Displaced People

[Displaced_Vol]

The Cades Cove thread made me think about the families of Tennessee that have been displaced over the years. When I created my screen name I wasn’t thinking along these lines just that I’m a UT fan living in KY. But, it is fitting as I’ve had family on most all sides displaced by one governmental entity or another.
Cades Cove & Norris Lake are the two I’m most familiar.
I was grateful to know my great grandmother for several years and she was a child when her family was moved to create Norris Lake. She led a great life and certainly moved on but it was also a wound that never fully healed. The ironic thing is that the community she lived in wasn’t actually flooded, just included as part of the land buy.
I was reading a book about East TN at my grandmothers this week and it mentioned at least one family that had members displaced 3 times: GSMNP, TVA & the Oak Ridge NL.
I know this has happened all over the country, LBL is one that still arouses passion out in west KY & TN I know, but it seems an awful lot of it has happened to the people of East TN.
Just some ramblings as I drink my coffee and watch it rain.

 

[Snake]

My grandparents home was displaced so they could build projects back when I was around 10 . The place was in the city limits but it was like a small farm place having a barn and several smaller buildings , guess it was somewhere around 2-3 acres .

 

[DoubleRidge]

I've read up some on LBL and if everything I read is true it's terrible how that whole deal went down....think what I read was "between the rivers" documentary? But it's been a while.

My grandmother who was born in the 20s grew up around Standing Rock....the few houses in the area are long gone and under water.....old kingfisher map I have shows "foundations" in back of creek.... always wondered which one was hers?

 

[Displaced_Vol]

My grandparents home was displaced so they could build projects back when I was around 10 . The place was in the city limits but it was like a small farm place having a barn and several smaller buildings , guess it was somewhere around 2-3 acres .

That’s a new one in me, Snake. What town?

 

[megalomaniac]

TVA stole my grandparents land when they built Calderwood and Chillhowie dams. Half the land was flooded, the other half they kept for themselves, then decided a decade or so ago they didn't need it and sold off the lakefront portion of my grandparents land they took for millions of dollars.

 

[scn]

A story I am familiar with illustrates the greed TVA operated with.

There was a lady by the name of Nellie McCall that owned 400 acres on the Tennessee River near Loudon. She was 78 years old and was born in the house she still lived in there. When TVA was acquiring (stealing) land for Tellico Lake, her property was on the list. The lake was going to cover 5 acres. The rest was for their waterfront sales.

Nellie told TVA that she would GIVE them the 5 acres if they would let her live out he life in her house, and then they could buy from her heirs. TVA said no.

I was working down in Loudon Co one night with the Loudon WO, and we saw a firey glow in the distance. I found out the next day that TVA had the sheriff's dept. to remove Mrs McCall with force late that evening. They then brought in a bulldozer and demolished her house. The glow I had seen was them burning the remains.

The 395 acres they took for the Tellico River Development group was later sold at MANY times the price of what they gave her.

So, no, I don't have much use for TVA.

 

[huntintn]

I've heard similar stories regarding the beech lake watershed lakes.

 

[Displaced_Vol]

A story I am familiar with illustrates the greed TVA operated with.

There was a lady by the name of Nellie McCall that owned 400 acres on the Tennessee River near Loudon. She was 78 years old and was born in the house she still lived in there. When TVA was acquiring (stealing) land for Tellico Lake, her property was on the list. The lake was going to cover 5 acres. The rest was for their waterfront sales.

Nellie told TVA that she would GIVE them the 5 acres if they would let her live out he life in her house, and then they could buy from her heirs. TVA said no.

I was working down in Loudon Co one night with the Loudon WO, and we saw a firey glow in the distance. I found out the next day that TVA had the sheriff's dept. to remove Mrs McCall with force late that evening. They then brought in a bulldozer and demolished her house. The glow I had seen was them burning the remains.

The 395 acres they took for the Tellico River Development group was later sold at MANY times the price of what they gave her.

So, no, I don't have much use for TVA.

I hate to hear stories like that. It makes it all very real. I can’t imagine having to deal with that. I respect the hell out of those that tried to fight the good fight, even though they had virtually no chance of being successful.

