By John L. Kiener,
Washington County Sessions Judge
Now east again:
J.W. Atkinson, silversmith. Two-story frame.
Poindexter Bros., merchants, two-story brick, sold general merchandise.
Jeremiah Smith, laborer. One-story frame just back of Poindexter Store. A large family; Addison, Zachariah, sons; one daughter married Thomas Russell; one, William Paterson; one, William Bratton; one, John Naff; one, a White; Miss Fannie, a school teacher.
Phoenix Hotel. Three-story brick, owned by John Green, with a livery stable in connection. This hotel ceased to function about 1850. The sites were on the vacant lot now owned by Miss Alice Slemons.
Job and Printing Office; one-story frame. In this building, I think, W.G. Brownlow published his paper the short time he lived in Jonesboro. This was later run by Lawson Gifford, who published Fowler’s Arithmetic, edited by Roswell C. Smith. From this Arithmetic my father took the writer’s name.
Servant house of W.M. Gammon; two-story brick, both torn away. Stood in the yard now the possession of the Hoss heirs.
W.M. Gammon, farmer and broker; three-stories. Three sons: Melville, John A., Ally. The youngest was killed during the war near Morristown in a skirmish with some Federal Cavalry John A. and Melville moved to Rome, GA, and engaged in the mercantile business. Now the home of Matt Hoss’ heirs.
David Reece, shoemaker; a small one-story brick. Site now of the new Baptist parsonage.
William Cate, pastor of the Baptist Church for many years; a two-story frame. Only one son that I remember, Gideon, father of Col. R.H. Cate, of Knoxville. Now the home of Mrs. George Smith.
Enoch Brown; a two-story frame, father of Col. A.J. Brown, who was also Circuit Court Judge, married Miss Sally Wild. Now the home of ex-Sheriff Prithett.
J.W. McCatherine, wagonmaker; one-story frame. Now replaced by a new building owned by Carl Osborne.
Addison Smith, brick mason; one-story frame. His sister, Fannie, was a school teacher.
Joseph Marshall, colored Minister and Carper; one-story frame.
At this point, I am going to stop in Captain Ross Smith’s Jonesborough City Directory. In Part IX, we will travel back to the Phoenix Hotel, going south on both sides of old Cherokee Road.
I mentioned earlier that Captain Smith’s grandfather, Samuel Mauk, had a cold blast furnace, where iron was made. In Reminiscences, Smith tells us: “In order to sell the iron and other products of the country, he would build flatboats (four or five), as there was always what they called the Maytide in the river.This was their chance to get to market, so with two men to a boat they would set sail for Knoxville or Chattanooga. When their cargo was sold they had the pleasure of walking back home.”
