Allie Rock - Decatur, TN

Located at Decatur Veterans Memorial Park, a nearby sign explains:
This rock is dedicated to the memory of Allie Blevens. Whether she was playing with friends or cheerleading, Allie always brightened the day of those around her. We invite you to express yourself by creating art or an uplifting message to brighten the world around you.

Robert H. Smith Law Office - Decatur, TN

Located on Smith Ave in Decatur, The 1948 Law Office is now part of the Meigs County Historical Museum. The museum next door was built with a similar look of the law office which is placed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Meigs County Courthouse Front - Decatur, TN

Facing the town square, the Meigs County Courthouse was completed in 1904 at a cost of $4,000 after the previous one burned down. Many design elements of the previous brick courthouse were recreated here, such as the arched entrance, a stocky tower and stone trimmed window lintels. Other features include low pyramidal roof with gables on each face.

This courthouse has seen significant change in the last two decades. Most notably is the addition and modern entrance which faces highway TN58. The new section is wide instead of long, and both portions back up to each other with a small glass connector. Cosmetically the brick and stone foundation is a matching color. Much of the stonework around the windows on the historic section used to be painted white but not anymore. For several decades, the clocks on the tower were missing but now they have been restored. The courthouse was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1978.

Hiwassee Island - Meigs County, TN

Hiwassee Island was the second largest in the Tennessee River until the 1940s when the TVA flooded part of the 781 acre island with the formation of the Chickamauga Dam Lake. The island is located in Meigs County at the confluence where the Hiwassee River meets the Tennessee River.

The island has been nominated for listing on the National Register of Historic Places. Archaeological artifacts dug from the island dates back to historic and prehistoric tribal peoples that lived on the island dating back to the late Woodland Hamilton phase (ca. A.D. 600-900), early Mississippian Hiwassee (ca. 1000-1300) and late Mississippian (ca 1000-1500).

The Cherokees which were the last tribe on the island left in 1818. The island is also called Jolly's Island named for Chief John Jolly. As a young boy Sam Houston lived on the island with the Cherokees. Chief Jolly adopted Sam and gave him an Indian name "The Raven." Possibly, this early influence guided his ambitions to settle the state of Texas. Will Rogers was another person of note that descended from the Rogers Family that lived on the island.

Today, the island is the Hiwassee Wildlife Refuge, serving as the home for many species including eagle and osprey. It is the staging ground for thousands of migrating Sandhill Cranes from November to February. This photo is taken from an observation deck atop a river bluff at the Cherokee Removal Memorial Park. It is a popular observation spot for birdwatchers, especially when the cranes come through.

Meigs County Bank - Decatur, TN

Located on the Decatur town square is the historic Meigs County Bank which dates to the early 1900s. The building is on the National Register of Historic Places.

Decatur Methodist Church

This church building is a stop on the Southeast Tennessee Tourism's religious heritage trail. Although the building has been expanded, the core of the building dates back to 1857-59. It was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982.

Blythe Ferry Cherokee Removal Memorial

Blythe Ferry Cherokee Removal Memorial

Blythe Ferry was a ferry across the Tennessee River in Meigs County, TN. In 1838, the ferry served as a gathering point and crossing for the Trail of Tears. While the ferry no longer exists, the ferry site is now part of the Cherokee Removal Memorial Park, which was dedicated in 2005.

The Blythe Ferry site is situated along the eastern bank of the Tennessee River, just south of the mouth of the Hiwassee River. The site is located near a point where Meigs County, Rhea County, and Hamilton County meet. Highway TN60, which formerly crossed the river at the ferry, connects the area to Cleveland to the east, Dayton to the west, and Decatur to the north.

At the memorial site is a log cabin which houses the museum and serves as the visitors center. The Cherokee Removal Memorial is seven panels (one for each Cherokee clan) listing the names of each of the 2,537 heads of household forced to relocate. A short walk or drive from the plaza is an observation deck from a bluff overlooking the Ferry site.

for more info: www.cherokeeremoval.org/index.htm

Here is the Blyhte Ferry history on Wikipedia:
Blythe Ferry was established by William Blythe and his Cherokee wife, Nancy Fields, around 1809. The ferry was an important river crossing on the "Great Road" between Chattanooga and Knoxville. Blythe sold the ferry in 1825, and the Blythe family would make the trek west with the Cherokee in the 1830s. In 1836, the Treaty of New Echota was ratified, transferring all Cherokee lands east of the Mississippi River to the United States. The treaty called for a general relocation of the Cherokee Nation to the Indian Territory (modern Oklahoma). In 1838, President Martin Van Buren ordered General Winfield Scott to round up all Cherokees who had not voluntarily made the trek to Oklahoma and commence a forced removal. By the Fall of the that year, some 9000 Cherokee and 300 Creek had been imprisoned in stockades in Bradley County, a few miles to the east. It took several weeks to move the entire contingent across the river, with the last detachment crossing on November 12, 1838. Blythe Ferry operated until the mid-1990s, when a bridge was built spanning the river immediately downstream. The ferry site was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982.

Fleetwood Coffee + Butternut Coffee barn - Meigs County, TN

This barn is along highway TN58 in Meigs County between the Hiawassee River and Decatur, visible to northbound traffic. The other side is a Ruby Falls barn. It took me a while to figure out what was written here with the help of some readers. The right half was for ButterNut Coffee. The other side is for Fleetwood Coffee. I have since seen other Fleetwood Coffee barns in Tennessee, such as along TN61 between Oliver Springs and Oak Ridge and US411 south of Benton.