My grandparents stories were the first to kindle my interest in history as they talked about their old black and white photos. Their images always intrigued me, but it was it was Annette Tinnin who mystified me with the tales of her father Robert Horsley. He was somewhat of an archaeologist – a collector of relics and every so often Annette, an important guide from me and my brother’s youth, would bring out something old and musty and our imaginations would run wild with the stories she would tell. We imagined there must have been trunks of magical and sacred items and it was these wonders that still inspire us today.
Over the past several weeks as summer turned to fall, I enjoyed my own historical journey into the wilderness of Northeast Tennessee and Southwest Virginia following the Daniel Boone Wilderness Trail. Our agency is developing a new Internet project that follows the clues of Boone’s quest as his clan and frontiersman blazed important new trails through the wilderness from Sycamore Shoals in Elizabethton, TN to the peaks of Cumberland Gap, TN in what many historians refer to as “America’s First Frontier.”
New Photo Gallery from this trek online…
Seems the past few months have been soaked with history lessons. After roaming the peaks and valleys of Tennessee, Virginia and Kentucky, I also went on a vacation into New England to explore Revolutionary and Civil War sites and a weekend stay-over at America’s first home near Plymouth Rock and Cape Cod. These blog entries tell the story of these adventures and include plenty of photos and memories of an early American landscape of discovery, hope, tragedy, ghosts and graves that speak to us from the past and memorialized by monuments and efforts of historians and storytellers all across the country.
I’ll reserve my vacation stories into New England for another entry and stay close to home here in this narrative describing the recent journey from Tennessee, Virginia and Kentucky.
These travels had their beginning several years ago when Keith Wilson, publisher of the Kingsport Times-News and Ted Como, the chief editor introduced me to The Daniel Boone Wilderness Trail. They were both serving on the early committees to help breath life into this effort help map and promote a historic driving trail that would attract tourism through Scott County, VA. With the help of the Daniel Boone Wilderness Trail Association and respected historians, they helped bring back to life a trail based on historical documents, journals and affidavits that began in the mid-1700s. I rode with Keith to Cumberland Gap, TN in late 2001 and photographed historic spots along this trail with a 3.1 mega-pixel camera. That was a big deal back even back then and we were proud to launch this website with Daniel Boone Wilderness Trail website with The GoTriCities Network the same year.
The original web-site was a promotional tool for the driving trail which began in Kingsport at the Netherland Inn and the route is completed near Kentucky at Cumberland Gap, TN. The website hasn’t changed much during the time we first started it and that’s the main reason why we’re focused on the site again, but that hasn’t stopped the Association. They continue to bring together this regions history. They have helped to reconstruct an authentic frontier blockhouse at Natural Tunnel State Park and mapped an additional “feeder trail” called the Fincastle Turnpike. They have also attracted funding for a new interpretative center and biking trail across Powell Mountain, near the valley where Boone’s son James was murdered in an Indian raid.
A few months ago, we met with Bob McConnell, Joe Fuller and David Oaks about redesigning the Daniel Boone Trail website and part of that project was to re-shoot all of the photos along the way. We had just bought a new Nikon D70 and it seemed appropriate to take some time off and experiment with the new camera. I started in September and drove hundreds of miles and shot about 800 photos. There are plenty of photo opps and historical spots along the trail and several old cemeteries. As I photographed the trail, the experience inspured a renewed appreciation of these volunteers who have their hearts and passions organized to bring this history to life.
McConnell is a distant relative of one of Scott County’s first families – John McConnell. He’s a brilliant historian and he participates in a lot of the re-enactments in the area, but his efforts along with regional historian Dr. Lawrence Fleenor has culminated in a trail that is more than a tall-tale. Bob’s not one to deliver fable either. His heritage and study of this region are as close to the truth of these regional legacies as possible and I know no other who speaks of the region’s history with such confidence.
