In 1928, supporters had raised $5 million for Great Smoky Mountains National Park but rising land prices stalled the effort; a Rockefeller memorial fund matched it with another $5 million, helping make the park possible

• But its creation faced a major hurdle when rising land prices pushed the cost of acquiring the forest beyond what supporters had raised.
• By 1928, supporters had raised $5 million to purchase land for the proposed park.