Cragfont (or Cragfont State Historical Site) is a state historic site and historic house located in Castalian Springs, Sumner County,

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...

. It was the home of Revolutionary War protagonist and

Middle Tennessee Middle Tennessee is one of the three Grand Divisions of the U.S. state of Tennessee that composes roughly the central portion of the state. It is delineated according to state law as 41 of the state's 95 counties. Middle Tennessee contains the s ...

pioneer General James Winchester.

History

Construction was started in 1798 and completed in 1802 by artisans from James' home state of

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...

. During the time, Cragfont was the finest mansion on the Tennessee frontier and typified the grandeur and style of the best architecture of the late Georgian period. Named Cragfont because it stood on a rocky bluff with a spring at its base, the house is furnished with Federal antiques, some of which are original to the Winchester family. The basement of the house features an authentic weaving room. Cragfont is listed with the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

and is open to the public. It is owned by the State of Tennessee and administered in partnership with the

Tennessee Historical Commission The Tennessee Historical Commission (THC) is the State Historic Preservation Office for the U.S. state of Tennessee. Headquartered in Nashville, it is an independent state agency, administratively attached to the Department of Environment and Co ...

by the non-profit group Historic Castalian Springs.

James Winchester

Winchester served as a

brigadier general Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed ...

in the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States of America and its indigenous allies against the United Kingdom and its allies in British North America, with limited participation by Spain in Florida. It bega ...

and a soldier against indigenous Native Americans. He is also credited with founding the city of

Memphis, Tennessee Memphis is a city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the seat of Shelby County in the southwest part of the state; it is situated along the Mississippi River. With a population of 633,104 at the 2020 U.S. census, Memphis is the second-mos ...

along with

Andrew Jackson Andrew Jackson (March 15, 1767 – June 8, 1845) was an American lawyer, planter, general, and statesman who served as the seventh president of the United States from 1829 to 1837. Before being elected to the presidency, he gained fame as ...

and Judge

John Overton John Overton may refer to: People *John Overton (printseller) (1640–1713), seller of prints and maps who succeeded Peter Stent *John Overton (priest) (1763–1838), English clergyman *John Overton (judge) (1766–1833), judge at the Superior Cour ...

. Winchester, who died at the home in 1826, is buried in the family plot behind the house.

In popular culture

Television

Cragfont was featured as a haunted location on ''

Haunted Live ''Haunted Live'' is an American paranormal television series that premiered on September 14, 2018 in the United States on Travel Channel. The series features the Tennessee Wraith Chasers, a group of paranormal investigators who are famous for t ...

'' on 2018 on the

Travel Channel Travel Channel (stylized as Trvl Channel since 2018) is an American pay television channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery, which had previously owned the channel from 1997 to 2007. The channel is headquartered in New York, New York, United S ...

, where the paranormal team Tennessee Wraith Chasers were the first ever to investigate the house.

References

*
Cragfont
'. Tennessee Encyclopedia of History and Culture, Dec. 25, 2009. *''Sumner County Fact Book 2007–2008''. ''The News Examiner'' & ''The Hendersonville Star News''. 2007.

External links

Official website of CragfontCragfont
— Historic American Buildings Survey Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in Tennessee Museums in Sumner County, Tennessee Historic American Buildings Survey in Tennessee Historic house museums in Tennessee Tennessee State Historic Sites Biographical museums in Tennessee Protected areas of Sumner County, Tennessee Houses in Sumner County, Tennessee National Register of Historic Places in Sumner County, Tennessee {{Tennessee-museum-stub