Our Story: How It All Began
The Town of Rogersville, the second oldest town in the state of Tennessee, continues to be a thriving community and marketplace as it has been for more than 200 years. At the heart of it is the Rogersville Historic District , containing many historically important buildings such as the Hale Springs Inn, the Hawkins County Courthouse, Overton Lodge No. 5, F. & A.M., and Rogersville Synodical College campus. Rogersville’s unique history, century old buildings, and museums contribute to a charming and sophisticated small town atmosphere.
Main Street in Rogersville is the perfect afternoon shopping experience – antiques, gift items, local and regional works of art, and great food amid the ambiance of a historic setting. A visit to Rogersville would not be complete without a stop at the Tennessee Newspaper & Printing Museum , or take a self-guided walking tour to discover Rogersville’s architecture and history.
The Rogersville Main Street Program has been designated as an accredited National Main Street Program for meeting the commercial district revitalization performance standards set by the National Trust Main Street Center. Each year, the National Trust and its partners announce the list of accredited Main Street programs that have built strong revitalization organizations and demonstrate their ability in using the Main Street Four-Point Approach methodology for strengthening their local economy and protecting their historic buildings.
Rogersville was settled in 1775 by the grandparents of Davy Crockett in what is today downtown Rogersville near Crocketts’ Spring. When the settlers were attacked by Native Americans, all but decimating the family, the Crocketts sold the property to Colonel Thomas Amis.
In 1780, Colonel Amis and John Carter built a fort near the outskirts of Rogersville and Amis built a stone house a few miles away, fortified against attacks. The next year he opened a store, a blacksmith shop, a distillery, a saw and grist-mill, and a tavern.
In 1785, the present day Rogersville area was, for a year, part of Spencer County in the (brief) State of Franklin. A year later, it was relinquished to to North Carolina, which proceeded to name the area part of Hawkins County.
Joseph RogersDuring this year, Joseph Rogers arrived in the area and stayed at a tavern adjacent to Colonel Amis’ home. He fell in love with the Colonel’s daughter, Mary Amis and they married on October 24, 1786, against Colonel Amis’ wishes. Amis later ceded the land he’d purchased from the Crocketts to Joseph Rogers. Rogers had established a tavern of his own around 1784-85 and became a successful businessman.
Rogers lobbied to have the county seat near his home and volunteered his tavern as the first county courthouse in 1787. He and other local settlers, laid out a plan for the town, and the town of Rogersville was chartered by the North Carolina General Assembly in 1789. The plan included a public square, deeded to the town government, which would host the town’s public well and the county courthouse.
“Rogers was the father of fourteen children with Mary. He died on November 6, 1833 at Rogersville, near the hour of midnight. He was buried in Rogers Cemetery, near the founding site of the Town. His wife Mary died a month later, the victim, according to legend, of a broken heart at the loss of her beloved Joseph.” –source Wikipedia
During the Civil War, the residents of Rogersville were divided in their loyalties and this diversity of opinion may have had something to do with why many of the original structures were spared. At various times, buildings were used by either side as Rogersville was the site of a battle for control of the town. It was occupied by the Federal forces but the Confederate army invaded the area and pushed the army across the Holston into Greene County. Confederates maintained control of the town until the end of the war.
Tennessee’s oldest courthouse, first newspaper, and first post office are each located in Rogersville. Much of the Town is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It’s the second-oldest town in the state and is located in Hawkins County, East Tennessee.
Learn more about printing history at the Tennessee Newspaper and Printing Museum.
Tennessee’s Best Kept Secret
In the heart of Tennessee sits a beautiful secret kept out of the hussle and bussle of the big cities. Rogersville, settled in 1775 and often seen to be “Tennessee’s best kept Secret” and has some of the most interesting historic sites. Some of these sites include: Tennessee’s first post office as well as the first newspaper printed in Tennessee “The Knoxville Gazette”, and the home of Davy Crockett’s family and the burial site of his grandparents.
