by Melanie Harless
Over twenty years ago, I drove over an hour each day to work as a librarian at Rhea County High School, which is located about ten miles from Dayton, Tennessee. As it was such a long drive to and from work, I never really visited Dayton, even though I knew it was a famous place that had even had a movie made about it many years ago. I decided recently that it was time to go to Dayton as a tourist and found it to be a unique little town that is preserving its historical heritage. I turned off Tennessee Highway 27 in Rhea County at the entrance arches and lampposts marking Dayton as a Historic Main Street Community, one of twenty-two such designated communities in the state of Tennessee. Just inside the entrance is the Chamber of Commerce. I stopped there and found a pamphlet with a walking tour of a six block downtown district with historical places marked with Appalachian Quilt Trail Stars.
The Columbian Star is number one on the trail and is the most impressive place on the tour, the Rhea County Courthouse at 1475 Market Street. The Courthouse was built in 1891 and designated as a National Historic Landmark in 1977. Still operated as a courthouse, it also houses the Scopes Trial and Rhea Heritage Museums with exhibits, photos, and news clippings of the famous trial. Dayton won its place in history when William Jennings Bryan and Clarence Darrow argued the question of evolution and creation in the Scopes Evolution Trial which took place at the courthouse in July 1925. We’ve all heard about the trial and may have seen the movie, “Inherit the Wind,” that was made about it, therefore, it is interesting to tour the museum and think about that hot summer many years ago and the debate about the origin of man which continues even today.
One artifact found in the Scopes Museum is the original table from Robinson’s Drug Store at which the decision was made on May 15, 1925 by a small group headed by Earle Robinson, “The Hustling Druggist,” and George Rappleyea, Superintendent of Dayton Coal & Iron Company, on a plan that appears to have been a publicity stunt. They “conspired” with John Thomas Scopes, a young science teacher at Rhea County High School, to provide a court test case of the statute passed in March 1925 by the Tennessee Legislature making it unlawful for a public school teacher to teach any theory denying the Biblical story of divine creation “and to teach instead that man descended from a lower order of animals.” The interest and resulting world-wide publicity surprised even the planners. Press coverage of “The Monkey Trial” perhaps exceeded any event up to that time. A new device called radio was used to report the heated debate between the famous lawyers in one of the hottest Tennessee summers on record.
The second star on the tour is at 1435 Market Street. It was the second location of Robinson Drugstore. Built in the early 1900’s, it is currently home to The Gathering Place, appropriately named, as Robinson’s being a favorite gathering place for local citizens in the 1920’s seems to have been key to the whole Scopes trial. The Gathering Place is now an antique and gift store.
I had a cup of potato bacon soup and a hot apple dumpling with vanilla ice cream for lunch at Jacob Myers Deli on the corner of 1st and Market. They also have sandwiches, an espresso bar, and other soups and desserts. On the same block as Jacob Myers, I found the Bright Star Quilt designating a building that was originally a hardware store, now home to ArtCrafters. Reporters covering the Scopes Trial stayed upstairs in that building. There are nine star quilt blocks on the tour, and with plenty of free parking, one can drive instead of walking.
May is the month that strawberries ripen and strawberries are another aspect of Dayton’s history. The town has been celebrating every May since 1947 with the Tennessee Strawberry Festival. The event is named in honor of the county’s reputation as the “Strawberry Capital of the World” in the early 1900s when the plentiful fruit was sent across the country in rail cars. At its peak, over four million quarts of the fruit were produced each year. Unfortunately, the berry boom had died by the forties, but that was when the Dayton Lions Club sponsored the first one-day strawberry festival as a community booster and tourist attraction. While having its ups and downs, the festival has continued and grown to a multi-day celebration every May.
The strawberry is far from Rhea County’s top crop, but the Dayton festival has preserved its heritage as the place for strawberries. Most of the berries for the event are furnished by Tidwell’s Berry Farm, the only large scale berry farm in the county. According to a Herald-News story, Ray Tidwell started his tiny farm near Spring City in 1983 growing corn and soybeans, but the farm flopped. An agriculture extension agent suggested he grow strawberries. At the time, there were only three acres of berries growing in the county. Doubting it would work, Tidwell gambled on the berries and it paid off. He now harvests 16 acres, each yielding about 20,000 pounds of strawberries. Tidwell doesn’t ship his berries across the country, but has turned his name into a popular regional brand. About 80 percent of his crop is sold from a shed at the farm on Hwy. 27, about 14 miles north of Dayton. If you can’t make it to the festival, you can still drive to Dayton during strawberry season to follow the town’s history with the Appalachian Quilt Block Stars and stop at Tidwell’s to buy fresh strawberries on your way home.
