page_title: Lookout Mountain
section_title: Yellow fever epidemic
hierarchical_section_title: Lookout Mountain / History / After the Civil War / Yellow fever epidemic
caption_attribution_description: English: Title: Entrance to Fairyland Caverns, in Rock City Gardens, Lookout Mt. Subjects: Caves Places: Tennessee &gt; Hamilton (county) &gt; Chattanooga Notes: Title from item. Extent: 1 print (postcard)&#160;: linen texture, color&#160;; 5 1/2 x 3 1/2 in. Accession #: 06_10_019697
context_page_description: Lookout Mountain is a mountain ridge located at the northwest corner of the U.S. state of Georgia, the northeast corner of Alabama, and along the Tennessee state line in Chattanooga. Lookout Mountain was the scene of the "Last Battle of the Cherokees" during the Nickajack Expedition, which took place in the 18th century, as well as the November 24, 1863, Battle of Lookout Mountain during the American Civil War.
context_section_description: When cases of Yellow fever began to increase in the United States, the Chattanooga population believed that the city was immune to any possibility of an epidemic because of its mountain climate.  In 1878, two local resident died of the disease, throwing the city into a panic that led some 12,000 people to flee. Many of these went up the mountain, believing the climate would offer some protection against the disease.  After the epidemic passed, many people complained about the inconvenient and complicated travel up the mountain, and the St. Elmo Turnpike (Ochs Highway) was created to help with access to the mountain.  Early in the 1900s, Lookout Mountain was incorporated as a town.
caption: 1940s postcard for Fairyland Caverns, a cave which displays fairy-tale creatures and a castle
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