the summit, but allowed public access with the completion of a waiver. Now, however, the Commonwealth of Kentucky owns the land and no waiver is required. Ecology Black Mountain is one of the few sites in Kentucky supporting a Northern Hardwood Forest at higher elevations. Numerous rare plants are found here, including Red Elderberry and Hobblebush. Like many areas of Northern Hardwood Forest in Southern Appalachia, fires swept across the mountain after intense logging. Black Mountain has a documented fire that occurred in the fall of 1896. See also List of mountains of Kentucky List of U.S. states by elevation References External links Required waiver for summit access Note: The waiver has a drawing that shows the elevation of Black Mountain as . As shown on the USGS website, this is incorrect. The correct elevation is at the summit. A USGS benchmark is located on a large rock over the hill at , but it is not on the summit. The summit is apparently under the old fire lookout tower. Black Mountain Recreation Park Eastern Kentucky Coalfield Mountains of Kentucky Kentucky culture Landforms of Harlan County, Kentucky Highest points of U.S. states North American 1000 m summits