Rockwood in Roane County, Tennessee — The American South (East South Central)
In Memoriam
Photographed By Duane and Tracy Marsteller, September 25, 2021
1. In Memoriam Marker
Scout master
Charles Fred Burnett,
James Edward Burnett,
Roy Paul Green,
James Clarence Hill,
Woodrow Wilson Kerr,
Lawrence Nedra Montgomery,
Jack Acuff Shamhart.
Scoutmaster and scouts of Troop 45
Rockwood Tennessee
Boy Scouts of America
Heroes in death of the flood at this point
March 23, 1929
“then comforted they each his
brother and were not afraid”
Erected by
the Society of Colonial Wars
in the state of Tennessee
of which the scoutmaster was
a charter member.
Erected by General Society of Colonial Wars.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Disasters • Fraternal or Sororal Organizations. A significant historical date for this entry is March 23, 1929.
Location. 35° 47.674′ N, 84° 45.072′ W. Marker is in Rockwood, Tennessee, in Roane County. Marker is on Spring City Highway (U.S. 27), on the right when traveling north. Marker is visible from the northbound bridge over Whites Creek. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Spring City TN 37381, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 13 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies. Grandview Normal Institute (approx. 6.1 miles away); Rockwood Oak
this page online
Regarding In Memoriam. Wright and 21 Scouts were sleeping in a bungalow near Whites Creek when the creek quickly swelled and rose over its banks. Alerted by water seeping into the cabin, the Scouts first tried to wade through the creek to higher ground but the current was too swift. Wright then ordered the Scouts to climb onto the roof, but debris from a destroyed bridge slammed into the cabin and split it apart. Wright and the seven Scouts who drowned — including the twin Burnett brothers — were among more than 40 people in Kentucky and Tennessee killed by the storm system that day. It remains among the deadliest episodes in Scout history.
Photographed By Duane and Tracy Marsteller, September 25, 2021
2. In Memoriam Marker
Scouts refurbished the monument in 2017.
via History of Scouting in East Tennessee, 1929
3. Rockwood Troop No. 45, ca. 1929
"Eight Boy Scouts Drowned in the White Creek Flood, 1929":
History of Scouting in East Tennessee website entry
Click for more information.
Click for more information.
Credits. This page was last revised on January 18, 2022. It was originally submitted on September 27, 2021, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee. This page has been viewed 459 times since then and 78 times this year. Photos: 1. submitted on September 27, 2021, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee. 2. submitted on September 28, 2021, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee. 3. submitted on January 18, 2022, by Larry Gertner of New York, New York.
