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McMinn County, Tennessee Blacksmith Ledger

 Collection
Identifier: MS-3088

  • Staff Only

This collection contains the ledger for a blacksmith in McMinn County, Tennessee. The blacksmith listed each job with customer name, job, and cost. Sample entry: Strange Pangle Dr / March 31st [1849] To fix false rod make top & screws - ..12 1/2. Other names include Ganes Gollehor, John and Joseph Copeland, John Benton, David Cantrell, James Chesnutt, and Benjamin Prophet.

Dates

  • 1849-1851

Conditions Governing Access

Collections are stored offsite and must be requested in advance. See www.special.lib.utk.edu for detailed information. Collections must be requested through a registered Special Collections research account.

Conditions Governing Use

The UT Libraries claims only physical ownership of most material in the collections. Persons wishing to broadcast or publish this material must assume all responsibility for identifying and satisfying any claimants on www.special.lib.utk.edu for detailed information. Collections must be requested through a registered Special Collections research account.

Extent

0.1 Linear Feet

Abstract

This collection contains the ledger for a blacksmith in McMinn County, Tennessee. The blacksmith listed each job with customer name, job, and cost. Some recurring names include John and Joseph Copeland, John Benton, David Cantrell, and James Chesnutt.

Biographical/Historical Note

Someone who forges iron or steel, using hand tools, is a blacksmith. The name derives from the use of metals, which form a black layer of oxides during firing and which the person smites, or hits, to form a shape. To forge metal, the blacksmith softens the metal with heat.

In 1819 the Tennessee General Assembly created McMinn County, Tennessee, named for Governor Joseph McMinn, after gaining Cherokee lands from the Hiwassee Purchase. Calhoun was established in 1820 as the county seat, but three years later the seat moved to Athens. Construction began on the first railroad in 1837, which led to creation of new towns, for example Etowah (1905). Following World War II, corporations established major plants in McMinn County, and educational opportunities increased with the opening of Cleveland State Community College. Mayfield Dairy Farms and Tennessee Wesleyan College also draw recognition to the county today. (Source: Akins, Bill, and Genevieve Wiggins. McMinn County.Tennessee Encyclopedia of History and Culture. 2000. University of Tennessee Press. <http://tennesseeencyclopedia.net/imagegallery.php?EntryID=M055>)

Arrangement

Collection consists of one ledger.

Acquisition Note

Collection purchased by UT Special Collections Library in February 2007.

Repository Details

Part of the Betsey B. Creekmore Special Collections and University Archives, University of Tennessee, Knoxville Repository

Contact:
University of Tennessee, Knoxville
Knoxville TN 37996 USA
865-974-4480