The Residual Remains

Perhaps there will be time a bit later to share a recent, and maddening museum adventure, but my blog time is fleeting.

Well, you know I am a photographer and I do living history. The other thing of interest to me is greatly related to the past - ghost. I am most fascinated by the concept. So as a member of the South Eastern Paranormal Research Society, I spend a few Saturday nights till the dawn hours searching for proof of residual energy.

Recently (today), the Knoxville Sentinel ran a story about our exploits. We had a great time hanging out with reporter Amy McRary. Click here to read her article on us. I also got to be a ghost first hand with the expert handling of Clay Owen's photography.

Fort Craig

Maryville, Tennessee. In rambling about the Maryville Greenway, there is a true historic spot on the path. It is the site of Fort Craig. There seems to be little to no remains of the fort itself, just a monument that has been erected. But it was pretty amazing to just be wandering along and stumble upon it. It seems like it should be mentioned in its own right.

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• LOCATION:
• Latitude: 35.758374
• Longitude: -83.966925
• The Maryville Greenway, off of Washington Street, behind the Camber of Commerce
• On Pistol Creek
  

• A LITTLE HISTORY:
• The fort was built in 1785 to protect settlers from Indian attacks. (1)
  
• This was a wooden palisade owned by Revolutionary War Veteran John Craig. He then donated 50 acres of land for the creation of the city of Maryville. (2)
• It was originally referred to as Craig's Station. (3)
• The fort of about 280 people once held off 500 Indian attackers and forced their retreat. (3)
• The citizens of the fort asked that this land not be part of Knox county, but be a county onto its own and Blount county came into being. (3)
  

• CURRENT USAGE: Greenway, Memorial
  

• REFERENCE
1. www.blountweb.com
2. www.answers.com/topic/maryville-tennessee
3. www.blountcountyvoice.com
   

The Greenway

Maryville and Alcoa, Tennessee. In thinking about how I could participate in Blog Action Day's theme of environmental issues, what immediately came to mind was to introduce you (for those of you not familiar) to the Maryville-Alcoa Greenway. It is a beautiful connection of parks and green spaces that runs between the two cities. It is a great example of what cities can do to beautify their lands and keep green a color in their environments.

I actually shot this last week, during a bout with a cold. What I realized very quickly as I experienced the landscape with an aesthetic consciousness, I had no cold, no nose, no pockets full of tissues. I was not alone. I was not with any one else. I just was.

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• MAP:

• A LITTLE HISTORY:
• This is a cooperative effort between two cities in Blount County Tennessee.
• The Maryville Portion was completed in 1998. (1)
• It is 15 miles long. (2)
  

• CURRENT USAGE: Parks, Bike and Walking Trail, and Fitness Trail
  

• REFERENCE:
• www.maryvillegov.com
• www.cityofalcoa-tn.gov
  

Sam Houston Historic Schoolhouse

Maryville, Tennessee. Sometimes I get these inklings that turn into grand photographic romances. Like an actress falling love with a co-lead, I inevitably crush on certain subjects. John Wilkes Booth was one such example, which lead to my Sic Semper Tyrannus series. It was not so much the legend or the man, but the history, the adventure, the idealism, and the destruction that overwhelmed my imagination.

Then there is Sam Houston. If you are not a Houston aficionado or from Tennessee, Texas may first come to mind. However, his formative years and young political adult life originated in Tennessee. I think I lumped this fellow in with the likes of Davey Crockett and Daniel Boone, but I was sorely wrong. Houston, it seems had quite the life. It included bouts of alcoholism, divorce, mystery, treachery, and somehow, through it all, the ability to rise to the top and over come.

So, is Houston my next arcane romance? I am a bit undecided. Intrigued, yes.

I am slowly plowing through The Raven, the 1920s Pulitzer Prize-winning biography and following his footsteps.

Maryville and the schoolhouse is the first imprint of his that I have set my camera upon.

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• LOCATION:
• Latitude: 35.796722
• Longitude: -83.883533
• 3650 Old Sam Houston School Road, Maryville, TN 37804

• A LITTLE HISTORY:
• The schoolhouse was built in 1794 and Henry McCulloch was the first teacher. (1)
  
• Sam Houston started his school here rather than taking up the family business of farming.(1)
• He did this in 1812, when he was 19 years old to pay off either a $100 (2) or a $300 (3) debt. The debt was paid off within one semester. (2)
  
• A child could attend this school for $8 per semester term when it was in Houston's hands. (1) He was paid one third of this in money, a third in corn and the other third in calico fabric. (2)
  
• In 1813, he was done being a school master. He joined the military. (3)
• This structure has also served as a church and a tenant house. (1)
  

• STRUCTURE:
• The schoolhouse is constructed from hewn poplar logs with a seven-foot ceiling. The desks convert from the window apertures and the seats are also made from hewn lumber. (1)
  

• CURRENT USAGE: Museum
  

• REFERENCE
1. www.samhoustonhistoricschoolhouse.org
2. www.blountweb.com/samhouston/schoolmaster.htm
   
3. www.blountweb.com/samhouston/chronology.htm