Halls Crossroads (known locally as Halls) is a

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counterparts of incorporated places, such ...

in northern Knox 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 ...

. As a northern

suburb A suburb (more broadly suburban area) is an area within a metropolitan area, which may include commercial and mixed-use, that is primarily a residential area. A suburb can exist either as part of a larger city/urban area or as a separate ...

of nearby

Knoxville Knoxville is a city in and the county seat of Knox County in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 United States census, Knoxville's population was 190,740, making it the largest city in the East Tennessee Grand Division and the state's ...

, Halls is included in the Knoxville

Metropolitan Statistical Area In the United States, a metropolitan statistical area (MSA) is a geographical region with a relatively high population density at its core and close economic ties throughout the area. Such regions are neither legally Incorporated town, incorporate ...

. The town takes its name from the Thomas Hall family that settled in the area in the late 18th century. The population at the 2020 census was 10,341.

History

In 1785, the

North Carolina General Assembly The North Carolina General Assembly is the Bicameralism, bicameral legislature of the Government of North Carolina, State government of North Carolina. The legislature consists of two chambers: the North Carolina Senate, Senate and the North Ca ...

passed a bill instructing

militiamen A militia () is generally an army or some other fighting organization of non-professional soldiers, citizens of a country, or subjects of a state, who may perform military service during a time of need, as opposed to a professional force of r ...

to cut and clear a road by the most eligible route to

Nashville Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and the ...

at least ten feet wide and fit for passage of wagons and carts. This road is now known as Emory Road, which runs along a stretch of

Tennessee State Route 131 State Route 131 (SR 131) is a south-to-north highway in the U.S. state of Tennessee that is long. It is designated as a secondary route. Local names for the roads followed by portions of the route are Lovell Road, Ball Camp-Byington Road, Beaver ...

in the Halls Crossroads area. One of the earliest settlers was Thomas Hall who arrived in the valley around 1796 from Orange County, North Carolina. Hall married Nancy Hais on September 25, 1783, two years after his release from a British

prisoner of war camp A prisoner-of-war camp (often abbreviated as POW camp) is a site for the containment of enemy fighters captured by a belligerent power in time of war. There are significant differences among POW camps, internment camps, and military prisons. ...

Charleston, South Carolina Charleston is the largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina, the county seat of Charleston County, and the principal city in the Charleston–North Charleston metropolitan area. The city lies just south of the geographical midpoint o ...

. He fought for freedom and was captured by the British in the

Siege of Charleston The siege of Charleston was a major engagement and major British victory in the American Revolutionary War, fought in the environs of Charles Town (today Charleston), the capital of South Carolina, between March 29 and May 12, 1780. The Britis ...

. For this service the U.S. government presented Hall a parcel of land. It is to this northern side of Black Oak Ridge that Hall settled. Two generations later Thomas Hall's grandson Pulaski went west during the

California Gold Rush The California Gold Rush (1848–1855) was a gold rush that began on January 24, 1848, when gold was found by James W. Marshall at Sutter's Mill in Coloma, California. The news of gold brought approximately 300,000 people to California fro ...

and settled on a ranch in

Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...

. He returned to Halls and married Joyce Hall, September 8, 1859. Pulaski and his family owned and operated one of the first businesses in the Halls area as early as 1860, which included a general store and inn as well as a blacksmith shop. The store was known as Halls Crossroads due to its location at the crossroads of Emory Road and Maynardville Pike, giving the basis for the name behind the unincorporated town. The name Halls Crossroads would be officially recognized by the state of Tennessee for the community, in order to prevent confusion with Halls in Lauderdale County, an incorporated town.

Halls High School Halls High School is a high school in the Halls Crossroads suburb of Knoxville, Tennessee, operated by Knox County Schools. Founded in 1916, the school was one of the first in the area. It is named for Pulaski Hall, a prominent citizen and owner ...

was one of the first schools in the area. Founded in 1916, the school was named for Pulaski Hall. As of the present day, Halls Crossroads has grown into a unincorporated suburban town, with many occupied and unoccupied greyfields. With the recent annexations of land extending near Halls Crossroads, any proposal to annex the community would face conflict from its residents. In the early 2010s, plans were proposed for the

redevelopment Redevelopment is any new construction on a site that has pre-existing uses. It represents a process of land development uses to revitalize the physical, economic and social fabric of urban space. Description Variations on redevelopment include: ...

of many of the community's vacant commercial sites, including a

mixed-use Mixed-use is a kind of urban development, urban design, urban planning and/or a zoning type that blends multiple uses, such as residential, commercial, cultural, institutional, or entertainment, into one space, where those functions are to some ...

town centre A town centre is the commercial or geographical centre or core area of a town. Town centres are traditionally associated with shopping or retail. They are also the centre of communications with major public transport hubs such as train or bus s ...

, an

urban farm Urban agriculture, urban farming, or urban gardening is the practice of cultivating, processing, and distributing food in or around urban areas. It encompasses a complex and diverse mix of food production activities, including fisheries and fo ...

, and a greenway system.

Geography

Halls Crossroads is located in the

Ridge-and-Valley Appalachians The Ridge-and-Valley Appalachians, also called the Ridge and Valley Province or the Valley and Ridge Appalachians, are a physiographic province of the larger Appalachian division and are also a belt within the Appalachian Mountains extending ...

