About Cades Cove Methodist Church Pullout
The Methodist church is the easiest of Cades Cove's three churches to photograph. It is a plain white building with a front porch and two doors, set in a clearing at the edge of the meadow, and you can walk up to the door.
The church
The Methodist congregation here goes back to the nineteenth century, but the building you see dates to 1902. It is a simple gable-roofed frame church with a bell on the roof and a small cemetery beside it, and the congregation met here until the park was created.
What to look for
- The plain frame construction, a contrast with the log cabins elsewhere on the loop.
- The cemetery, where headstones carry names that also appear on the cabins and farms around the loop.
- The meadow behind, where deer feed in the evening.
Visiting
- Where: on the north side of the loop, between the Primitive Baptist Church and the Missionary Baptist Church.
- Parking: a small lot with room for a dozen cars; it is easy to find a space except at midday.
- Time to allow: 15 minutes.
- Facilities: none. Restrooms are at Cable Mill.
- Hours: the loop is open sunrise to sunset; a parking tag is required for stops over 15 minutes.
Context
The three churches line up within a couple of miles: Primitive Baptist (1827 congregation, 1887 building), Methodist (1902) and Missionary Baptist (1915 building). The Methodist church is the one that looks the most like a modern country church, and the shortest walk from the lot. Allow 2 to 4 hours for the whole loop in fall, and note that on Wednesdays from May 6 to September 30 the loop is closed to cars.
Good to know
- Do I need a parking tag?
- A Park It Forward parking tag ($5 a day, $15 a week or $40 a year) is required for any vehicle parked more than 15 minutes inside Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Entry is free, and federal passes such as America the Beautiful do not replace the tag.