While Knox Heritage is best known for the preservation of historic structures, our mission includes the protection of historic spaces as well. In recent years East Tennesseans have become aware of the threats to some of our most precious assets: our Scenic Vistas and Ridgetops. Progress has been seen in the preservation of Log Haven by the Aslan Foundation and the work of the Legacy Parks Foundation, but there is more work to do.
Part of the significance of these areas is that they almost always include archaeological sites that may, as in the case of Fort Higley, Fort Dickerson and Fort Stanley, have been built along the ridgetops. They may also include pre-historic archaeological deposits located in valleys, along streams and rivers and visible from Knox County’s scenic roads.
Writers often describe Knoxville as being “nestled in the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains.” More than most cities, Knoxville is defined by the ridges and rivers that surround it. The views we enjoy today are similar to the views early Knoxvillians took in and cherished. But those views are threatened by development that is not asked to address the costs imposed on the community for its associated infrastructure and quality of life.
Our local governments should act with haste to approve ordinances and plans designed to preserve the signature views that distinguish our community from most others in the country. Plans for future development should minimize the impact on view sheds and ridgetops in order to preserve the stunning scenes that attract visitors and connect people to the place where they live.
Fort Stanley
The remains of this earthworks Civil War fort mark the place where Union troops from Michigan, Indiana, Illinois, and Ohio joined the 8th Tennessee and 16th Kentucky regiments to protect the southern approaches to Knoxville. Fort Stanley, named for Captain C. E. Stanley of the 45th Ohio, who fell in battle at Philadelphia, TN, was built on the highest hill, several weeks after Fort Dickerson was constructed. This hill, just east of Dickerson, rises steeply, 360 feet above the river directly opposite the south end of Gay Street and has been known for generation as "Gobbler's Knob."
The 1,000 acre Urban Wilderness and Historic Corridor paralleling the South Knoxville Waterfront Development will contain three civil war forts, historic settlement sites, and diverse ecological features and recreational amenities. The project requires the acquisition of several critical parcels of land, including properties that house the Civil War battle sites of Fort Stanley and Fort Higley. Fort Dickerson, a restored site, lies between these two properties and offers Knoxville the unique prospect of three contiguous Civil War forts.
Knox Heritage is working with the Legacy Parks Foundation to preserve these important Civil War forts and encourages Knoxvillians to contribute financially to their efforts to preserve Fort Stanley and the entire Urban Wilderness and Historic Corridor.
French Broad River Corridor
The French Broad River was one of the earliest settlement paths in Knox County. By the mid 1780s, early homes and industries were located on both sides of the river. It was the settlers’ highway; ferries crossed it linking communities on both of its banks. Francis Alexander Ramsey settled in this corridor and the stone Ramsey House still stands today. There is evidence to suggest that James White built his first house in the area. In The Annals of Tennessee by Dr. J.G.M. Ramsey, the French Broad Corridor is described as the home of Alexander Campbell; the large Georgian style house he built still stands. On both sides of the French Broad some of the best architectural examples of early Knox County - pre-historic settlements, a mill, churches and early cemeteries and ferry landings - tell the story of a river that acted as a highway for commerce and social interaction. The French Broad River corridor, because of its relative isolation and lack of urban infrastructure, retained its historic places, scenery, breathtaking views and vistas and it is a portrait of Knox County in the 18th and early 19th centuries. The first steam-powered riverboat arrive at Forks of the River (Atlas) on the Tennessee River in 1828 greeted by Ramsey upon arrival – beginning og riverboat commerce to Knoxville.
Knox County Commission’s approval of rezonings that allow industrial and commercial development at the Midway Road interchange with I-40, combined with increasing development pressure from Sevier County, threaten the survival of one of Knox County’s signature places. We call on Knox County government leaders to act with haste to develop innovative measures that protect this endangered treasure in east Knox County from being destroyed by the rampant development looming on the horizon.