Members of the McLemore Cove Preservation Society are dropping a lawsuit against Walker County and Pilgrim’s Pride, saying they believe it has fulfilled what they set out to accomplish. The lawsuit was filed to block the chicken processing plant from opening a facility in McLemore Cove, which is on the National Register of Historic Places.
The group recently launched a formal protest initiative against Pilgrim’s Pride called “Don’t Slaughter Our Cove,” which immediately garnered local, regional and national attention. The group is continuing efforts under the initiative to ensure industry does not go into the protected cove.
“Although we received overwhelming universal support when we announced the ‘Don’t Slaughter Our Cove Initiative,’ we felt that dropping the lawsuit was in the best interest of Walker County and its citizens,” says Ruth Almeter, a resident and spokesperson for the group. “We’re hopeful that a chicken plant is not going into McLemore Cove.”
The McLemore Cove Preservation Society also say they support economic development in the county but will continue to fight any kind of industry going in McLemore Cove.
“We know Walker County is in deep financial trouble and support economic development,” says Blackwell Smith, another resident, businessman and spokesperson for the society.
The group adds it plans to continue to stay organized and gain support for the “Don’t Slaughter Our Cove” movement.
“We appreciate our current supporters and ask others to join us,” Almeter adds. “Our mission is far from over, and we will continue to apply pressure and fight to keep industry out of the cove.”
McLemore Cove is named after a prominent Cherokee/Scottish family that settled in the area during the 1820s. The Cove also played an active role during the Civil War in the events leading up to the Battle at Chickamauga.
The area developed a few small communities, with further growth occurring when the Chattanooga Southern Railroad was established in 1887.
A group of residents formed the McLemore Cove Preservation Society in 1989 to protect the cove from a power plant and to preserve its history.
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Source: McLemore Cove Preservation Society