David Oaks is a local author and curator of The Netherland Inn in Kingsport. This 200 year-old inn is on the National Register of Historic Sites and served President’s Jackson, Taft, Etc. etc. The original owners entertained travelers as they came down the Holston River in flat-bottomed boats. The site stands on the site it was built on and the museum and facility easily transports visitors into a time when it used to entertain guests on the banks of this river. Located near the sacred Indian grounds at the foothills of Bays Mountain, the Netherland Inn still hosts community programs from an old-time fiddlers reunion, a haunted house and an 1818 Christmas Party among other events. Oaks is one of Kingsport’s true gentlemen too with a passion for the city and our history. He’s an author too and Misty Mountain Morn is on my bookshelf from this significant Kingsport alumni.
The Netherland Inn has a couple of restored frontier homes one of which is cited as one of Boone’s cabins. Relocated from the original site in Rye Cove, VA, this donation and three other frontier homes make Netherland Inn a great place to begin the journey. It’s ornate gardens and period furniture are a Kingsport treasure. The morning of my photos, I met one of the volunteers, Joe Witt and he shared with me all of the efforts and volunteers that have helped maintain this part of our heritage for several years since it was taken over into private hands.
The Wilderness Trail may at the Netherland Inn, but more than likely the activities that began at Sycamore Shoals in Elizabethton set in motion the footsteps from this area to Kentucky. There were several frontier efforts that began from this fort and Boone was commissioned at least two times to lead trail efforts through the mountains of Tennessee. The shores of the Holston were a sacred treaty ground for the native Americans in our region and Bob even tells me that Fort Patrick once was a significant part of the early settlers in this region located on what is now the sprawling property of Tennessee Eastman.
From the Netherland Inn, the Daniel Boone Wilderness Trail is marked by signs that allow tourists to follow the trail in their car. A driving brochure, cassette and CD can also be purchased to help guide your way, but it’s surprising how easy it is just to follow the street signs.
The trail leaves Netherland Inn and winds its way through Kingsport and down Bloomingdale Pike. This road is a primary early frontier path and historians call it the “Great Stage Road” – a name that was given to the original Warriors Path and animal paths that allowed frontiersman access to this region.
Turning left near Kingsley School and over into East Carter’s Valley at the foothills of Wadlow Gap is site of the original Anderson Blockhouse. You won’t find anything other than a large stone marker, but there used to be a two-story fort at this site where travelers would gather and wait for large groups before proceeding into the wilderness. Safe travel was important in those days and the numbers helped secure some degree of safety from the hostile elements in the region in the 18th Century.
The Blockhouse is an important landmark on the trail and the marker there reads;
“The starting point of the road through the Wilderness Road to Kentucky, and the station where travelers used to wait until parties collected large enough to defend themselves against Indians on the journey.
Built about 1777, by Captain John Anderson, who died here in 1817, it stood until burned in 1876. This tablet to mark its site was erected in 1921 by a descendant of William Brown who recorded in his journal:
“We waited hereabouts near two weeks for company and then set out for the Wilderness with twelve men and ten guns, this being Thursday, 18th, July (1782).”
You will find an exact duplicate of this Blockhouse on land near the Natural Tunnel in Duffield, VA.
From the original blockhouse, the trail continues through Wadlow Gap and the Moccasin Gap region of Southwest Virginia. There are many historical markers near this intersection of Highway 26 and 58 including markers for the Carter Family Fold, Donelson’s Flotilla and a number of other signs visible just inside the Gate City, VA city limits. Personally, it’s an intriguing side note for me that my father moved to Nashville – where we met Annette and Charles and part of Nashville’s history is directly related to the Donelson flotilla that ventured down the Holston to meet up in Madison, TN.
The Wilderness Trail goes through the middle of several interesting old downtown districts including Gate City, VA. The Gate City Courthouse has historical markers that commemorate the Daniel Boone Wilderness Road by the Daughters of the American Revolution and is a typical Southwest Virginia town – lost in the past with old buildings/boarded up businesses – legacies from an age before superstores. This was one of my first territories to serve for the Kingsport Times-News back in the mid-eighties and it’s almost sad to say that the town hasn’t grown that much since then, but there is a proud group of people here who love their Gate City Football.
