Blount County

Linda Braden Albert, B. Kenneth Cornett

• Publisher: Arcadia Publishing
• Year: 2010
• Print ISBN: 9780738585710
• eBook ISBN: 9781439626146
• Topic: History
• Subtopic: North American History
• Index: History

A fascinating look into the beginnings of one of Tennessee's oldest counties, Blount. Blount County is the 10th county formed in the state of Tennessee. It was carved out of Knox County in 1795 and named for William Blount, the governor of the Territory South of the River Ohio. Maryville is the county seat and was named for Blount's wife, Mary Grainger Blount. The abundance of natural resources that once drew hardy settlers now attracts tourists from all over the world, especially to Cades Cove, a pioneer settlement in the Blount County section of Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Blount County has been home to the legendary Sam Houston; U.S. Senator Lamar Alexander, who also served as Tennessee's governor; and Bessie Harvey, a world-renowned folk artist.

Three

INDUSTRY AND BUSINESS

Isaac Johnson (right) and his son, Harold, work in Johnson’s shoe shop, which was located at the corner of Washington Street and Sevierville Road in Maryville. The photograph was taken about 1921. (Courtesy of Terry Huffstetler.)

The Schlosser Tannery, also known as the Walland Tannery, was established in 1900 in Miller’s Cove. The tannery belonged to the Walton-England Leather Company, giving the name“Walland”—combining “Wal” from Walton and “land” from England—to the community that grew up around the business. The tannery was destroyed by fire in January 1931 and was not rebuilt. (Courtesy of the Blount County Public Library, Adele McKenzie collection.)

Huffstetler Mill operated in Maryville in the early 20th century. Here a wagon is piled high with flour ready to be delivered to customers. (Courtesy of the Blount County Public Library, Adele McKenzie collection.)

Tollgate House was located beside Parsons Turnpike, a toll road from the mouth of Abrams Creek in Blount County to near Deal’s Gap, North Carolina. The turnpike was the main cattle trail and commerce route between this area and Western North Carolina until U.S. Highway 129 was constructed in 1931. George Davis (pictured at right), who ran the tollgate, was responsible for keeping the road in passable condition. (Courtesy of the Blount County Public Library, W. O. Garner’s collection.)

James Patrick Roddy (left) and his partner, William H. Goodman, acquired the rights to bottle and distribute a new product called Coca-Cola in the Knoxville area in 1902. Customers in outlying sections such as Maryville were supplied by truck and rail shipments. In 1920, Roddy Manufacturing was located at the corner of Cusick and Church Streets in Maryville. In 1927, a new company-built plant was located at the corner of College and Harper Streets, and in 1959, a large new facility opened at what is now East Lamar Alexander Parkway. The Blount County Justice Center now occupies the site. (Courtesy of James Pat Roddy III, 75 Years of Refreshment.)

Rockford Manufacturing Company, in continuous operation since 1910, has the distinction of being the oldest manufacturing business in Blount County. It originally began in 1885 with a state charter for the purpose of manufacturing wool, silk, and hemp. The company has been owned and operated in recent years by the Ernest Koella family. (Courtesy of the Blount County Public Library, Adele McKenzie collection.)

The mill built by Samuel Henry in the 1790s on Baker’s Creek was commonly known as Brick Mill because of its construction of brick made by slaves on the site. Henry, a Revolutionary War soldier and cousin of Patrick Henry, received several hundred acres of land on which the mill and his gracious home, built in 1833, were located. The Henry Farm, still owned by Henry’s descendants, was named a Tennessee Century Farm in 2009 for being continuously operated as such by the same family. (Courtesy of the Blount County Public Library, Edwin Best collection.)

Ben A. Hall Grocery is shown here about 1932. The store was located at Brick Mill, near Greenback. Pictured, from ...

Table of contents

• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Dedication
• Table of Contents
• ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
• INTRODUCTION
• One - RELIGION AND FAITH
• Two - EDUCATION
• Three - INDUSTRY AND BUSINESS
• Four - AGRICULTURE
• Five - NATURAL RESOURCES AND RECREATION
• Six - THE PEOPLE OF BLOUNT COUNTY
• Seven - SPOTLIGHT ON HISTORY