Old Deery Inn

Old Deery Inn (HM1BKK)

Location: Blountville, TN 37617 Sullivan County
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Country: United States of America
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N 36° 31.987', W 82° 19.57'

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Inscription

Refuge from the Storm

In September 1863, Confederate Gen. Samuel Jones's command and Union Gen. Ambrose E. Burnside's forces contested control of the Virginia and Tennessee Railroad a few miles east. On September 22, Union Col. John W. Foster's brigade engaged the forces of Confederate Col. James E. Carter at Blountville. When the firing began, the women and children gathered the sick and elderly and sought refuge in the cellars of the most solid buildings; the St. John residence and the Old Deery Inn. "In the thick of the fight and more dangerously exposed than the soldiers of either side were the fleeing women," historian Oliver Taylor wrote in 1909. "In the confusion of such a hasty departure distracted mothers became separated from their children; cavalrymen dashed across their path, while bullets and bombs whistled above them. They went through Brown's meadow and finally found a safe retreat beyond the hills." Exploding shells set much of the town on fire.

William Deery constructed this trading post and tavern, later known as the Old Derry Inn, early in the 1800s. As Deery prospered, he added to the building, including a three-story hewn stone structure in the rear. After his death about 1845, his widow lived here until the Cate family purchased it after the Civil War.

Although Deery's children had left Sullivan County years before, they did not escape the war's effects. Eldest daughter Martha married Col. William Churchwell, who died at Cumberland Gap in 1862. Seraphina, the youngest daughter, married Col. Randal McGavock, a colonel in the 10th Tennessee Infantry Regiment (CSA) who was killed at the Battle of Raymond.

(captions)
Old Deery Inn, 1927 — Courtesy Hunt Library
The dining room in the stone section of the inn where town residents took refuge during the Battle of Blountville
Details
HM NumberHM1BKK
Series This marker is part of the Tennessee: Tennessee Civil War Trails series
Tags
Placed ByTennessee Civil War Trails
Marker ConditionNo reports yet
Date Added Thursday, September 4th, 2014 at 7:46pm PDT -07:00
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Locationbig map
UTM (WGS84 Datum)17S E 381282 N 4043899
Decimal Degrees36.53311667, -82.32616667
Degrees and Decimal MinutesN 36° 31.987', W 82° 19.57'
Degrees, Minutes and Seconds36° 31' 59.22" N, 82° 19' 34.20" W
Driving DirectionsGoogle Maps
Area Code(s)423
Closest Postal AddressAt or near 3401-3419 Bristol Hwy, Blountville TN 37617, US
Alternative Maps Google Maps, MapQuest, Bing Maps, Yahoo Maps, MSR Maps, OpenCycleMap, MyTopo Maps, OpenStreetMap

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