An AT 'Crown Jewel' Of Guides Is A 70-Year Old Trail Capsule

I have written before about my love for old Appalachian Trail (AT) Guide like I talked about in May and August. However, recently I found one of the "Crown Jewel" of old books when I procured a copy of Guide to the Appalachian Trail in the Southern Appalachians. 

Before they were split into separate books the Tennessee-North Carolina and North Carolina-Georgia Guides were under one umbrella covering the Southern Appalachians. The one I acquired was a third edition published in 1950. That makes the book over 70 years old! 

The Guide was split into NC-GA (L) & TN-NC (R).

The 1950s third edition!

The AT was only 13 years old when this volume was published and the first thru-hike happened only two years before by Earl Shaffer. Just think the second thru-hike by Gene Espy and the first one southbound by Chester Dziengielewski happened a year after this guide came out. So the trail they experienced is in this book. That AT is different that is for sure. While a lot of changes have happened to the AT in seven decades the biggest of these in Georgia was the Southern Terminus was still on Mt. Oglethorpe. In the Tennessee section, the trail had not yet been routed over the Roans. The maps in this volume show this.

Map One: The National Forest in the Southern Appalachians.

Map Two: Map of AT in Carolina Mtn. Club Section.

Map Three: Route of AT in Georgia.

The book needed a little TLC, especially on the maps. While it had them all there were some worn spots and one map was detached. I used tape, but not the ordinary kind. No, I got a special book repair tape, which is acid-free and doesn't damage the book. 

The Bone Folder, Tape & how it was applied.

Besides repairs, I also needed a place to store it so a got a wood box. To decorate it I added an AT logo on the outside and a replica of an early AT metal trail sign on the inside.

You can just look at the book and see it exudes history it is special...

The box with acid backing in box & AT sign.

Inside the Completed Box & Outside (B).