The Blount Mansion, also known as William Blount Mansion, located at 200 West Hill Avenue in downtown

Knoxville, Tennessee 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' ...

, was the home of the only territorial governor of the

Southwest Territory The Territory South of the River Ohio, more commonly known as the Southwest Territory, was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from May 26, 1790, until June 1, 1796, when it was admitted to the United States a ...

William Blount William Blount (March 26, 1749March 21, 1800) was an American Founding Father, statesman, farmer and land speculator who signed the United States Constitution. He was a member of the North Carolina delegation at the Constitutional Convention o ...

(1749–1800). Blount, a

Founding Father of the United States The Founding Fathers of the United States, known simply as the Founding Fathers or Founders, were a group of late-18th-century American revolutionary leaders who united the Thirteen Colonies, oversaw the war for independence from Great Britai ...

, a signer of the United States Constitution, and a U.S. Senator from Tennessee, lived on the property with his family and ten African-American slaves. The mansion served as the de facto capitol of the Southwest Territory. In 1796, much of the Tennessee Constitution was drafted in Governor Blount's office at the mansion. Tennessee state historian

John Trotwood Moore John Trotwood Moore (1858–1929) was an American journalist, writer and local historian. He was the author of many poems, short stories and novels. He served as the State Librarian and Archivist of Tennessee from 1919 to 1929. He was "an apol ...

once called Blount Mansion "the most important historical spot in Tennessee."Kent Whitworth, "Blount Mansion: Parking Lot or Landmark?" ''Journal of the East Tennessee Historical Society'', Vol. 62 (1990), pp. 80-92. The house is a wood-frame home sheathed in wood siding, built with materials brought from

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and ...

in an era when most homes in Tennessee were

log cabins Log most often refers to: * Trunk (botany), the stem and main wooden axis of a tree, called logs when cut ** Logging, cutting down trees for logs ** Firewood, logs used for fuel ** Lumber or timber, converted from wood logs * Logarithm, in mathem ...

. The two-story central portion of the home is the oldest section. The one-story west wing is believed to have been constructed next; archaeologists suspect the west wing was originally an outbuilding, which was then moved and attached to the main house, and there is some evidence the west wing was originally the servants' quarters. The one-story east wing was the final section to be constructed, perhaps as late as 1820. Blount's office, from which he governed and conducted his business affairs, was built along with the house and is a one-story, free-standing building and had a modest front porch. By 1925, the house had deteriorated, and a local developer, B.H. Sprankle, intended to demolish it and replace it with a parking lot to serve the new Andrew Johnson Hotel, then under construction. The Blount Mansion Association was chartered the following year, and after a massive publicity campaign by Mary Boyce Temple and the Bonnie Kate Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution and the

East Tennessee Historical Society The East Tennessee Historical Society (ETHS), headquartered in Knoxville, Tennessee, United States, is a non-profit organization dedicated to the study of East Tennessee history, the preservation of historically significant artifacts, and educating ...

, the Association raised enough money to purchase the house in 1930. The Blount Mansion Association has since maintained the house as a museum, and has made numerous renovations to restore the house and property to its late 18th-century appearance. In the 1960s, the mansion was designated a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places listed ...

Location

Blount Mansion occupies a lot in downtown Knoxville situated along Hill Avenue between Hill's intersection with Gay Street on the west and Hill's intersection with State Street on the east. The area rests atop an embankment overlooking the Volunteer Landing riverfront along the

Tennessee River The Tennessee River is the largest tributary of the Ohio River. It is approximately long and is located in the southeastern United States in the Tennessee Valley. The river was once popularly known as the Cherokee River, among other name ...

to the south. The Craighead-Jackson House, also managed by the Blount Mansion Association, is located across State Street to the east.

History

The United States created the Territory South of the Ohio River, usually called the "Southwest Territory", in 1790. President

George Washington George Washington (February 22, 1732, 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of ...

appointed North Carolina businessman and land speculator William Blount as the territory's first governor. Blount initially governed from Rocky Mount (in the Tri-Cities area), but began searching for a permanent capital for the territory. After Blount selected White's Fort for the site of the capital, James White, the owner of the fort and adjacent lands, and his son-in-law Charles McClung drew up a grid of 64 half-acre lots that would eventually become the city of Knoxville, and in 1791 held a lottery for parties interested in purchasing a lot. Lot 18, the future site of Blount Mansion, was originally sold to John Carter. Blount purchased the lot from Carter in 1794, although it's believed they had a verbal agreement for sale of the lot much earlier, and thus construction of Blount Mansion began sometime around March 1792 when Blount relocated to Knoxville.Stanley Folmsbee and Susan Hill Dillon, "Blount Mansion: Tennessee's Territorial Capitol." ''Tennessee Historical Quarterly'' Vol. 22, no. 1 (March 1963), pp. 106-108. While the mansion was being built, the Blount family may have lived in a cabin atop Barbara Hill, now known as " The Hill" by

University of Tennessee The University of Tennessee (officially The University of Tennessee, Knoxville; or UT Knoxville; UTK; or UT) is a public land-grant research university in Knoxville, Tennessee. Founded in 1794, two years before Tennessee became the 16th state ...

students. Blount's reasons for building an elaborate frame house on the frontier were twofold. First, the house would act as a capitol of the Southwest Territory, and thus would need to command the respect of visiting delegations. Second, Blount wanted to fulfill a promise he made to his wife, Mary Grainger Blount, to build a home comparable to their lavish North Carolina home. The first phase of construction was completed between 1795 and 1796, although work continued until well into the 19th century. The detached kitchen was likely completed in subsequent years. Blount's friend John Chisholm built Chisholm Tavern facing State Street along the south side of the lot in 1792.

