and Craggey are the most common series around the summit.<ref>[http://casoilresource.lawr.ucdavis.edu/gmap/ SoilWeb] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130514215427/http://casoilresource.lawr.ucdavis.edu/gmap/ |date=2013-05-14 }}, University of California-Davis California Soil Resource Lab, Natural Resources Conservation Service. Accessed: 11 January 2016.</ref>

==Environment==
{{more citations needed|section|date=August 2022}}

The mountain's summit is coated in a dense stand of [[Southern Appalachian spruce-fir forest]], which consists primarily of two evergreen species—the [[Picea rubens|red spruce]] and the [[Abies fraseri|Fraser fir]].  Most of the mature Fraser firs, however, were killed off by the non-native [[Balsam woolly adelgid]] in the latter half of the 20th century. The high elevations expose plant life to high levels of pollution, including [[acid precipitation]] in the form of rain, snow, and fog. These acids damage the red spruce trees in part by releasing natural metals from the soil, such as [[aluminum]], and by leaching important [[mineral]]s.  To what extent this pollution harms the high-altitude ecosystem is debatable.<ref>Steve Nash, ''Blue Ridge 2020: An Owner's Manual'' (Chapel Hill, N.C.: University of North Carolina Press, 1999), pp. 25-28, 61-63.</ref>

While the mountain is still mostly lush and green in the summer, many dead Fraser fir trunks can be seen due to these serious problems. Reducing air pollution is a difficult issue, as the pollutants are often carried by air to this area from long distances. Sources can be local or hundreds of miles away, requiring cooperation from as far away as the [[Midwest]].

Wildflowers are abundant all summer long. Young fir and spruce trees do well in the subalpine climate, and their cones feed the birds along with wild [[blueberry]] and [[blackberry]] shrubs.

The second highest point in eastern North America, [[Mount Craig (North Carolina)|Mount Craig]] at {{convert|6647|ft|m|0}}, is roughly a mile to the north of Mount Mitchell.

===Climate===
{{climate chart
| Mount Mitchell
| 17.0 | 33.4 | 6.54
| 18.2 | 35.3 | 5.86
| 23.7 | 40.7 | 7.05
| 31.3 | 49.0 | 5.70
| 41.2 | 57.0 | 5.32
| 49.0 | 63.1 | 5.74
| 52.3 | 65.9 | 5.81
| 51.7 | 65.1 | 7.16
| 46.0 | 60.4 | 7.49
| 36.7 | 53.1 | 5.09
| 28.3 | 45.0 | 6.68
| 20.6 | 36.4 | 6.23
| units = imperial
| float = right
| clear = none
| source = NOAA<ref name = NCDC /> }}
The summit area of Mount Mitchell is marked by a warm-summer [[humid continental climate]] ([[Köppen climate classification|Köppen]] ''Dfb''), with mild summers and long, moderately cold winters, being more similar to southeastern Canada than the [[U.S. Southern States|southeastern U.S.]] The monthly daily average temperature ranges from {{convert|25.1|°F|1}} in January to {{convert|59.6|°F|1}} in July. The coldest temperature ever recorded in the state occurred there on January 21, 1985, when it fell to  {{convert|-34|°F|1}}, during a [[January 1985 Arctic outbreak|severe cold spell]]. It is also the coldest average reporting station in the state at {{convert|42.9|°F|1}}, well below any other station.<ref name="weather">
  {{cite web
 |url         = http://www.nc-climate.ncsu.edu/climate/extremes.html
 |title       = Extreme Weather Records
 |publisher   = State Climate Office of North Carolina
 |access-date  = 2007-03-27
 |url-status     = dead
 |archive-url  = https://web.archive.org/web/20070512231842/http://www.nc-climate.ncsu.edu/climate/extremes.html
 |archive-date = 2007-05-12
}}</ref>