One of the things we wanted to do different with the website was point out some of the restaurants that the “locals” talk about. Not the franchise or refined restaurants, but the diners that give each small town its distinct flavor. One of those along the way is The Mustard Seed in downtown Gate City.
On my first day re-shooting the trail, I stopped for lunch at The Mustard Seed after an endorsement from Joe Fuller. Joe is working with Bob and David and a tireless volunteer with Chamber of Commerce in Scott County. I love a good Reuben sandwich and ordered the “Robin’s Reuben from their colored chalkboard menu. Could be the best one I’ve had all year too. It was served with a fresh salad with strawberries, cranberries and walnuts. It was good enough to take a picture too.
Robin Norris moved to the region with her husband and not long after he died of cancer, she fought the disease as well. Now in remission she owns an antique shop and the Mustard Seed in Gate City and clearly has a bright, inspiring attitude about life, despite her misfortunes. She told me, “it wasn’t long after I opened the antique store that I realized a lot of people would come by the shop and just drink coffee.” She continues, “it wasn’t that long that I decided to open up the empty store next door and start serving sandwiches, salads and quiche.” There, The Mustard had its beginnings and it’s a nice compliment to a town still landlocked by business owners who for the most part have their doors shut and in dire need of repair. Even the old bank building that was the set for the Mel Gibson/Sissy Spacek Movie, The River looks run-down now, but the Mustard Seed is a small beginning that’s worth a trip for lunch.
From Gate City, the Wilderness Trail passes underneath Highway 58 into Daniel Boone, VA. It’s a small town built within 100 yards of the railroad tracks and the folks that live her almost all live along the railroad tracks – with a few yards and their houses have to rumble as coal trains go back and forth through this valley every day. Daniel Boone does have one unique spot and it’s another local favorite – The Hob Nob. Folks tell stories about their ostrich burgers and the fact you can find more milkshake flavors here than anywhere in the region.
On the other side of Daniel Boone, the road hops back on Highway 58, over the Clinch River and up to Natural Tunnel State Park. This is a wonderful Virginia Park within 10 miles of Kingsport and is considered to be one of the eighth wonders of the world. It’s truly spectacular too. The Natural Tunnel is a 400 foot rock tunnel through Virginia mountainside that trains still continue to pass through till this day. It has a chair-lift, plenty of outdoor trails and is a splendid place to spend a sunny afternoon.
The Natural Tunnel State Park has more to offer than any of the parks within our region too with a amphitheater where the regularly feature some of the nation’s finest bluegrass and gospel acts, a swimming pool, a couple of lodges that sleep several people and they offer picnic areas and campgrounds too, but one of the newest additions, I had never seen was the new blockhouse.
The Blockhouse at Natural Tunnel State Park stands by itself atop a Virginia hillside and echoes history from its perch above the treetops. This reproduction of a frontier blockhouse gives you a clear impression of the security of these fortress who had very little access from the outside and windows just big enough to stick a rifle through and defend the building from attackers. This reproduction commemorates the Anderson Blockhouse in Tennessee and is open for visitors most every day of the week.
From Natural Tunnel, you can follow the Wilderness Trail signs back through several creeks and valleys and you will end up in Duffield, VA climbing Powell Mountain through Kane Gap. This is one of the many scenic mountain tops along the trail and worth taking a break at the top to see the rolling hills and valleys of Southwest Virginia just inside Lee County, VA.
Heading North on the backside of Powell Mountain, you will find yourself in Stickleyville and near this town are two important legends of Lee County – most importantly the stories regarding the death of Daniel Boone’s son James.
There’s no cemetery to mark this event, but there are many accounts of this tragedy in the valleys below this mountain in Lee County. According to legend, Boone’s son was ambushed in this valley in the mid 1700s. Along with some of his fellow frontiersmen he and others were massacred in the valley and this tragedy actually stopped the first trail quest through these mountains for a number of years.
I’m certain a lot more stories are yet to be told from the hills of Scott County and this project. Since I started to work on this project, I’ve discovered many of the stories these counties in Virginia have to tell but one of my favorite new stories involve a heroine named Fanny Johnson.