With year round events for the whole family Rogersville offers its visitors such attractions as “Cruise-In On The Square” where people from all over bring their different types of cars and flashy rides. Not only is it fun for the adults and car lovers, children can find their way to the many inflatables and activities for them to indulge in. Now as fun as that sounds, Rogersville’s big event is Heritage Days, the second full weekend in October, named the “Top Twenty Events In the Southeast for October”. A large scale festival showing the rich history that Rogersville has to offer, including everything from Civil War reenactments to traditional Appalachian music.
Planning to visit Rogersville soon? One of the many historic sites includes the beautiful Hale Springs Inn. Unlike many of the inns that are considered “historic” the Hale Springs Inn is far from dated. From the restaurant and Tavern to the Spa, Hale Springs Inn will keep you happy and relaxed only going a few steps out of your beautiful room. If you are that lucky customer, you could stay in the same room as young King Louis the 14th of France on his botanist tours of America.
Rogersville offers not only year round events and activities, but also is hub for local and out of town shoppers. Walking around Rogersville will help you find gifts and items that you didn’t even know you needed. With a large selection of art galleries Rogersville offers its visitors handmade Jewelry, blown glass, sculptures, and all different types of art. After all your shopping is said and done you can stop into one of the many one of a kind restaurants that Rogersville offers.
When looking for something to do, take a trip to Rogersville and enjoy a one-of-a-kind experience tucked into the heart of Tennessee.
History of Rogersville, Tennessee
A Love Story
It all started with a love story. Only two years after the new United States had finally won its independence from Great Britain, a young Scots-Irishman named Joseph was travelling through the far western wilds of North Carolina. Weeks into his journey into the frontier, Joseph came across the home of a hero of the Revolutionary War, Colonel Thomas Amis. Amis, of French extraction, owned lands granted him for his service in the Revolution. His beautiful daughter Mary helped him in their family’s tavern and inn. Legend says Joseph fell in love with Mary a mile or so up the road from her father’s home at the Ebbing and Flowing Spring, after the couple shared a cup of its sweet, cool waters. A year later, in 1786, they were married, and for a wedding present, Mary’s father gave the young family lands a few miles west of his own house. There, Joseph and Mary Rogers set about creating a life for themselves.
It wasn’t just families being started in the Wild West of the Eighteenth Century. The North Carolina legislature, finally able to consider work besides protecting its citizens from British soldiers, turned its attention toward its lands across the forbidding Appalachian Mountains. One of the first tasks was to set up local government — but the question was where. Joseph knew the state was looking for a good location for the post office, the sheriff’s office, the jail, and the courts, and he also knew there were few buildings available fit for purpose. So a few months after he and Mary were married, Joseph presented the state legislators with a plan: locate the courthouse, post office, and other public facilities in his newly-built tavern and home. Situated next to Crockett Spring, named for Davy Crockett’s grandparents who’d sold the land to Joseph’s father in law, Rogers’ Tavern was perfect for the seat of the new county government.
With the courthouse on the way, Rogers set about the task of organizing a town around it. People doing business with the government would need places to stay, taverns at which to eat, and offices for lawyers. In time, all the details of a town would need to be set up. Ever the entrepreneurs, Joseph and Mary set about the task of organizing their land into a street plan. They named the new town for their family, Rogersville. The town grew and prospered. Joseph was named the first postmaster, and his home was used for government business for years. In later life, Joseph built a new post office, this time out of brick, along the Great Stage Road that saw hundreds of settlers traveling through Rogersville on their way to the Cumberland Gap and the new frontier of the Kentucky Territory. By the time of their deaths in 1833, Joseph and Mary’s new town boasted a beautiful collection of inns, homes, churches, and businesses. And the foundation was laid for a grand courthouse to stand as the centerpiece of the town they had founded.
Rogersville still echoes with the love that Joseph and Mary poured into it. Two centuries of history, and the violence of the dark days of the Civil War, have done little to dim the beauty of this little home in the mountains. But time takes its toll, and many of Rogersville’s historic structures, despite diligent work by its citizens, have suffered from the decline of industry and commerce. The town was bypassed by the interstates, and the days of hundreds of travelers passing through downtown have gone. There is much potential throughout the Rogersville Historic District, which was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973.
