Knoxville

Images of America: Tennessee

by Ed Hooper

Though it began as a small fort on the Tennessee River, Knoxville would not know obscurity for long. Founded in 1791, Knoxville became the capital of the new state of Tennessee five years later and rapidly became a major metropolitan area for the southeastern United States. Exportations of raw and natural goods brought wealth and new residents, and soon its main thoroughfare became a window into the growth, development, decline, and rebirth of an all-American city. Then, as now, all roads downtown lead to Gay Street, and everything Knoxville came from it.Though Knoxville is a decidedly Southern city, it has also taken its place within the American melting pot. Swiss, English, Dutch, Irish, German, Greek, African, and Spanish families have all played major roles in the city's development. For many years, at one small popcorn stand on Gay Street stood Gary Crowder-the meticulous owner of the amazing collection of photographs predominantly featured in Images of America: Knoxville.

Genres: Historical

128 pages, Paperback

First published August 27, 2003

Reviews

[Kristen H]

Beautiful book summarizing the early history of Knoxville, from Scot Irish cultural influences to the importance of the East TN community prioritizing upholding their Military backgrounds with honor. I was born in Knoxville and my whole (Scot Irish, yes)🤣 family is from East Tennessee, so I’m happily biased as I write this review….but I wish this book had been longer, especially in regards to expanding on its history during and after WW2. Knoxville is a beautiful city, as well as its surrounding counties. I do wish the author had expanded more rather than abruptly ending with the history behind the creation of the Smoky Mountains as well as creating the dams which ran families off their ancestral homes. This was such a vital part of East Tennessee and Knoxville history. During WW2, the US needed power to build aircraft and bombs, so the Tennessee Valley Authority helped our government supply that electricity. TVA engaged in one of the largest hydropower construction programs in the history of the US. That’s remarkable! My family has always discussed these turn of events…..and I wish this book had explored further than to end so quickly on that topic. It’s also quite remarkable how the Norris Dam construction began in 1933, which then provided power to Oak Ridge….the secret city, which produced the world’s first atomic weapons. Which begs the questions…..did the government know in advance when they built the Norris Dam in 1933, (completed in 1936, and after Pearl Harbor, that the land that the Secret City would be created on in 1942 was planned all along? It’s just too convenient that the dam had already been planned and constructed before WW2, almost a decade before Oak Ridge came to fruition. 🤔🧐🤓

[Adam]

In many ways, my favorite book from this year, for a very personal reason. My copy of this book, which is mainly pictures from the past of Knoxville but also a lot of interesting & explanatory information, has been annotated by my father. My dad grew up in Knoxville (and many of our family still live there) and in his annotations he shares his memories, mostly from his childhood. That makes this book one of a kind and very special to me as a result. I am thankful for the time that was put into this book and I enjoyed reading the content, but mostly my dad's notes.

[Roger Coleman]

This is a classic on Knoxville and required reading for anyone living or visiting the city.

[Nita]

Liked it

Was good to learn some things about my adopted city. Loved the stories and the photos and would love to learn more.

[Kerri]

Great pictorial representation of the development of Knoxville.