 

[KPH]

I've read up some on LBL and if everything I read is true it's terrible how that whole deal went down....think what I read was "between the rivers" documentary? But it's been a while.

My grandmother who was born in the 20s grew up around Standing Rock....the few houses in the area are long gone and under water.....old kingfisher map I have shows "foundations" in back of creek.... always wondered which one was hers?

I knew a family who was displaced from the Standing Rock area, they now live in Graves co Ky.

 

[Lost Lake]

I've read up some on LBL and if everything I read is true it's terrible how that whole deal went down....think what I read was "between the rivers" documentary? But it's been a while.

My grandmother who was born in the 20s grew up around Standing Rock....the few houses in the area are long gone and under water.....old kingfisher map I have shows "foundations" in back of creek.... always wondered which one was hers?

I killed my first buck near Standing Rock Creek waaaayy back when Westvaco controlled a lot of land around there. I miss that hunting, all for a 20 dollar permit.

My Step Fathers family was displaced from the Lost Creek area of LBL, and yes, there's plenty hard feelings over that one from a lot of people. But I love LBL.

 

[DaveB]

I would find someone in the line of heritage to those so badly treated and go get myself a lawyer.

The native indians have done it with great success.

The Feds did this with the Interstate highway system, AT&T got local governments to do it all the freaking time.

Emminent domain sucks

 

[jlanecr500]

A friend's family was displaced from Chuck Swan to Oak Ridge. Then they were displaced from Oak Ridge to Karnes. They have a family cemetery on Chuck Swan.

 

[Kirk]

My Grandfathers property was taken for the interstate back in the 70's. Ran the road right through the middle of it. Left him some small acerage property on both sides of the interstate but no access to it from the middle. The back 15 acres were inaccesible. He cut the fence a couple of times to access it. They would fix it back, he would cut it again. He finally sold it to a guy that had property attached to it.

 

[Hunter 257W]

I can understand the necessity of government taking property to build roads as distasteful as it is. But these lakes that end up largely as playgrounds for the wealthy while being basically stolen from the original owners are another thing altogether. Especially when they are only intending to use a small portion of a farm but take the whole thing. That would burn me up for a long time - not sure I'd ever get over that because I value my farm where I grew up highly.

 

[7mm08]

How much land would $249.00 buy around Tellico right now? That’s how much they gave land owners PER ACRE to “ develop” Tellico Lake

Jimmy Carter , John Duncan Sr,and Howard Baker should rot in hell for what they did there. Carter overturned the National Wild & Scenic Act to allow the Tellico Dam project to proceed. It produces no energy to this day

Snail darter controversy - Wikipedia

en.m.wikipedia.org

Read Baker’s speech on this.......

 

[EastTNHunter]

TVA stole my grandparents land when they built Calderwood and Chillhowie dams. Half the land was flooded, the other half they kept for themselves, then decided a decade or so ago they didn't need it and sold off the lakefront portion of my grandparents land they took for millions of dollars.

Hmmm... TVA didn’t build Calderwood or Chilhowee dams. Built by Alcoa. TVA still doesn’t own them, but does control river levels through them

 

[WTM]

I would find someone in the line of heritage to those so badly treated and go get myself a lawyer.

The native indians have done it with great success.

The Feds did this with the Interstate highway system, AT&T got local governments to do it all the freaking time.

Emminent domain sucks

enlighten me on the ATT deal?

 

[tndeerman]

Very good reading I enjoy this kind of history lesson

 

[Crappieaddict]

How much land would $249.00 buy around Tellico right now? That’s how much they gave land owners PER ACRE to “ develop” Tellico Lake

Jimmy Carter and Jim Baker should rot in hell for what they did there. Carter overturned the National Wild & Scenic Act to allow the Tellico Dam project to proceed. It produces no energy.

The Little T River was a pretty special place as well. The entire deal sucked! The Snail Darter tried to stop it.

 

[7mm08]

The Little T River was a pretty special place as well. The entire deal sucked! The Snail Darter tried to stop it.

I never got to fish it but older guys and respected flyfisherman said it was the best brown trout river in East. Apparently CADDIS hatches would choke you !!!