USA > Tennessee > History of Tennessee from the earliest time to the present : together with an historical and a biographical sketch of from twenty-five to thirty counties of east Tennessee, V.3 > Part 3
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The first schools in Greeneville, as now remembered, were taught in a log house stand- ing near where Rhea Academy is, and in the Presbyterian Church. The latter was a boy's school, and was taught for four or five years by Joseph Brown. The former was doubtless the original Rhea Academy, and was opened about 1812. The lot was donated by John Rhea in 1811, and it is said that he also furnished a large part of the funds for the erection of the building. The present academy was built about 1825, and about 1840 the building for the female department was erected upon the lot given by John Dickson.
The date of the organization of the first church in Greeneville has not been settled beyond dispute, but it is believed that the first preaching was done by Rev. Samuel Doak in 1780, and that the church was organized about three years later by Rev. Hezekiah Balch, who became the first pastor. The elders were Anthony Moore, Maj.
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HISTORY OF TENNESSEE.
Temple and Joseph Hardin. The first exercises are said to have been held under a clump of trees near the Big Spring. In 1792 James Galbraith, for $10, deeded three acres and four poles of land, near the head of Richland Creck, to Anthony Moore. Alexander Galbraith, Maj. Temple, John Reese, John Carson, Nicholas Hays, Thomas Russell, David Russell, David McGill and Jeremiah Smith, elders of Mount Bethel Church. Whether any house had been erected before this time is not known, but it is probable that a log building had been used. The earliest church of which there is any certain knowledge was a frame house which stood on what is now a vacant lot adjoining the old cemetery on the north side. The congregations which assembled here were very large, embracing the greater part of the people for ten miles around. In 1796, after the return of Dr. Balch from his trip to New England, mentioned in connection with Greeneville College, he began to expound the Hopkinsian doctrines, and affirmed his belief in them. This produced a schism in the church, and after a long contest before Presbyterian Synod and general assembly the faction opposing Dr. Balch withdrew and was organized into a separate congregation with Rev. James Witherspoon as pastor, under the old name of Mount Bethel, They erected a log church, near where Spencer & Brown's factory now is, and there continued to worship until 1815, when they removed to a point one mile east of town, where the present substantial brick church now stands. The early ministers of this congregation were as follows: James Witherspoon, 1798-1807; John W. Doak, 1807-09; James Balch, 1809-12; S. W. Doak, 1813-44, and S. W. Wyly. The Balch faction of the old Mount Bethel congregation adopted the name of Harmony Church, and Mr. Balch continued as pastor until his death. In 1805, Rev. Charles Coffin began preach- ing to the congregation one third of his time, and from 1808 to 1820 he divided his time between Greeneville and Jonesboro. In the latter year, he was succeeded at Greeneville by Christopher Bradshaw, who preached alternately at Harmony and Timber Ridge until 1827. His successor was Dr. F. A. McCorkle, who had been engaged in the practice of medicine for about ten years. He continued the practice of his profession, and also remained pastor of these churches until 1853, when he was succeeded at Greeneville by Rev. Ira Morey, the principal of the female academy. He continued about twenty months, and was succeeded by Rev. E. T. Brantley, who preached to the congregation from 1857 to 1860. Dr. McCorkle then filled the pulpit until the beginning of the war. In 1865 the elders of the church were Samuel Milligan, Joseph R. Brown, J. A. Galbraith. Dr. E. M. Shiffey and Robert McKee. Rev. J. W. Elliott was received as stated supply. continuing until 1867. His successors have been S. V. McCorkle, W. C. Harding, John E. Alexander and Samuel A. Coile. In 1848 the old house of worship was abandoned. and the present commodious structure on Main Street was built on a lot donated by Robert J. Mckinney. In 1833 a camp-ground was established on a hill one mile west of Greeneville. and camp-meetings were held there annually for several years. The name Harmony was borne by this church until 1840, when it was changed to Greeneville.