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

John Sevier John Sevier (September 23, 1745 September 24, 1815) was an American soldier, frontiersman, and politician, and one of the founding fathers of the State of Tennessee. A member of the Democratic-Republican Party, he played a leading role in Tennes ...

were frequent visitors to the mansion, and early guests included botanist

André Michaux André Michaux, also styled Andrew Michaud, (8 March 174611 October 1802) was a French botanist and explorer. He is most noted for his study of North American flora. In addition Michaux collected specimens in England, Spain, France, and even Per ...

and various

Cherokee The Cherokee (; chr, ᎠᏂᏴᏫᏯᎢ, translit=Aniyvwiyaʔi or Anigiduwagi, or chr, ᏣᎳᎩ, links=no, translit=Tsalagi) are one of the indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands of the United States. Prior to the 18th century, t ...

and Chickasaw chiefs. Blount transferred ownership of the mansion to his younger half-brother

Willie Blount Willie Blount (April 18, 1768September 10, 1835) was an American politician who served as the third Governor of Tennessee from 1809 to 1815. Blount's efforts to raise funds and soldiers during the War of 1812 earned Tennessee the nickname, "Volu ...

in 1797. Willie Blount deeded the mansion to Blount's son William Grainger Blount in 1818. The Blount family sold the mansion to the McClung family in 1825, and in 1845 Knoxville mayor Samuel B. Boyd had obtained ownership of the property. The Boyd family maintained ownership of the mansion until the early 20th century, renting it out to various private and commercial interests. The Boyds also made several additions to the mansion, including a large Victorian-style porch.

Restoration and preservation

By 1925, Blount Mansion had badly deteriorated. Local developer B.H. Sprankle made plans to level the site and demolish the mansion and outbuildings to make room for a parking lot for the Andrew Johnson Hotel. In response,

Mary Boyce Temple Mary Boyce Temple (July 6, 1856 – May 16, 1929) was an American philanthropist and socialite, active primarily in Knoxville, Tennessee, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. She was the first president of the Ossoli Circle, the oldes ...

of the Bonnie Kate Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution purchased an option on the property, and the following year the Blount Mansion Association was chartered. By 1930, with the help of the DAR, the East Tennessee Historical Society, and the University of Tennessee, the BMA had raised enough money— just over $31,000— to purchase the mansion. The Association immediately initiated efforts to restore the house to its 18th-century condition, removing the Victorian additions and adding period furniture. In 1935 the Knoxville Garden Club assumed the maintenance of the grounds around the mansion. In 1955, the BMA received a grant from the Tennessee Historical Commission that allowed them to restore Blount's office. The kitchen was rebuilt in 1960 after archaeologists discovered its original foundation. That same year, the discovery of a "vault" in the rear of the house reignited old rumors about an early escape tunnel that supposedly passed under the

, but an investigation by the

National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational propert ...

determined the "vault" to be a cooling room used for storage of wine and perishable foods. In subsequent years, paint analysis on the exterior and interior walls determined the walls' original color, and the walls were repainted accordingly. Archaeological excavations in 1973 and 1984 uncovered other outbuilding foundations and an assemblage of late 18th-century artifacts. An architectural analysis in the 1990s identified six phases of construction, and suggested that the mansion didn't acquire its full form until around 1815.Tara Mitchell Mielnik
Blount Mansion
''Tennessee Encyclopedia of History and Culture'', 2002. Retrieved: 29 July 2009.

Design

Blount Mansion is a frame and

clapboard Clapboard (), also called bevel siding, lap siding, and weatherboard, with regional variation in the definition of these terms, is wooden siding of a building in the form of horizontal boards, often overlapping. ''Clapboard'' in modern Americ ...

structure consisting of a two-story central block and one-story wings on the east and west ends. The first floor of the main structure contains a parlor, dining room and hallway with a quarter-turn staircase. The second story contains two bedrooms. The west wing contains a single bedroom. The east wing contains a drawing room, and has a basement accessible by stairs and a trap door. Chimneys are located on the east end of the main block and at the outside ends of both wings. The frame was probably built using locally cut timber, but the house's finished woodwork, paneling, flooring and weatherboarding materials were shipped from North Carolina.Horace Sheely, Jr., , 14 September 1964. Retrieved: 29 July 2009. Blount's office, often referred to as the Governor's Office, stands behind the west wing of the mansion. The office is a one-story frame-and-clapboard structure with a brick chimney on its south side, and a pair of sash windows with

louver A louver (American English) or louvre (British English; see spelling differences) is a window blind or shutter with horizontal slats that are angled to admit light and air, but to keep out rain and direct sunshine. The angle of the sla ...

ed blinds along the east and west walls. The interior includes wide-board paneling and a carved mantel. The mansion's kitchen had originally been a detached structure located behind the east wing. At an unknown date, this kitchen was dismantled and its materials used to construct an attached rear-wing kitchen. In 1958, archaeologists discovered the foundation of the original kitchen. The rear-wing kitchen was then dismantled and used to rebuild the detached kitchen on its original foundation behind the east wing. The kitchen has a design similar to the office.

References

External links

Blount Mansion
— official website
Blount Mansion
–

Historic American Buildings Survey Heritage Documentation Programs (HDP) is a division of the U.S. National Park Service (NPS) responsible for administering the Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS), Historic American Engineering Record (HAER), and Historic American Landscapes ...

entry at the Library of Congress {{DEFAULTSORT:Blount, William, Mansion Biographical museums in Tennessee Daughters of the American Revolution museums Historic house museums in Tennessee Houses completed in 1792 Houses in Knoxville, Tennessee Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in Tennessee Museums in Knoxville, Tennessee National Historic Landmarks in Tennessee National Register of Historic Places in Knoxville, Tennessee Southwest Territory Homes of United States Founding Fathers