Alongside the Daniel Boone Wilderness Trail Road, there are many state historical markers and somewhere near Stickleyville is a marker that tells the story of Fanny Dickerson Scott. Fanny’s first husband Archibald Scott and his their children were mssacred in Lee County by Indians in 1785 and Fanny was captured, taken into an Indian camp near Wallens Ridge, escaped, and found her way back to friends and relatives amid hardships almost unbearable. After some time she married Thomas Johnson, and had two young daughters named Mary and Elizabeth when she died prematurely in 1796. We often think of the men who settled this region, but it’s doubtful that many women are remembered and that’s why I so eagerly tell this story.
As you go up and over Powell Mountain, you will drive up another mountain ridge referred to as Wallen’s Ridge. It’s a nice winding mountain road that peaks at a spot near the Powell River where you can still see old stagecoach roads. It’s also the site of the Wallen’s Ridge Federal Penitentiary (nice place from the outside). It’s one of those spots that noone likes to talk about, but it’s certainly a big part of the landscape in the serene countryside, just outside of Jonesville, VA.
Jonesville is the county seat of Lee County and the old courthouse downtown stands on the ridge that was once a fort. It’s a small town and one of the historic stops is the Cemetery for the Unknown Soldier. It’s a confederate cemetery named and founded by the counties namesake “Lighthorse Harry Lee.” I spent several minutes walking around these markers on the fall afternoon and shooting pictures. My favorite is one the marker of the confederate and northern markers. Jonesville was evidently one of the many battle sites where early-Americans carved out our freedoms and this cemetery is respectful ridge in the heart of Jonesville.
The Wilderness Trail continues on and curves out of Jonesville on Highway 70. It’s a meandering country road that takes you through the backwoods and by several interesting stops including the Natural Bridge.
The Natural Bridge is a unique natural landmark that made it into some of the journals of these early travelers. A natural covering of granite, this “natural bridge” was a rest stop and must have been a wonderful spot on hot summer nights as a cool mountain stream passes underneath. Bob McConnell shares with me the story of “Hairbuyer Hamilton.” According to the historians, Hamilton wrote a journal about his journey from the mid-west to Williamsburg where he was tried on charges that stemmed around his notoriety of buying white-men’s scalps from the Indians. General George Clark brought Hamilton back west to stand trail for the charges and Hamilton speaks of spending the night under the “natural Bridge” just beyond the white rocks of the Cumberland Mountains. It’s easy to imagine travelers resting at this beautiful spot that seemed to be alive with activity the day I visited and took these photos.
One of the great things about fall in the Appalachian Mountain is the fact that crickets sing all-day long and as I drove through the winding roads of the trail, I couldn’t help but notice their constant lullaby. Colorful pasture adorned with bright yellow goldenrod, the smell of dry hay, blue sky and white lofty cumulus clouds amid the backdrop of white country churches and long breezy valleys, make this trip a wonderful back-road adventure.Highway 70 eventually comes back out onto Highway 58 at the foothills of what the locals call “White Rocks.” This is another landmark mentioned many times by early settlers because of its distinct white cliffs that jut out along the Southwest Virginia skyline and follow Highway 58 all the way to Cumberland Gap.
There are a couple of interesting stops along this stretch of road that passes through Ewing and Rose Hill, Virginia. Most notably are the historical markers that identify various Indian Mounds, Martin’s Station and the Wilderness Road State Park.
Just outside of Ewing, Virginia, there is a Daniel Boone Wilderness Road Marker that stands alongside the road and another historical marker that points to an ancient Indian Burial Ground – The Ely Mound. I’m not sure if the photo I have taken is the actual mound or not. It looks like one and Keith Wilson pointed it out on my first adventure through this region, but it might was well be the one. The marker describes the early mound-builders of North America and date this practice between 1200 and 1650.
