Historic Union County

Spreading the good news of Union County

Memorial Day is a federal holiday in the United States for remembering those
who died while serving in the country's armed forces. This holiday, which is
currently observed every year on the last Monday of May, originated as
Decoration Day after the American Civil War.
On this day many people visit cemeteries and memorials, particularly to honor
those who have died in military service. Many volunteers place an American
flag on each grave in national cemeteries.

On a pretty summer day, my daughter & I were looking for gift shops when we came across the Knoxville Soap & Candle Shop. We were impressed by the variety in the store. I asked if they were hiring. I had worked for 35 years, was now retired, and I was bored to death. The answer to my question was yes. They were looking to hire a candle maker. Well, I thought why not, I am a fast study. So, I went to work the next day as a part time employee. Then in 2005 the place that made the all-natural soap was closing and after much persuasion I took the job.

Running a small business requires entrepreneurs to wear many hats. Marketing is just one of them. To celebrate the can-do spirit of the small business owner, June is Entrepreneurs Do It Yourself Marketing Month.

When entrepreneurs think about marketing, we often get stuck on what to say…and for that reason, we never start. I believe that’s because we don’t have a clear picture of who we’re talking to.

For the first day of June, let’s start DIY Marketing Month by focusing on the most important person in your business organization: your customer.

Historical Marker approved for Horace Maynard

On October 15, 2010, the Tennessee Historical Commission approved an historical marker for the Honorable Horace Maynard. The marker will be installed in about four months and a dedication ceremony will be planned at that time. The marker has been funded by the City of Maynardville, and we are grateful to the City for making this important historical marker possible. For those newcomers to Union County and those too young to know, this is Horace Maynard:

On a recent sunny Saturday in May, the smell of barbecue wafted through the air outside Maynardville's Union County Vendor Mall. The sounds of gospel music filled the inside, and owner Joanie Brock was filled with pride upon celebrating the one-year anniversary of her growing retail business.

By the late 1840s the political pressure to have a county seat where residents could vote and conduct business without having to make an overnight trip was sufficiently strong enough that an Act of the Tennessee legislature was drafted to form a new county from portions of the five surrounding counties–Anderson, Campbell, Claiborne, Grainger and Knox Counties. On January 13, 1850 the Act to establish Union County was passed. There was haggling over boundary lines and some lines were redrawn. Nonetheless, Knox County was not happy about losing so much of its tax base and filed a lawsuit ...

So now that warm weather is here, you might have already experienced it: the eerie feeling of one crawling on your leg, or having a swarm of them cluster near your skin. Yes! The season for ticks and mosquitoes is upon us - literally, and they’re hot on the trail for blood.

Both pests are annoying in their own right, but because blood is their meal of choice, ticks and mosquitoes can cause some considerable health complications as well! In fact, their blood lust makes them the perfect vehicles for spreading diseases like Zika Virus and Rocky Mountain spotted fever among others.

It appears that THE William Hamilton was already in the vicinity of Hamilton Crossroads by the time Tennessee became a state in 1796. All this area was Hawkins County until Knox County was carved out of Hawkins County, then Grainger out of Hawkins County in 1796.
In 1794 William Hamilton received a land grant from the Governor of North Carolina. This land grant included Hamilton Crossroads, which was in Knox County from 1792 to 1796.

Chamber of Commerce booth opening day at the Union County Farmers Market.

It’s been a long time…
It has been entirely too long since our last newsletter, and for that we apologize. Starting this month, please look forward to this newsletter arriving in your email boxes monthly. This newsletter will serve as our primary method of communication with you, our Chamber members. And without further ado...

Joannah Kadron, age 10, from Papa's Happy Hollow Farm is promoting her egg sales and National Egg Month each Saturday in May at Union County Farmer's Market. May 13 she demonstrated how to make a simple healthy breakfast kids could make for mom on Mother's Day, or any day just for fun. It included deviled egg sail boats on a lake of salad greens with mom's favorite fruit on the side. On the 20th she will demonstrate making an egg salad rollup, a kid friendly snack for Healthy Kids Day.

Christian mothers are to be honored. I thank God for my mother and the love she had for all of her children. She gave this love not only to her own children but to all the children she taught in school and all that she took care of in her daycare. My mother was a courageous woman. She raised eight children and made each one of us feel as though each one was an only child. We didn’t have a lot of materialistic things but we always had something to eat and a clean outfit to wear, even if it needed to be washed several times a week.

Help us identify the mystery tag. The tag was found by a treasure hunter using a metal detector at the Hamilton-Tolliver Historic Complex on Kettle Hollow Road. We have some ideas, but have sought some official confirmation. In the meantime, test your recollection and tell us what you think about this 1920 Union County tag.

Our good friend and good buddy, Frank Sharp [HMHS Class of 1960], is an avid reader and photographer who left Union County many years ago for the Atlanta area. Since his retirement, he's had many photography exhibits and is indeed a world traveler. I know you will enjoy Frank's piece. Bonnie Heiskell Peters

Check out the NEW Historic Union County at www.historicunioncounty.com Post your events for free.
Also a special committee on Economic Development is being appointed to develop a platform to promote specific economic improvements in Union County. If you would like to serve on this committee, please email your name and any specific economic interest to mtoppins51@comcast.net.

A Tribute to Ruth Gentry Raley

Ruth Gentry Raley, second child of the late William M “Will” Gentry (b. June 16, 1889 - d. December 1, 1974, buried Union Primitive Baptist Church Cemetery and Nola Sharp Gentry (b. December 22, 1896 - d. December 7, 1978, buried Union Primitive Baptist Church Cemetery). Her grandparents are James and Martha DeLapp Gentry and William “Bill” Sharp and Elenora Warwick Sharp. Will and Nola were married September 15, 1918 in Union County.

Every Veteran deserves being honored for their service, some paid the ultimate price, all have served granting us the privilege of living in the greatest country on earth. We are forever indebted to them for their service.

Tennesseans Who Died at the Alamo and the Union County Connection to the Bloody Event

According to a 1967 writing by Louise Davis of the Daughters of the Republic of Texas, 32 Tennesseans died at the Alamo, which was the largest number of any state that participated in the Seige of the Alamo. The following is a list of those who sacrificed their life for the independence of Texas from Mexico: