David Carpenter Chapman (August 9, 1876 – July 26, 1944) was an American soldier, politician, and business leader from Knoxville, Tennessee who led the effort to establish the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in the 1920s and 1930s. Mount Chapman (in the park) and Chapman Highway (the section of U.S. Route 441 in South Knoxville), are named in his honor. Early life Chapman was born in Knoxville to John Ellis and Alice Young Chapman. He attended the University of Tennessee from 1895 to 1897, but did not graduate. Despite not graduating, Chapman did play football for Tennessee. Military career In the Spanish–American War, Chapman served as a Second Lieutenant in the Third Tennessee Volunteer Infantry and was the Aide-de-Camp to Brigadier General Leonard Wright Colby. When the United States entered World War I, Governor Thomas Clark Rye selected Chapman to reorganize East Tennessee National Guard, now part of the Tennessee Military Department. Chapman later became Colonel in the Fifth Tennessee Regiment, later renamed to Fourth Tennessee Regiment, before resigning on November 20, 1918. Civic leader Chapman's father, John, began a wholesale drug company in Knoxville which David took over after his father's death. In 1910 and 1911, Knoxville hosted the Appalachian Expositions, in which Chapman served on the Board of Directors for both events. The purpose of both expositions was to raise awareness of natural resources of the Southern Appalachian region in the United States. Chapman, as a leader of the "Appalachian Club" (a recreational society for people with summer homes in Elkmont), became involved in the effort to create a national park in the Great Smoky Mountains. Additionally, Chapman was also active in various social clubs, civic clubs, and fraternal organizations in the Knoxville area. Great Smoky Mountains National Park In 1925, Tennessee Governor Austin Peay appointed Chapman as East Tennessee representative to the Tennessee State Park & Forestry Commission, an appointment that came with the urging of the Smoky Mountains Conservation Association. The association voted to add the word "Great" to their name, giving rise to Great Smoky Mountains as the official and full name of the mountain range where the park would be located. Negotiations started as early as 1925, which was estimated to cost US$ 10 million (US$ at 2008 prices) and involve 6,000 private property owners, including large timber companies that owned most of the land. Chapman did most of the negotiations for the land