Proclamation Establishing the Town of Knoxville and Other Materials
This collection houses three copies of a broadside announcing the establishment of Knoxville, Tennessee in 1791. Also included is a letter from James White to Lewis Robert Rhea authorizing him to retrieve some horses that had been stolen.
Dates
- 1791, 1793 September 9
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 (1 oversize folder)
Abstract
This collection houses three copies of a broadside announcing the establishment of Knoxville, Tennessee in 1791. Also included is a letter from James White to Lewis Robert Rhea authorizing him to retrieve some horses that had been stolen.
Biographical/Historical Note
James White was born in Rowan County, North Carolina in 1747. He fought in the Revolutionary War from 1779 to 1781, attaining the rank of Captain of Militia in the Continental Army. In 1783 he toured the Tennessee Valley around Knoxville to look for land, as he was entitled to a land warrant because of his military service. In 1786 he settled on the present site of Knoxville and built White's Fort. When the Territory South of the River Ohio was separated from North Carolina, White's Fort and the surrounding town (renamed Knoxville) became its seat of government. previous hit James White next hit served as the presiding Justice of the Peace for Knox County when it was founded in 1791. He was a member of the Tennessee Constitutional Convention in 1796, and afterward served as a state senator, becoming speaker of the Tennessee Senate in 1801 and 1803. He also owned several grist mills and donated land to Blount College, the ancestor of the University of Tennessee. He died on August 14, 1821 on his farm near Knoxville.
Arrangement
This collection consists of a single folder.
Acquisition Note
Boyd W. Cox donated this manuscript to Special Collections in September 1949.
Repository Details
Part of the Betsey B. Creekmore Special Collections and University Archives, University of Tennessee, Knoxville Repository