Blythe Ferry
Blythe Ferry | ||
MPS Meigs County, Tennessee MRA | | |
| NRHP reference No. | 83003055 | |
|---|---|---|
| Added to NRHP | January 5, 1983 | |
Blythe Ferry was a ferry across the Tennessee River in Meigs County, Tennessee, United States. In 1838, the ferry served as a gathering point and crossing for the Cherokee Removal, commonly called the Trail of Tears, in which thousands of Cherokee were forced to move west to Oklahoma from their homeland in the southeastern United States.
While the ferry no longer exists, the ferry site is now part of the
Geographical setting
The Blythe Ferry site is situated along the eastern bank of the Chickamauga Lake impoundment of the Tennessee River, just south of the mouth of the Hiwassee River. The site is located near a point where Meigs County, Rhea County, and Hamilton County meet. Tennessee State Route 60, which formerly crossed the river at the ferry, connects the area to Cleveland to the east, Dayton to the west, and Decatur to the north. The unincorporated community of Birchwood is located just to the southeast.
History
Blythe Ferry was established by William Blythe and his Cherokee wife, Nancy Fields, around 1809. The ferry was an important river crossing on the "Great Road" between Chattanooga and Knoxville. Blythe sold the ferry in 1825, and the Blythe family would make the trek west with the Cherokee in the 1830s.[1]
In 1836, the
The route that Blythe Ferry was on was grandfathered onto
References
- ^ a b "William Blythe Had Early Ferry." TNGenWeb.org, 7 February 2006. Retrieved: 23 January 2008.
- ^ Ben McClary, "Trail of Tears, or Nunna-da-ul-tsun-yi." The Tennessee Encyclopedia of History and Culture, 2002. Retrieved: 23 January 2008.
- ^ Information obtained from Trail of Tears Corridor Committee marker at Blythe Ferry site, 29 December 2007.
External links
Media related to Blythe Ferry at Wikimedia Commons