[2] The area surrounding Moccasin Gap is sedimentary which is formed by the compaction of particles of gravel, sand, silt, mud, and carbonate minerals from the repetitive rise and fall of shallow seas, dating to the Cambrian or Pennsylvanian period.

[2] The gap served as a vital route through the mountains for the Cherokee and Shawnee to claimed hunting grounds south of the Clinch River.

Later it would also be utilized as an attacking point against settlers in the valleys, a strategy also adopted by military soldiers during both the Revolutionary and Civil wars.

Scott County and the surrounding area praise the gap for its development as it became a significant route in commercial trade to the Ohio River Valley.

The plan to connect Route 72 to the bypass will remove a significant portion of the mountain in the gap, altering its natural profile.