Unlike the lower elevations in the surrounding regions, heavy snows often fall from December to March, with {{convert|50|in|m|2}} accumulating in the [[Storm of the Century (1993)|Great Blizzard of 1993]] and {{convert|33|in|m|2}} in the [[January 2016 United States blizzard|January 2016 blizzard]].<ref name="Jan2016SnowfallReport">{{cite report|author=Chris Stachelski|publisher=National Centers for Environmental Information|date=May 6, 2016|access-date=August 23, 2017|title=SCEC Decision: New 24 Hour Snowfall Record For North Carolina|url=https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/monitoring-content/extremes/scec/20160506-NorthCarolina-24-Hour-Snow-Rejected.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170824010415/https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/monitoring-content/extremes/scec/20160506-NorthCarolina-24-Hour-Snow-Rejected.pdf|archive-date=August 24, 2017|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="weather"/> Due to the high elevation, precipitation is heavy and reliable year-round, averaging {{convert|81.09|in|mm|sigfig=3}} for the year, with no month receiving less than {{convert|5|in|0|abbr=on}} of average precipitation. The summit is often windy, with recorded gusts of up to {{convert|178|mph|0|abbr=on}}.<ref name="wind">{{cite web
  | url = http://www.ncparks.gov/News/newsletter/print/aug2003.pdf
  | title = Mount Mitchell Webcam Activated
  | work = The Steward
  | date = August 2003
  | page = 3
  | publisher = North Carolina Division of Parks and Recreation
  | access-date = 2010-01-06
  | archive-date = 2010-04-16
  | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20100416222523/http://www.ncparks.gov/News/newsletter/print/aug2003.pdf
  | url-status = dead
  }}</ref>

Mount Mitchell recorded a new state record of {{convert|139.94|in|mm|1}} of precipitation in 2018, which is also the highest total rainfall recorded during a calendar year anywhere east of the [[Cascade Range]] in the [[Contiguous United States]].<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/weather/2019/12/05/inches-rain-deluged-sperryville-virginia-setting-new-state-record/|title=In 2018, 94 inches of rain deluged Sperryville, Va., setting a state record|last=Livingston|first=Ian|date=2019-12-05|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|access-date=2019-12-08|language=en-US|issn=0190-8286|archive-date=2019-12-08|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191208145204/https://www.washingtonpost.com/weather/2019/12/05/inches-rain-deluged-sperryville-virginia-setting-new-state-record/|url-status=live}}</ref>

&nbsp;<!-- a little space before weather box -->

{{Weather box
| location = Mount Mitchell, North Carolina (1991–2020 normals, extremes 1980–present)
| single line = Y
| Jan record high F = 61
| Feb record high F = 62
| Mar record high F = 73
| Apr record high F = 73
| May record high F = 78
| Jun record high F = 79
| Jul record high F = 80
| Aug record high F = 81
| Sep record high F = 77
| Oct record high F = 73
| Nov record high F = 67
| Dec record high F = 64
| year record high F = 81

|Jan avg record high F = 51.0
|Feb avg record high F = 52.3
|Mar avg record high F = 58.6
|Apr avg record high F = 66.6
|May avg record high F = 69.6
|Jun avg record high F = 72.7
|Jul avg record high F = 74.0
|Aug avg record high F = 73.3
|Sep avg record high F = 70.8
|Oct avg record high F = 66.5
|Nov avg record high F = 59.0
|Dec avg record high F = 53.5
|year avg record high F = 75.2

| Jan high F = 33.5
| Feb high F = 35.5
| Mar high F = 41.0
| Apr high F = 50.2
| May high F = 57.8
| Jun high F = 63.8
| Jul high F = 66.8
| Aug high F = 66.0
| Sep high F = 61.4
| Oct high F = 53.6
| Nov high F = 44.8
| Dec high F = 37.7
| year high F = 51.0
| Jan mean F = 25.1
| Feb mean F = 27.0
| Mar mean F = 32.3
| Apr mean F = 41.1
| May mean F = 49.5
| Jun mean F = 56.3
| Jul mean F = 59.6
| Aug mean F = 58.6
| Sep mean F = 53.8
| Oct mean F = 45.2
| Nov mean F = 36.2
| Dec mean F = 29.6
| year mean F = 42.9
| Jan low F = 16.7
| Feb low F = 18.5
| Mar low F = 23.6
| Apr low F = 32.0
| May low F = 41.3
| Jun low F = 48.7
| Jul low F = 52.3
| Aug low F = 51.2
| Sep low F = 46.2
| Oct low F = 36.9
| Nov low F = 27.6
| Dec low F = 21.4
| year low F = 34.7

|Jan avg record low F = -6.5
|Feb avg record low F = -0.7
|Mar avg record low F = 3.9
|Apr avg record low F = 14.7
|May avg record low F = 26.2
|Jun avg record low F = 38.9
|Jul avg record low F = 45.4
|Aug avg record low F = 45.5
|Sep avg record low F = 35.2
|Oct avg record low F = 19.8
|Nov avg record low F = 9.2
|Dec avg record low F = 1.6
|year avg record low F = -9.5