In 1843 a Cumberland Presbyterian congregation was organized by Rev. Isaac S. Bonham, with Thomas Lane, Lewis S. Self, Thomas Davis and two or three others as elders. The membership was small, but they succeeded in erecting a small frame house in the southwest part of the town, where they continued to worship until 1860. In that year, under the ministry of Rev. John P. Holt, the present large brick building at the corner of Church and Main Streets was begun, but was not completed until after the close of the war. The present membership of the church is about 100.
The first Methodist Church in Greeneville was built in 1821, and was known as Mount Moriah. It stood fronting on Irish Street, upon a lot back of where Mr. Blackstone McDaniel now lives. The trustees at that time were, William Goodman, William Carter, Elza Bridewell. John Whittenburg, Peter Whittenburg, Richard M. Woods, William A. Hankins, Isaiah Harrison and Stephen Brooks. Afterward the congregation removed to a frame house, which had been erected at the southwest end of Main Street. This build- ing was destroyed by fire and was replaced by the present brick structure, which is now occupied by the Methodist Episcopal Church South.
After the close of the war a Methodist Episcopal Church was organized, and for sbout
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GREENE COUNTY.
nine years occupied the old building erected before the war. They were then dispossessed of this property through legal process by the Methodist Episcopal Church South. They then worshiped in the courthouse until they completed their present bandsome church edifice in 1875.
About 1843 an Episcopal Church was organized and a house of worship erected. Among the first members were Gen. T. D. Arnold and wife, Mordecai Lincoln and wife, Mrs. John Dickson, Mrs. Matilda Martin, Mrs. Catherine Williams, Miss Mary Lincoln and Loyd Tillman. The first minister was Dr. MeCabe. His successors were Dr. Goode, A. M. Royce and W. W. Cahagan. The congregation was never a large one, and, owing to deaths and removals, it has been still further decreased, and for several years no regu- lar services have been held.
In 1874 a Baptist Church was erected and a small congregation organized, but owing to internal dissensions, it did not prosper, and the building was finally sold for debt. It was purchased by O. B. Headrick, a member of the church and still remains his property.
The first newspaper published at Greeneville was the Genius of Universal Emancipa- tion, a small monthly paper devoted exclusively to the cause of the abolition of slavery. It was established at. Mount Pleasant, Ohio, in July, 1821, but was soon removed to Greene- ville, the tenth number having been issued from the latter place. The editor was Benjamin Lundy. a Quaker, who, after four or five years, removed to Philadelphia .. During his stay in Greeneville he also published a weekly paper, the Economist and Political Recorder. The successor of Lundy was Thomas Hoge, but the name of his paper could not be ascertained. In 1814 the Greeneville Miscellany was published by Charles P. Byers, and in 1849 the Greeneville Spy was established. The first editors and managers were Charles Johnson and J. B. R. Lyon. With the exception of about two years its publication. under several successive managers, was continued until the war. In the fall of 1858 the Greeneville Democrat was established by H. G. Robertson. The next year the name was changed to the Greeneville Banner. It was a radical Southern Right paper, which he continued to issue until the occupation of the town by the Federals, in 1863. For the last few weeks it was issued as a small tri-weekly. During the fifties, also, a religious paper known as the American Presbyterian was published by J. Dobson. In 1865 J. B. R. Lyon established the New Era which he continued under that name until 1886, when he changed it to the Republican. Early in the seventies two papers, the Sentinel and the Reporter, were established, the latter by the evangelist, Samuel W. Small. The two were soon consolidated and published for a time as the Sentinel and Reporter.
In May, 1870, J. Lyon issued the first number of the Greencville Democrat, which he has since continued, and which has been an almost phenomenal success. It has reached a circulation of over 1.900 copies, and yet almost the entire work of the office has been done by Mr. Lyon. It is safe to say that no other weekly paper in the State outside of the cities, has an equally large circulation. Several other papers of short duration have also been published from time to time. Among these were the Herald, National Union, Intel- ligencer and Bulletin.