Chef’s Table Tour in Downtown Knoxville
If You Go:
The City of Dayton is the county seat of Rhea County, Tennessee, which is located in East Tennessee. It is 30 miles north of Chattanooga, 50 miles southwest of Knoxville, 154 miles southeast of Nashville, and 151 miles north of Atlanta.
The Scopes Trial and Rhea Heritage Museum is open Monday through Friday 9 am to 4 pm. Admission is free.
About the author:
Melanie Harless began writing after retirement in 2006. She writes a column on regional travel for a local news-magazine. In addition to travel writing, she writes creative non-fiction, short stories and poetry. She has been published in anthologies and online and print magazines and newspapers. This is her second contribution to Travel Thru History.
All photos are by Melanie Harless.
Before my flight and subsequent drive to Door County, I admittedly didn’t know much about the area. Upon arrival, I quickly learn that a dozen tiny, charming towns populate the county, that’s located just 45 miles northeast of Green Bay. The area received its name from the French, when it was dubbed Porte de Mortes (or “Door to Death”), because of the treacherous strait between the peninsula and the islands off its northern end, which today is the resting place of countless sunken ships. More recently acclaimed as the Cape Cod of the Midwest, in warmer months it’s a go-to destination for golfers the world over as there are 11 gorgeous courses to choose from. Door County also boasts multiple white sand beaches that line Lake Michigan for tourists to laze about on, while in the winter, ski hills, cross-country trails, hiking paths and ice-fishing huts make it the perfect getaway with nary a billboard or chain store in sight. And let’s not forget the cherries.
To be clear, the versions found in Door County orchards aren’t the run-of-the-mill variety. Here the Montmorency red tart cherry reigns supreme, and in Country Ovens, a family-owned and operated business established in 1987, they’re utilized in every form imaginable – from cherry salsa, cherry fudge and cherry BBQ sauce to cherry wine, cherry jam and cherry ketchup. The area prides itself on its cherry orchards, and has since the early 19th century. Ideal growing conditions make it the perfect environment for the fruit to sprout, and with approximately 2,200 acres of cherry orchard fields, approximately 12 million pounds of them are produced each year.
With my sweet tooth satisfied, I make my way to the Harbor Fish Market and Grille in Bailey’s Harbor for dinner. Known as a hot spot for in-the-know vacationers, I quickly see why the restaurant has such acclaim after I inhale my spectacular five-course meal. I then waddle back to the car and head to The White Lace Inn in Sturgeon Bay, my not-so-humble abode for the next two days. The bed-and-breakfast Main House is a beautifully restored 1880s Victorian home that’s gorgeous inside and out, which becomes all the more apparent when the owner, who took ownership of the property in 1982, shows me to my room in Hadley House – one of the four homes that comprise the inn. There, an enormous room, laden with perfectly-preserved antiques, two roaring fireplaces, heated floors and a whirlpool big enough to sleep in awaits. I happily settle in and call it a night.
No trip to Door County would be complete without taking in a fish boil, so I visit the White Gull Inn in Fish Creek – built in 1896 by a German-born doctor who established it and many surrounding buildings with the style of European health spas in mind – for an experience only available here. When I arrive, people are already gathered around the boiling spot where they’re waiting for the boil master to weave a yarn about the 100-year-old tradition of boiling white fish and potatoes over an open fire, which began when lumberjacks and fishermen adopted it as an economical way to feed themselves and their families. After roughly 15 minutes of the historical run-through, the boil master douses the fire with kerosene, causing the water and oil from the fish to boil over. After the spectators make way for him to head indoors with dinner, we pile into the restaurant for our own plateful of white fish, potatoes, coleslaw and – what else? – Door County cherry pie for dessert.
Present day lodge amenities, from chalets to rooms to fine dining and soothing pools, did not disappoint. A serene wilderness surrounds this warm luxury like a single heavenly star. Heavens, free of city glare, as clear as nature created them.
A winding dirt track led sharply down to the dancing Lussier River where rustic boulder-framed pools were awash with bathers. German and French accents wafted upwards as people of all ages scrambled about and lounged in the gravel-bottomed pools. The hot pool stood around 105 degrees as we eased in. Personal sized nooks and crannies housed singular soakers. Friendly chatter warbled like a flock of song birds. Lussier is unlike its more developed kin, a little harder to get to, a lot closer to the wilderness and thus its unique attraction. A bit of adventure increased its allure.
Fairmont’s hot springs fame has seeped through time with singular acclaim as the Smoking Waters of First Nations legend. On a hill overlooking the pools at the lodge, natural hot waters seep and stream over a calcified knoll, its sulphurous aroma wafting close to the ground and housing a few warm, bathtub-size pools carved within for those inclined to experience a more natural setting. A series of stone rooms with bathtub pools recall the early years of commercial exploitation.
