Swiss engineers were hired to build the bridge at Powell Valley overlook specifically because they were so inclined at building that type of roadwork.
The valley follows the Powell River west towards the Tennessee border. Powell Valley is part of the High Knob Landform, lying literally amid its heart and eroded core, and is a true geologic wonder.
The Virginia longhunter, explorer and later Revolutionary War general Joseph Martin was instrumental in opening up Powell Valley to settlement from the east.
Benge's Gap Historical Marker
Beginning in 1774, Chief Benge led a part of the Shawnee from the Ohio River on raids along the frontier. Benge, who was part white and part Cherokee, frequently captured slaves and then resold them; he also seized white women and children who were then adopted by various Indian groups.
On 6 Apr. 1794, Benge attacked the Henry and Peter Livingston farm on the Holston River, took several residents prisoner, and marched them northeast. Three days later, when they entered the Powell Mountain gap just south, Lt. Vincent Hobbs and eleven Lee County militiamen ambushed them, killed Benge with the first volley, and freed the captives.