Greeneville, during the past few years, has increased rapidly in both population and wealth. Since the introduction of tobacco raising into the county it has become an important market for this crop, and the manufacture and shipment of tobacco is now one of the leading industries. The firms engaged in its manufacture are the East Tennessee Manufacturing Company, the Greeneville Manufacturing Company and Howard & Alex - ander. The other manufacturers of the town are Brown & Mosier, handle and spoke factory; Lamon Bros., wagon factory; Spencer & Brown, drugs and medicines; Stephen Bros., woolen-mill. and R. Snapp and J. R. Brown, tanneries. The commercial interests are represented as follows: W. H. Williams, William Lane, David R. Britton. M. P. Reeves. George P. Park & Co., W. R. Brown, J. R. Brown and Trim & Hardin. dry goods and groceries; Boyd & Park and Isaac O'Harrell, drugs; W. C. Willis. hardware; W. G. Gass, queensware; R. Snapp. W. B. Taylor and L. W. Tipton, groceries; J. M. Sau- ders and Mercer & Co., furniture, and R. Snapp and J. R. Brown, saddlery and harness. The Bank of Greeneville was established in 1887 by Judge Hacker & Bro. and John Brob- son.
890
HISTORY OF TENNESSEE.
Of the villages of Greene County Rheatown is doubtless the oldest. It is situated on what was the old stage route, and at one time was a thriving business point. It was made & postoffice in 1823, and named in honor of John Rhea. Among the early residents of the village were James Allen, a merchant, who was succeeded by Joseph & Nicholas Earnest, Joseph Whinnery, a hatter; William Aiken, a tanner; Thomas & William Hand- ley, tailors; John Mathes, a cabinet-maker, and John Wright, who ran a saw and grist- mill. Some time in the twenties a Methodist Church was built at the upper end of the town, and about 1845 a new frame building was erected just above the old one. About 1850 the Presbyterians organized a church and built a house. Since the war the members of the Methodist Episcopal Church South have erected a new church edifice. In 1872 an academy was built by Nolachucky Lodge, No. 323, F. & A. M., and since that time a very excellent school has been maintained there.
The other villages of importance are Mosheim and Fullens, both stations on the rail- road. The latter place was established upon land owned by James Fullen. It has a population of about 100, and is the seat of Warren College, an institution established by the Methodist Episcopal Church in 1883. Mosheim was formerly known as Blue Springs. under which name it was known until about 1870. It is the seat of Mosheim College, established under the auspices of the Lutheran Church, It also has a large four- ing-mill, owned by Reuben Roder, a general store, by D. R. Gass & Co., and a drug store, by J. A. Banghard. Warrensburg, situated in the Fourth Civil District, is the oldest vil- lage in the county, and at one time was a place of no little importance. The site was entered during the first settlement of the county by Robert Warren, from whom it took its name. The business of the village now consists of two general stores owned by J. C. Maloney aud R. J. Kidwell, and a drug store conducted by Marion Maloney.
The following have been the officers of Greene County since its organization, so far as obtainable.
Clerks of the county court -- Daniel Kennedy 1783-1802: Valentine Sevier, 1802-10; Andrew Patterson, 1810-34; Merryman Payne, 1834-36; George W. Foute, 1836-52; E. W. Headrick, 1852-68; V. S. Maloney, 1868-82: W. H. Piper, 1882.
Clerks of the circuit court -- Valentine Sevier, 1810-54; William West, 1854-56; M. L. Patterson, 1856-62; William West, 1862-65: D. R. Britton, 1865-86; J. B. Walker, 1896.
Clerks and masters-George T. Gillespie, 1825-36; Merryman Payne, 1836-43; David Sevier, 1843-70; Henry A. Wilds. 18:0-76; A. W. Walker, 1876-80; W. A. Allen, 1880-86; J. K. P ---- , 1886.
