To the editor:
I am thinking that our locally elected members to the Tennessee General Assembly should direct the Tennessee State Parks agency to prepare a site assessment at Sycamore Shoals State Historic Park as to determine how much it would cost to transfer the entire catalogue of historical objects (just those items that are actually owned by the State of Tennessee) related to the Battle of Kings Mountain — the “Lost Treasures of the Battle of Kings Mountain” now in the custodianship of the Tennessee State Museum — for permanent, local display with the museum at the Sycamore Shoals State Historic Park in Elizabethton, Tenn.
Back during November 2017, I found a .pdf file for the 1980 publication “The Sword of Lord and Gideon: A Catalogue of Historical Objects Related to the Battle of King’s Mountain” online at the Appalachian State University Digital Collections website while tracking down a book pertaining to the former Elizabethton resident, Tennessee Governor, and United States Senator William G. Brownlow. This catalogue provides very detailed descriptions for these historical objects related to the Battle of Kings Mountain and, in many cases, photographs of these same historical objects.
I am also thinking that it’s important to point out that all of the historical objects related to the Battle of Kings Mountain within this catalogue were donated to, or obtained by, the State of Tennessee pre-date both the 1976 opening of Sycamore Shoals State Historic Park in Elizabethton, Tenn., and the June 29, 2013 grand opening of a new Sycamore Shoals State Historic Park museum and would greatly enhance local efforts to increase tourism activity in Northeast Tennessee.
I thank you for your consideration in this matter, I am

Sincerely,
Robert D. Ritchie
Elizabethton