Chattanooga has a lion’s share of wonderful outdoor play areas and venues, from downtown Riverwalk stages to majestic bluff views to the quiet lush of the Cumberland Trail. But for pure woodsy family fun with a little something for everyone, it’s hard to beat the 300-acre Reflection Riding Arboretum & Nature Center.
And Reflection Riding is on its way to getting even better, thanks to a historic conservation easement through the American Battlefield Trust, a nonprofit organization that preserves battlefield grounds from the American Civil War, the Revolutionary War and the War of 1812.
As part of the preservation easement and funding process, Reflection Riding developed a broad vision for the future of the organization, which already focuses on plant and wildlife conservation, including a breeding program for the endangered red wolf, habitat restoration and nature educational programs.
That vision doesn’t stray far from the early aims of Chattanooga attorney John Chambliss who in 1925 bought the first piece of property that eventually would become Reflection Riding – a 300-acre arboretum and botanical garden for the study and conserving of native plant life. Chambliss and his wife Margaret established it as a drive-through attraction in 1956.
Ridings were a typical English creation of the mid-18th century to encompass the progression of scenery in a place as seen from a carriage or by horseback.