History of Fentress County Tennessee United States of America

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Fentress County was erected in 1823 out of Overton and Morgan counties and was named for James Fentress, speaker of the House of Representatives for five consecutive terms, from 1814-1823. Jamestown, the county seat, was named for his praenomen. Before this action it was called Sand Springs. In 1827 John M. Clemens, father of Samuel Clemens (Mark Twain), was a lawyer residing in Jamestown and the Obedstown of the 'Gilded Age' was the Jamestown of that time, now familiarly known as Jimtown.

The plan for this courthouse was made by Mark Twain's father, who was the first Circuit Court clerk of Fentress County and by far the largest land owner. It is said that he was the Si Hawkins of the ?Gilded Age.?

The first court was held at Three Forks of the Wolf River. The first courthouse23 was built in 1828 and Jamestown was incorporated in 1837.

Among the first settlers were: Conrad Pile, Pearson Miller, Arthur Frogge, John Riley, and Moses Poor.

Obey's River, or Obed River, is said to have been named for one of the long hunters, Obediah Terrill.

This county was the home of the notorious Federal bushwhacker, 'Tinker Dave' Beattie, and of Calvin Logston, who, with others, perpetrated cruel and bloody deeds in reconstruction times, and also of Marsha Millsaps, who, in 1843, was charged with being a witch, and of 'Old Man' Stout who, in 1835, was accused of practicing witchcraft.

As is well known, this county is the home of the famous Sergeant Alvin C. York, whose wonderful exploit in the World war is familiar to everybody. History will record him as Fentress County's most illustrious citizen of all times.

Statistics of Fentress County: Population, 1920, 10,435. Assessed valuation of taxable property, 1921, $3,639,378. Area, 510 square miles. Number of farms, 1,214. Railway mileage, 25. Drained by Obed, Clear Fork and Wolf rivers, tributaries of the Cumberland, and by Clear Creek, a tributary of the Tennessee. Eastern three-fourths of county is high tableland. Northern portion is the Wolf River valley, a fertile farming section, where is situated the farm given to Sergeant Alvin C. York, World War hero. Coal mines are operated in the western and eastern parts of the county and there are large areas of undeveloped coal lands. Plateau and the mountain sides are covered with fine timber. Natural grasses make fine grazing for cattle. Jamestown, county seat, has a population of about seven hundred, is a growing town, with good schools and churches, manufacturing establishments, prosperous stores, bank, etc. Fentress County is the only county in Tennessee, thus far, to produce crude oil in paying quantities. Jamestown, county seat, has been made historic as the Obedstown of Mark Twain's 'Gilded Age.' Mark Twain's father at one time lived in Fentress County, owning large areas of land. The first American soldier wounded in France was from Fentress County, as was the World war's greatest hero. Scholastic population of county, 3,612; high schools, 3; elementary schools, 56.

From: Moore, John Trotwood. Tennessee, The Volunteer State, 1769-1923. Vol. 1. Chicago, IL, USA: S. J. Clarke Publishing Co., 1923.

History of Fentress County Tennessee

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