Did you know no one knows how the Roan Mountain received its name?

Roan Mountain with an elevation of 6286 feet towers above the surrounding valleys like a mother hen hovering over her chicks. She has been explored, visited and described for over two hundred years.

One of the best descriptions was given to us by Pierce Julian, “The Sage of Roan Mountain,” who described it in a speech given in 1919 entitled “Why I Live in Roan Mountain.”

“Here lofty mountains lift their mighty peaks ribbed with iron and granite, veined with coal and marble…covered with timbers rare in beauty and fine texture. Here it is the sun kisses the hilltops of sunny Tennessee and here a thousand springs clear as crystal and as cold as ice burst from the earth and rivers are born.”

The Roan is one of the crown jewels of east Tennessee, but how did it get its name?

In truth, no one is sure how the Roan got its name, but there are four theories for this mystery.

First, some say the mountain was named after Daniel Boone’s roan-colored horse. The story says that Boone came through this area, and his horse became lame. Boone left the horse on top of the mountain to allow it to heal and hoped to retrieve it when he came back through the area. Some say the mountain was named the Roan from that day forward.

The second theory is that the mountain was named after a type of mountain ash tree that grows around the Roan. The name of the tree used to be called the “rowan” tree. It is said that the name was changed through the years until the mountain was known as the Roan.

The third theory says that the mountain gets its name from the color of the rhododendron flowers found on top of and around the mountain. They have a “roan” color when they are in full bloom in the summer, and this is how Roan Mountain got its name.

The final explanation of Roan Mountain’s name is probably my favorite, though I still have some problems with the theory.

It is said that Andre Michaux, a French botanist, came through the area and the beauty of the area reminded him of the Rhone Valley in France, his native home.

It is said that the area kept this name and the spelling changed as the years went by.

The biggest problem with this theory is that Michaux was not a native of the Rhone Valley of France. Perhaps Michaux just said it reminded him of the Rhone Valley. If this is the case, then Michaux may have been the one that named the mountain.

The truth of the Roan’s name may never be known, but to quote William Shakespeare, “a rose by any other name would still smell as sweet.”