Sheriffs-James Wilson, 1783-95; James Houston, 1785-86; John Tadlock. 1796-87; James Richardson, 1787-92; William L. Lovely, 1792-94; George Conway, 1794-1800; John Newman, 1800-02: Christopher Conway, 1802-04: James Patterson, 1804-06; Andrew Pat- terson, 1806-08; James Patterson, 1808-10; Daniel Guin, 1810-12; James Patterson, 1812- 14: Daniel Guin, 1814-18; Hugh Carter, 1818-24: Alfred Hunter, 1824-26; Richard 3. Woods, 1826-40; James Britton, 1840-46; Loyd Bullen, 1846-50; D. R. Johnson, 1850-54: James Jones, 1854-60; James G. Reeves, 1860-66; A. W. Walker, 1866-74; William S. White, 1874-78; A. J. Frazier, 1878-84; W. I. Dodd, 1884-86; A. J. Stephens, 1886.
Trustees-Thomas Doan, 1796-1804; James Shields, 1804-18: Joseph Brown, 1818-20; W. K. Vance, 1820-34; James R. Isbell, 1834-36; Richard West, 1836-44; William West, 1844-52; A. R. Anderson, 1852-58; Elbert F. Mercer, 1858-68; James W. Cloyd, 1868-74; Charles H. Park, 1874-82; J. R. Hughes, 1892-84; J. A. Rader, 1884-86; J. W. McDaniel. 1886.
Registers-Richard Woods, 1783-85; Robert Carr, 1785-87; John Hardin, 1787-89: John Stone, 1789-94; James Stinson, 1794-96; James Dunwoody, 1796-98: James Stinson, 1798-1806; George Brown, 1806-36; Silas E. Burnett, 1836-12: Thomas Lane, 1842-74; T. R McCollum, 1874-79; J. W. Bower, 1878-86; O. T. French, 1886.
891
WASHINGTON COUNTY.
WASHINGTON COUNTY.
W "ASHINGTON COUNTY lies between Greene and Carter Counties, and is bounded on the north by Sullivan and on the south by Union. Its area is about 350 square miles. The surface is generally more or less broken, and in the southern part it becomes mountainous. The valleys are fertile, as is also much of the upland. The principal stream in the county is the Nolachucky River, which traverses the southern part. Its chief tributaries are the Big Limestone and Buffalo.
The most valuable mineral of the county is iron, which is found in great abundance.
The first permanent settlement in Tennessee was made in 1709 on Boone Creek by Capt. William Bean, who came in that year from Pittsylvania County, Va. His son, Russell Bean, is said to have been the first white child born in the State. Soon after Bean. made his settlement, in 1770 and 1711, James Robertson, Landon Carter and others, laid the foundation of the Watauga settlements, which at first were mainly in what is now Carter County. The steady stream of emigrants from the older States, however, soon forced these to overflow into the territory now embraced in Washington and Greene Counties. In 1772 Jacob Brown, with one or two families from North Carolina, located upon the north bank of the Nolachucky River, which up to this time had remained undisturbed by the white man. Mr. Brown had been a small merchant, and brought with him a pack- horse loaded with goods with which he soon purchased from the Indians a lease of a large body of land lying on both sides of the Nolachucky. In 1715 he obtained one deed signed by the chief men of the Cherokee Nation, embracing the greater part of the present Washington County west of the Big Limestone, and another deed for the land lying between the Big Limestone and a line drawn from a point on the Nolachucky Mountains " north 322 west to the mouth of Camp Creek; thence across the river; thence northwest to the dividing ridge between Lick Creek and Watauga or Holston; thence up the divid- ing ridge to the rest of the said Brown's land." This land Mr. Brown sold to settlers at a small price. The government of North Carolina, however, refused to recognize the valid- ity of this deed, and continued to make grants in the territory covered by that instrument.