When I visited, I headed first to The Museum Center at Five Points, a regional history museum with exhibitions, a store, and programs related to the history of Cleveland, Bradley County, and the Ocoee Region of Tennessee. The museum is located at 200 Inman Street East. The core exhibition uses the theme, River of Time, to trace the history of the area. This theme signifies the importance of the Ocoee, Hiwassee and Tennessee Rivers to the region.
Glass etchings in the lobby depict visual images of living history characters that visitors may watch on videos while walking through the displays. These characters introduce seven time periods, from Coming to the Land (Prehistory-1804) thru Paths to the Future (1979-Present,) while artifacts represent the different times. A real wagon that came to Bradley County with settlers in 1839 can be seen as well as a kayak from the 1996 Olympic Canoe and Kayak Competition on the Ocoee River. There are also hands-on stations throughout for kids to enjoy.
The Cleveland Public Library is housed in a home built in 1883. Originally about two-thirds the size of the present residence, the house was bricked and remodeled in 1940. In 1987, it became the library. A 5000-square-foot expansion began in 2001. Next door is the Carmichael Library Addition, another historic home recently donated to the library.
The land that forms the town was originally part of Spencer County, North Carolina, and then it became part of the state of Franklin, then went back to North Carolina, and finally became part of Hawkins County, Tennessee. During the time Hawkins County was being shifted from one state to the other, it was for a while part of the Territory South of the River Ohio, and in 1791 the first newspaper in the Territory was printed. It was called the Knoxville Gazette and in 1792 was moved to Knoxville, the new capital of the Territory. Rogersville’s Tennessee Newspaper and Printing Museum reflects the area’s long involvement with the printing industry. It is located in the Southern Railway Train Depot. The Depot was built in 1890 and also houses the offices of the Rogersville Heritage Association. A centerpiece of the museum is the last linotype machine to be used to set type for a newspaper in Tennessee. It came from the Rogersville Review where it was used until l982. Many newspapers from Rogersville’s history, some original copies, some photocopies, are also on exhibit. The museum, at the corner of Depot and Broadway, is free but it is currently open limited hours and by appointment (423-272-1961).
The Town Square is the center of downtown Rogersville and each corner of the square is a historic site. The Hawkins County Courthouse, built in 1836, is the oldest original courthouse still in use in the state. Just across from the Courthouse is the Masonic Temple, site of the oldest continually operating lodge in Tennessee, chartered in 1805. Overton Lodge #5 was named for Andrew Jackson’s law partner, John Overton. The building was built in 1839 as the first branch of the Bank of the State of Tennessee, which failed just after the Civil War because all its assets were in Confederate bonds and money. Kyle House and Hale Springs Inn are on the other corners of the square. The Kyle House was built in 1837 as a 22 room mansion for William Simpson. During the Civil War, Confederate officers and soldiers were housed there. Just across Main Street, Union officers and soldier were housed in the Hale Springs Inn.
The location of Hale Springs Inn has been the site of a public house since Daniel Hamblen purchased the lot in 1790 for helping Joseph Rogers lay out the town. On it he built a home which also served the fledgling town as a tavern. In 1824, John A. McKinney purchased the property and built a large brick building designed by John Dameron, also the architect of the Courthouse. The building included both a store and a hotel and became known as McKinney’s Tavern. The Inn changed hands and names several times through the years, and before it closed in 1999 was the oldest continuously run Inn in Tennessee. In 2003, the Rogersville Heritage Association bought the hotel and completely renovated it, keeping the original heart pine floor throughout and furnishing each room with colonial and American empire pieces, some original to the Inn. The inn has three presidential suites all named after presidents which have been previous guests: Andrew Jackson, Andrew Johnson, and James K. Polk. McKinney’s by Troutdale, the Inn’s dining room, serves contemporary southern cuisine and is open to the public for dining Tuesday through Saturday for lunch and dinner and Sunday brunch on holidays.
After lunch, I visited the Local Artists Gallery on Main Street. They have items for sale by local artists and craftsmen and next door is Mountain Star Mall which has primitive country décor, antiques, and gift items. I then drove about five miles northeast of Main Street to Amis Mill Eatery on Bear Hollow Road. I had heard that there was a waterfall across the road from it and knew that it was an on-site re-creation of the original facility built by Captain Thomas Amis. Amis built a fort, mill and dam in 1781 at Big Creek on the Great Indian Warpath Trail (later Old Stage Road) with the assistance of his friend and fellow Scots-Irishman John Carter. He then built a trading post, blacksmith shop, forge, distillery, tannery and eventually his home, which was used not only for his family but also to board and feed settlers and travelers. This was the last roof one could sleep under before heading into the wilderness and on into Kentucky. Daniel Boone frequented Amis while blazing the Cumberland Gap trail. One can see part of the stone foundation of the original Amis Mill beside the creek.
