The Hanging of Anthony Blair
This was an event that attracted crowds of record proportion. People traveled from all over the area to witness Hamblen County's first public hanging. It is a story that few people know today, but the things witnessed on September 26th 1879 had such a lasting effect on the community, that this also be the last public execution in Hamblen County. What follows is the story of Anthony Blair.
Maggie Blair, the step daughter of Anthony Blair left his house near Jonesboro, about the 1st of May, and was in the employment of William Donaldson. Blair, having become aware of her location, came to Russellville on the 29th of July. He headed to the residence of Mr. Donaldson, and entered the kitchen where Maggie and Mrs. Donaldson were preparing dinner.
Anthony told her in a domineering voice to come out of the house as he wished to speak with her. The girl, who appeared very afraid of him, refused to leave the home. Mr. William Donaldson came up at this moment, and Anthony left and nothing more was seen out of him until the night which the murder occurred.
To read the rest of the story from an actual copy of the original newspaper in which this story appeared, visit the Downtown Morristown Historical Museum. Or hear the story in its entirety on the Tennessee Ghost Walk that begins inside the museum each Saturday night.
History of the New Market Train Wreck
Saturday, September 24, 1904 was a terrible day in the history of one east Tennessee community. On this day two trains collided, head on, near the town of New Market. At the time, it was the worst wreck of its kind to ever occur in North America. It is believed that up to 113 people lost their lives in this tragedy.
The wreck involved train Number 15, a local train, out of Bristol and train Number 12, the Carolina Special, out of Chattanooga.
Train Number 15 left Bristol that Saturday morning headed for Knoxville. It made stops to pick up passengers in Morristown and New Market. Number 15’s three cars were filled with 140 passengers headed to Knoxville for a day of shopping or to attend a fair that was going on in the city. It was common to travel by train in those days because roads were bad and automobiles were scarce and not dependable.
This story can sometimes be heard at the Tennessee Tall Tales Emporium. You will hear the story of the little girl that never returned for her burial, you can actually see this little girl in this photo standing to the right in the center of the tracks. You can always hear this story on the Tennessee Ghost Walk.