, which are characterized by long, narrow ridges that run in a northeast–southwest direction. The community is nestled between several such ridges, most notably Black Oak Ridge and Beaver Ridge, which divide Halls Crossroads from Fountain City to the south. Along with Fountain City, adjacent communities include Powell to the west, Corryton to the east, and the city of Maynardville to the north. Halls is drained by the Beaver Creek Watershed. Beaver Creek runs through the center of Halls Crossroads, and parallel to State Route 131, known locally as Emory Road, flowing 25 miles to the

Clinch River The Clinch River is a river that flows southwest for more than through the Great Appalachian Valley in the U.S. states of Virginia and Tennessee, gathering various tributaries, including the Powell River, before joining the Tennessee River in Ki ...

. It is located at . It has an elevation of 1,040 feet.

Education

Knox County Schools Knox County Schools is the school district that operates all public schools in Knox County, Tennessee. History Before the 1987–1988 school year, the city of Knoxville and Knox County operated separate school districts. In that year the two ...

operates six public schools in the Halls community including Halls Elementary School, Adrian Burnett Elementary School, Brickey-McCloud Elementary School,

, and Halls Middle School. Private schools nearby include Garden Montessori School, Temple Baptist Academy, Natures Way Montessori School, and St. Joseph School.

Economy

The community is the site of the locally famous Halls Cinema 7 and the Halls Stockyards, a

cattle Cattle (''Bos taurus'') are large, domesticated, cloven-hooved, herbivores. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae and the most widespread species of the genus ''Bos''. Adult females are referred to as cows and adult mal ...

auction An auction is usually a process of buying and selling goods or services by offering them up for bids, taking bids, and then selling the item to the highest bidder or buying the item from the lowest bidder. Some exceptions to this definition ex ...

facility. Halls Crossroads is also home to numerous stores and restaurants.

Infrastructure

Halls Crossroads is serviced by the Hallsdale-Powell Utility District and Knoxville Utilities Board, for

wastewater Wastewater is water generated after the use of freshwater, raw water, drinking water or saline water in a variety of deliberate applications or processes. Another definition of wastewater is "Used water from any combination of domestic, industr ...

municipal water Tap water (also known as faucet water, running water, or municipal water) is water supplied through a tap, a water dispenser valve. In many countries, tap water usually has the quality of drinking water. Tap water is commonly used for drinking, ...

, and electricity respectively.

Recreation

Nearby golf courses and country clubs include Beaver Brook Golf & Country Club, Three Ridges Golf Course, and Beverly Park Junior Golf Course. Halls Community Park features multiple ball fields, a playground, and a community center. The park is connected to the Halls Greenway, a hiking and biking trail that runs along Beaver Creek to the Halls Library. The Halls Senior Center features amenities like a computer center, a billiards room, conference rooms, arts and craft centers, and a community kitchen. The John Sevier Hunter Education Center (JSHEC) is located on Rifle Range Road in Halls Crossroads. It is a multi-use facility managed by the

Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency The Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency (TWRA) is an independent state agency of the state of Tennessee with the mission of managing the state's fish and wildlife and their habitats, as well as responsibility for all wildlife-related law enforcem ...

for the public. The center provides Hunter Education classes and has various firearm and archery ranges. Halls Crossroads is home to many large churches, most notably Beaver Dam Baptist Church, the oldest church in Knox County, and one of the oldest churches in the state of

Notable people

* Michael L. Campbell, founder and chairman of

Regal Entertainment Group Regal Cinemas (also Regal Entertainment Group) is an American movie theater chain headquartered in Knoxville, Tennessee. A division of Cineworld, Regal operates the second-largest theater circuit in the United States, with over 7,200 screens i ...

Pete DeBusk Autry O.V. Pete DeBusk is the owner and chairman of DeRoyal Industries located in Knoxville, Tennessee. DeBusk was born and raised in Rose Hill, Virginia, where he graduated from Thomas Walker High School. After graduating from Lincoln Memorial ...

, founder and chairman of

DeRoyal Industries DeRoyal Industries is a vertically integrated manufacturer and marketer of health care products. It is a privately held company with headquarters in Powell, Tennessee and manufacturing facilities in the U.S. states of Tennessee, Florida, Georgia ...

Chad Pennington James Chadwick Pennington (born June 26, 1976) is a former American football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 11 seasons. He played college football at Marshall, where he won the Sammy Baugh Trophy, and was select ...

, NFL

quarterback The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Ame ...

Trevor Bayne Trevor Mitchell Bayne (born February 19, 1991) is an American professional stock car racing driver, dirt racing driver, team owner, and businessman. He last competed part-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 18 Toyota Supra for Joe ...

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

NASCAR The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. The privately owned company was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1948, and hi ...

Sprint Cup Series The NASCAR Cup Series is the top racing series of the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR). The series began in 1949 as the Strictly Stock Division, and from 1950 to 1970 it was known as the Grand National Division. In 1971 ...

and

Nationwide Series The NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) is a stock car racing series organized by NASCAR. It is promoted as NASCAR's second-tier circuit to the organization's top level Cup Series. NXS events are frequently held as a support race on the day prior to a ...

racer.

Media

*Shopper-NewsHalls Shopper News
www.shoppernewsnow.com
2010. * WMYL 96.7 FM

References

External links

Halls Crossroads Chamber of Commerce
{{authority control Unincorporated communities in Knox County, Tennessee Unincorporated communities in Tennessee Knoxville metropolitan area Census-designated places in Knox County, Tennessee Census-designated places in Tennessee