Founders Park

Founders Park. Evolution of a City. , Maryville and Blount County were both founded on July 11, 1795 – nearly a year before Tennessee became a state. Maryville was founded around John Craig’s Fort (Fort Craig), which was built in the 1780s for protection from Indian attacks. The fort stood near the location of the present Chamber of Commerce., Maryville has had six different courthouses since its founding in 1795. The first two were wooden. The third, a brick and wood structure that withstood Civil War fires destroying much of Maryville, later burned mysteriously in 1879. The fourth courthouse was destroyed by fire after being hit by lightning in 1906. The present day courthouse was completed in 1908. , Maryville’s original boundaries stretched from Norwood Street to Cemetery (Cates) Street and from creek to creek. Over the years, the town limits expanded to encompass 13 square miles by the beginning of the 21st century. Manufacturing grew along the creek; small stores, artisans’ shops, professional offices, and eventually banks and newspaper offices lined Main Street (Broadway). As auto traffic replaced horses, aldermen established speed limits in 1911 and installed the first traffic lights in 1937. , Maryville Woolen Mill generated power in 1890. By 1916 a city water system ended reliance on springs and wells. Known in the 19th century as a center for private education, Maryville developed public schools in the 20th century. Over the years additional services were professionalized – fire, police, library, and city administration. , To celebrate the bicentennial of the nation in 1976, Maryville added Greenbelt Park with a lake and walking paths. In 1995 the city built the Maryville Bicentennial Memorial in the park. The memorial notes 200 years of history in Maryville, the nation, and the world and recognizes deeds of outstanding citizens. , [Captions]: , Looking east on Broadway (c. 1910) before the era of the automobile. , Chisels are symbolic of Quaker-influenced craftsmanship prevalent in Maryville following the Civil War. , John Craig’s Fort enclosed approximately 2.2 acres with a 12 foot high log palisade to protect from Indian attack. The spring which served the fort still flows today. , Line drawing of Governor William Blount. Maryville was named after his wife, Mary Grainger Blount. , “Maryville, Tennessee” painted in the 1870s by John Collins, a Quaker missionary, educator, and artist. , Maryville’s earliest buildings were constructed of hand-hewn logs. , Horses and rider stop at the spring near the site of John Craig’s Fort. , Sam Houston enlisted in the military in Maryville on March 24, 1813. , Historic 1895 photograph of Maryville’s skyline taken from the direction of the present-day Lamar Alexander Parkway. Maryville College is in the background. , Looking west on Main Street (Broadway) sometime after 1915. The Bank of Maryville can be seen on the far right. , Broadway in 1939 during the opening of Gone with the Wind at the Capitol Theater. , Maryville in the 1970s after urban renewal remodeling. , The Blount County Courthouse as seen in a 1929 photo. , Southern and Western theological Seminary, established in 1819, became Maryville College in 1842. , New Providence Presbyterian Church’s new building opened on East Main Street (Broadway) in 1892. , Blount County’s fourth courthouse, built by Davy Jones in 1880. , Photo Sources: Davis Printing Co., Stinnett Printing Co., and Hyldard H. Stinnett, Photographer Nostalgia 76 1988. Smith, L. and Kintner E. Blount County Remembered: The 1890s Photography of W.O. Garner 1991. Stone, D. ed. Snapshot of Blount County History, Vol I 2003. Webb, E.J. Blount County Courthouse. The Bob Mize Family, “Gone with the Wind”. Stone, D. “Automobiles were the Exception”. , Narrative Sources: McNiell, S. Maryville City Historian.