Among the most prominent of the pioneers who located within the present limits of Washington County were John_Sevier, who lived on the Nolachucky, on the farm now owned by William Tyler. His sons, John and James, located on farms near by. John Tipton, the political enemy of the Seviers, lived on Turkey Creek, eight or ten miles east of Jonesboro. The first settlers on Little Limestone were Robert and James Allison, whose descendants still own a portion of the land entered by them. In 1778 Michael Bawn and James Pearn were each granted permission by the county to build a grist-mill on Little Limestone. In the same year an enumeration of the male inhabitants of Washington County, which included all the settlements in East Tennessee, showed that the aggregate number subject to poll tax was 450. Computing from this. upon the usual ratio, the population at that time was not far from 2,500.
The first Baptist Church organized in the county was the Cherokee Creek Church, constituted in 1783 by Tidence Lane. Among its first members were James Keels, John Broyles, John Layman, William Murphy, Owen Owens, William Calvert, Reuben, John and Thomas Bayless, Thomas and Francis Baxter. Four years later Buffalo Ridge Church was constituted. Some of the prominent members were Anthony Epperson, Isaac Denton, Joseph Crouch, Peter Jackson, William Nash, David Parry and Nicholas Hale.
At Cherokee Creek Meeting-bonse, on the fourth Saturday in October, 1786,# was
*Minutes of Holston Association. Other authorities put it as early as 1779.
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HISTORY OF TENNESSEE
organized the Holston Baptist Associations, at which time six churches were represented as follows: Cherokee Creek-James Keel, John Broyles, John Layman and William Murphy; Bent Creek-Tidence Lane, Isaac Barton and Francis Hamilton; Greasy Cave-Richard Deakins and James Acton; North Fork of Holston -- John Frost; Lower French Broad-James Randolph and Charles Gentry. Tidence Lane was chosen mod- erator, and William Murphy, clerk. During the next fifteen years the association grew very rapidly, thirty-five churches, new churches, having been constituted up to the close of 1802, when the membership was 2,474. In that year the association was divided. all west of a line running from Lee Courthouse, in Virginia, to Little War Gap, in Clinch Mountain, thence to Bull's Gap, thence to Fine Ferry (afterward Newport, Cocke County), thence in a direct line to Iron Mountain, was constituted the Tennessee Association. In 1811 the number of churches in the association had reached twenty, and the membership a little over 1,000, when seven churches were set off to form Washington Association. The northern line of Holston then became one running through Blountville, to where the Watauga River enters Tennessee. In 1828 the boundaries of the association were once more reduced. It then had thirty churches, with a member - ship of 1,086, when Lick Creek, Concord, Bent Creek, Bethel South, County Line, Robertson Creek, Gap Creek, Long Creek, Slate Creek, Clay Creek and Prospect were set off to form Nolachucky Association, which body was organized on the second Satur- day in November of that year. No further change of territory occurred prior to the war except that.
The war greatly depleted the ranks of the members. In 1857 the aggregate mem- bership of the association was 8,500, while in 1865 it was only 1,794. New churches, how- over, were soou formed, and old ones revived, so that in 1868 twelve churches in the counties of Johnson, Carter and Union were set off to form Watauga Association, leaving twenty-five churches in Holston Association. In 1885 three more churches were set off to join the newly organized Holston Valley Association. The Holston Associ- ation in 1886 had a membership of 3,430, divided among thirty-five churches. The Baptist Churches in Washington County at the present time are as follows: Cherokee Creek, organized in 1783; Buffalo Ridge, 1787; Fall Branch, 1827; Jonesboro, 1842; Limestone, 1842; New Salem, 1845; Harmony, 1850; Johnson City and -, 1869; Phila- delphia, 1870; Antioch, 1875.