| Jan record low F = −34
| Feb record low F = −23
| Mar record low F = -15
| Apr record low F = 1
| May record low F = 13
| Jun record low F = 27
| Jul record low F = 36
| Aug record low F = 32
| Sep record low F = 23
| Oct record low F = 5
| Nov record low F = -19
| Dec record low F = -22
| year record low F = −34
| precipitation colour = green
| Jan precipitation inch = 7.47
| Feb precipitation inch = 5.62
| Mar precipitation inch = 7.22
| Apr precipitation inch = 6.52
| May precipitation inch = 6.08
| Jun precipitation inch = 5.46
| Jul precipitation inch = 6.92
| Aug precipitation inch = 7.69
| Sep precipitation inch = 8.76
| Oct precipitation inch = 6.29
| Nov precipitation inch = 6.17
| Dec precipitation inch = 6.89
| year precipitation inch = 81.09
| Jan snow inch = 19.2
| Feb snow inch = 18.6
| Mar snow inch = 18.5
| Apr snow inch = 7.1
| May snow inch = 1.4
| Jun snow inch = 0.0
| Jul snow inch = 0.0
| Aug snow inch = 0.0
| Sep snow inch = 0.0
| Oct snow inch = 0.7
| Nov snow inch = 3.9
| Dec snow inch = 19.7
| year snow inch = 89.1
| unit precipitation days = 0.01 in
| Jan precipitation days = 14.1
| Feb precipitation days = 12.4
| Mar precipitation days = 14.1
| Apr precipitation days = 12.6
| May precipitation days = 14.2
| Jun precipitation days = 16.1
| Jul precipitation days = 17.8
| Aug precipitation days = 16.1
| Sep precipitation days = 12.7
| Oct precipitation days = 10.3
| Nov precipitation days = 10.4
| Dec precipitation days = 13.1
| year precipitation days = 163.9
| unit snow days = 0.1 in
| Jan snow days = 6.4
| Feb snow days = 6.5
| Mar snow days = 4.9
| Apr snow days = 2.5
| May snow days = 0.3
| Jun snow days = 0.0
| Jul snow days = 0.0
| Aug snow days = 0.0
| Sep snow days = 0.0
| Oct snow days = 0.4
| Nov snow days = 2.0
| Dec snow days = 5.2
| year snow days = 28.2
| source 1 = [[NOAA]]<ref name=nws>{{cite web
| url = https://www.weather.gov/wrh/climate?wfo=gsp
| title = NowData – NOAA Online Weather Data
| publisher = National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
| access-date = May 11, 2021
| archive-date = June 28, 2015
| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20150628163725/http://w2.weather.gov/climate/xmacis.php?wfo=gsp
| url-status = live
}}</ref><ref name=NCDC>{{cite web
| url = https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/services/data/v1?dataset=normals-monthly-1991-2020&startDate=0001-01-01&endDate=9996-12-31&stations=USC00315923&format=pdf
| publisher = National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
| title = Station: MT Mitchell, NC
| work = U.S. Climate Normals 2020: U.S. Monthly Climate Normals (1991–2020)
| access-date = May 11, 2021
| archive-date = 2021-05-11
| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210511211910/https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/services/data/v1?dataset=normals-monthly-1991-2020&startDate=0001-01-01&endDate=9996-12-31&stations=USC00315923&format=pdf
| url-status = live
}}</ref>
}}

==See also==
{{Portal|North America|United States|Mountains}}
*[[Assault on Mount Mitchell]], bicycling endurance
*[[List of mountains in North Carolina]]
*[[Mountains-to-Sea Trail]]

==References==
{{reflist|30em}}

==External links==
{{Commons}}
* [http://ncparks.gov/Visit/parks/momi/main.php Mount Mitchell State Park] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081226024244/http://www.ncparks.gov/Visit/parks/momi/main.php |date=2008-12-26 }}
*[https://nchighpeaks.org/davis/index.html Mount Mitchell Current Weather Conditions]

{{US prominent}}
{{NA isolated}}
{{U.S. State Highest Points}}
{{North Carolina}}
{{Mountains of North Carolina}}
{{North Carolina highest}}
{{authority control}}

[[Category:Appalachian culture in North Carolina]]
[[Category:Blue Ridge Mountains]]
[[Category:Blue Ridge National Heritage Area]]
[[Category:Highest points of U.S. states|Mitchell]]
[[Category:Landmarks in North Carolina]]
[[Category:Mountains of North Carolina|Mitchell]]
[[Category:National Natural Landmarks in North Carolina]]
[[Category:Two-thousanders of the United States]]
[[Category:Mountains of Yancey County, North Carolina]]
[[Category:Southern Sixers|Mitchell]]
[[Category:Western North Carolina]]