Rocky Top in Anderson County, Tennessee — The American South (East South Central)

Fire on Coal Creek

Photographed by Tom Bosse, March 4, 2017

1. Fire on Coal Creek Marker

Inscription. Soldiers responded to attack by firing cannons from here into the Miners Nest encampment on Walden Ridge, located south of the Wye Gap. Soldiers also shot cans filled with mud through the Wye Gap into the town of Coal Creek to signal that the town could be destroyed at any time.

Welsh miners who left the area after convicts arrived in 1877 kept close ties with local miners. Coal Creek miners helped stop attempts to bring convicts to mines in southeast Kentucky in 1886, so Kentucky miners reciprocated in the fight against convict labor during the Coal Creek War.

Erected by Coal Creek Watershed Foundation.

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: Industry & Commerce. In addition, it is included in the Coal Creek Watershed Foundation series list. A significant historical year for this entry is 1877.

Location. 36° 12.883′ N, 84° 10.017′ W. Marker is in Rocky Top, Tennessee, in Anderson County. It is on Vowell Mountain Lane, on the left when traveling north. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Rocky Top TN 37769, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally,

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this marker is in East Tennessee

and in Greater Knoxville.

It is also in the American South,

specifically in the Upper South,

in Appalachia,

and specifically in Southern Appalachia. Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the original Cherokee Nation,

the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

one of the Confederate States of America,

and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Militia Hill (here, next to this marker); Breastworks (here, next to this marker); American Chestnuts (here, next to this marker); State Coal Mine (here, next to this marker); Siege on Fort (here, next to this marker); Ghosts of Convict Miners (here, next to this marker); Fort Anderson (here, next to this marker); Why Miners Fought (here, next to this marker). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Rocky Top.

Photographed by Tom Bosse, March 4, 2017

2. Fire on Coal Creek Marker

Fort Anderson on Militia Hill image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Tom Bosse, March 4, 2017

3. Fort Anderson on Militia Hill

Cannon overlooking Rocky Top (formerly Coal Creek / Lake City), Tennessee.

Credits. This page was last revised on April 13, 2017. It was originally submitted on March 26, 2017, by Tom Bosse of Jefferson City, Tennessee. This page has been viewed 756 times since then and 37 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on March 26, 2017, by Tom Bosse of Jefferson City, Tennessee. • Bill Pfingsten was the editor who published this page.