The work of the Presbyterians began conteraporaneously with that of the Baptists. The first preacher was Rev. Samuel Doak, who, in 1778, located near where Washington College now is, and where he established Salem Church. Among other early churches of this denomination were Hebron, afterward Jonesboro, Leesburg and Bethesda. When the separation of the two factions of the church occurred the greater number went with the New School, and about 1858 formed a part of the United Synod. Upon the reorgan- ization of the churches after the close of the war considerable dissension occurred, a portion of the churches uniting with the Holston Presbytery of the Northern General Assembly, and the remainder going into the Holston Presbytery of the Southern General Assembly. The churches in the county are as follows: Salem, Jonesboro (Second Church), Chucky Vale and Mount Lebanon, adhering to the Northern Assembly, and Leesburg. Johnson City and Jonesboro (First Church), holding to the Southern Assembly.
The Methodists began work in the county about 1783, but no records are now in existence from which an account of individual churches may be obtained.
In the establishment of a school for the higher education of youth Washington County has the honor of being the pioneer west of the Alleghany Mountains. In 1777 the Legislature of North Carolina granted a charter for Martin Academy in Washington County, and Samuel Doak, who came to the county the following year, established a school under the provisions of this act. At what time he began teaching is not definitely known, but it must have been in 1783 or 1784. He taught at first in a small log building, which stood on his own farin, a short distance west of the present college campus. There he continued his academy until 1795, when the Territorial Assembly passed an vet incor- porating it as Washington College. The following is the preamble to the act: " Whereax,
S. T. HARRIS.
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WASHINGTON COUNTY.
The Legislature of North Carolina established an academy in Washington County by the name of Martin Academy, which has continued for ten or twelve years past under the presidency of the Rer. Samuel Doak, and has been of considerable utility to the public, and affords a prospect of future usefulness if invested with powers and privileges apper- taining to a college. Be it enacted, etc." The trustees appointed were Rev. Samuel Doak, Charles Cummings, Edward Crawford, John Cosson, Robert Henderson, Gideon Blackburn, Joseph Anderson, John Sevier, Landon Carter, Daniel Kennedy, Leroy Tay- lor, John Sevier, Jr., John Tipton. William Cocke, Archibald Roane, Joseph Hamilton, John Rhea. Samuel Mitchell, Jesse Payne, James Aiken, William C. C. Claiborne, Dr. William Holt, Dr. William P. Chester, David Deaderick, John Waddell, Jr., Alexander Mathes, John Nelson and John McAllister. The first meeting of the board was held on July 23. 1795, at which time Landon Carter was authorized to dispose of three tracts of land on Doe River belonging to Martin Academy, the property of that institution having been transferred to the college. It was also moved that John Waddell and John Sevier be appointed to collect sundry subscriptions made to Martin Academy in 1784.
On September 28, 1795, by order of the trustees, an oratorical contest among the students was held. They were divided into three grades, the best speaker in the first grade to receive $3, in the second $2, and in the third $1. The prizes were awarded to James Anderson, James Trimble and Samuel Sevier respectively. The first graduates were James Witherspoon and John W. Doak, upon whom was conferred the degree of A. B. on August 15, 1796. The other graduates for the first ten years were John Robinson, James Trimble, William Mitchell, Charles McAllister, Jonathan Smith. Daniel Gray, A. M. Nelson, Samuel K. Nelson, William H. Deaderick, Jeremiah Mathes, Nicholas Yeager, Reuben White, Thomas Cooper and William W. Holt.
In 1806 J. W. Doak was made vice-president, and commissioned to solicit funds in Georgia and South Carolina for the benefit of the college, where he obtained $836.65. The next year he visited the North and East, and secured 81,515. With these funds a new frame building was erected in 1808. It was 40x24 feet, two stories high, and stood very near the site of the present chapel. In 1818 Samuel Doak resigned the presidency of the college, and was succeeded by John W. Doak, who continued until 1820. He then died, and the position was tendered to Dr. Samuel Doak, who refused it. The next year John V. Bovell was installed as president, and after three or four years was succeeded by S. W. Doak, who was not in actual charge of the college, however, Profs. Rice and W. M. Cunningham, acting as president for that time. In 1829 Rev. James McLin as- sumed control of the institution, and continued to direct it until 1838, S. W. Doak then succeeded him, and continued for two years.
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