Not much farther from the Indian Burial Grounds, outside of Rose Hill, VA, another marker describes Martin’s Station. Joseph Martin settled here in 1769 and built a fort, but the site was overrun by Indians. He left and later returned with more men and built another fort in 1775 only to have it defeated again by Native Americans in the region. A replica of this fort/stockade has been constructed in the Wilderness Road State Park. This park named after the Wilderness Trail is a gorgeous pastoral setting at the base of the Cumberland Mountains and among other things includes a gift shop, picnic area, bike trail and plenty of hiking trails.
On my journey to the last part of the Daniel Boone Wilderness Trail, I stopped off at the Martin’s Station fort and was greeted in the open recreation by an interpreter who toured me around the various buildings and implements. His name was Richard Noble and he enjoyed his work – gardening and talking about the station with travelers. He helped me to locate several interesting vantage points to shoot some pictures on the pretty autumn day that I was there.
The Daniel Boone Wilderness Trail officially stops at Cumberland Gap, TN. This was a historical civil war encampment that served as the gateway to the north through the gap that separates Tennessee, Virginia and Kentucky. Highway 25E merges here with Highway 58 and goes through a two-mile tunnel cut through the mountain. The town itself is the last exit before you get to the junction and the historic district of Cumberland Gap– a quaint old-time home town nestled at the base of the mountain with several homes, a couple of mom-and-pop hotels, a small post office and a homespun charm like many of the towns in Tennessee.
I stopped late in the afternoon and had lunch at a small eatery called Webb’s Kitchen. It’s one of those country store restaurants where the pictures on the wall depict the town’s history, photos of the restaurant owners and local musicians and gospel groups. The place had old hardwood floors and a bright red soda-shop decor that serves up everything from burgers to my favorite for the day – chicken and dumplins and homemade pies. I ducked into a corner table near the street and read a book as I considered the final steps of my journey along the trail.
The last time I visited Cumberland Gap, I called it quits at the little town. It’s quaint, but the real splendor of Cumberland Gap is the view from the top of the ridge. You can see the lookout points from down in the valley, but I was surprised at how easy it is to drive to the top of this 2800 foot perch that looks westward across the Cumberland Mountains into Kentucky and Tennessee.
As you cross under the mountains through the tunnel, there’s a visitors center on the Kentucky-side and a winding mountain road that snakes its way to the top of the Cumberland Gap in a park called the Pinnacle Overlook. This is a breezy summit with an overlook that straddles two states with interpretative maps that help history come alive. This spot used to be home to several forts and those are commemorated at many markers and map points along the hiking trails that work its way from the top.
The view was beautiful on this day with a light afternoon breeze and my day was coming to a close as I shot some of my last photos from this height. Now, the view although majestic gives one a true sense of the rolling landscape of Eastern Tennessee, it still pales in comparison to the ridges that dot the North Carolina border, but if you find yourself along the Daniel Boone Trail, make sure you creep up to where the hawks fly over on the up drafts because this a truly wonderful spot.
The Daniel Boone Wilderness Trail is a gorgeous drive and thoughtful trip back into America’s First Frontier. The local historians and volunteer organization that spear-headed this initiative have helped to create an educational and entertaining road trip into the early Americas and are to be commended for a job well-done. Their efforts have resulted in the documented trail and driving route, a replica of a historical block fort house and they have uncovered several here-to-fore stories that give life to the past.
In addition to the new website we are helping them to create, the Wilderness Trail Association has begun the development of a new trip off of one of the feeder trails called ‘The Fincastle Turnpike – another driving tour, reassigned Sycamore Shoals as part of the trail and are working on multi-million dollar funding for a interpretive center and biking trails along Kane Gap from Duffield to the top of Powell Mountain.
If you like a Sunday drive or feel the itch to explore our region and our past, wax up the car, fill up the gas tank and carve out a day to follow history along the Daniel Boone Wilderness Trail. You’ll find a new perspective of our region, discover many of Southwest Virginia’s small towns and meet lots of interesting people along the way through this corridor. It’s a trail alive with adventure, discovery, hardships, tragedy and natural beauty all apart of America’s early wilderness.