Pioneer Landing

All photos and illustrations by Dan & Deanna Livorsi, Chuck Deering & Pat Johns©2008
All Rights Reserved
See links to article references at the end of the article.

June 2008

Pioneer Landing is the easternmost marina on Watauga Lake. It is a special place for many visitors to the lake and its property is the site of significant local Cherokee Indian history.

Dan and Deanna Livorsi purchased the property in 1988. At that time, the site contained a popular store which Dan and Deanna continued to operate until their sons were born in the late 1990s. The Livorsi's home is in the original store.

Pioneer Landing has been called "Little Boone" over the years because so many of its summer campers come from nearby Boone, North Carolina. The campsites and marina are easy to reach from Highway 321, a major route from Boone to Tennessee.

Although the site was originally used primarily for tent camping, over the years the Livorsis cleared and developed the property to house campers year 'round. Campers stay or visit on weekends April through October.

The Livorsis also represent Cherokee Floating Docks and have built and installed many of the docks on Watauga Lake. Their projects have ranged from large covered docks for the major marinas to individual docks for homeowners.

If your Watauga Lake home or development needs a dock, give them a call at (423) 756-3164.

It would be hard not to use the word family when describing the atmosphere of today's Pioneer Landing. Many campers have been spending their summers here for over a decade and the late spring-early summer time has the feel of a reunion.

However, this is an extended family that is quite welcoming to new campers and boaters. Pioneer landing has a few camper sites and boat slips still available this year.

In 1983, the TVA drew down Watauga Lake for a brief time to make repairs on Watauga Dam. Representatives from Appalachian State University and other regional archaeological departments came to the lake to conduct research. Their research was focused on Wagner Island which had been covered by the lake and which is on Pioneer Landing property.

Wagner Island had been a central point for processing game by the Cherokee Indians and artifacts still remained on the island. Consequently, the Livorsis refer to this area as "Cherokee Point".

Pioneer landing can be reached from highway 321 (just 3 miles from the North Carolina border.) Turn onto Gregg's Branch Road. Go approximately 1/2 mile until Gregg's Branch dead ends at Buntontown Rd. Take a right and follow the road to Pioneer Landing. Their phone number is 423-768-3164.

Following are seasonal photos of the Pioneer Landing "family":

Pioneer Landing Marina (423-768-3164)

105 Cowan Town Road | Butler, Tennessee

Recommended Links:

• TVA information on Watauga Dam
• Mountain City Online
• Tennessee Lake Information
• Info about Water Levels at the Lake
• Watauga Dam
• Butler Bridge
• Average Air Temperatures
• TourElizabethton.com
• Purchase Watauga Lake Map