Blount-Loudon Civil War Trail begins in Maryville, TN, continues in Friendsville, Lenoir City, and Loudon then concludes in Greenback, TN. This trail will take you through serene countryside.


WELCOME TO KNOXVILLE		BLOUNT-LOUDON CIVIL WAR TRAIL

About Knoxville Surrounding Towns Trip Ideas Climate Geography Knoxville Government Knoxville Accessibility Recreation Resources Knoxville Demographics Knoxville Facts Melting Pot Going to School in Knoxville School Website Wallpaper Contact Order your Knoxville Planning Guide here.		The Blount-Loudon Civil War Trail begins in Maryville, TN, continues in Friendsville, Lenoir City, and Loudon then concludes in Greenback, TN. This trail will take you through serene countryside. Total Driving Time from Maryville to Greenback: 64 minutes; does not include stops. Maryville During the Civil War During the antebellum period, Blount County supported abolitionism. In 1822, local Quakers and other residents formed an abolitionist society, and in the decades following, local clergymen preached against the evils of slavery. When the county considered secession in 1861, residents voted to remain with the Union, 1,766 to 414. Fighting directly touched Maryville, the county seat, in August 1864. Confederate Gen. Joseph Wheeler’s cavalrymen attacked a small detachment of the 2nd Tennessee Infantry (U.S.) under Lt. James M. Dorton at the courthouse. 301 McGee Street, Maryville, TN 37801 • Map It Directions: From this point travel 9.9 miles on TN-73 W/US-321 S/W Lamar Alexander Pkwy to Friendsville, TN. Driving Time: 15 minutes The Underground Railroad Members of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) came to Blount County in the 1790s looking for a place to worship in peace. Hardworking and industrious, opposing war and slavery, they developed the land and founded the prosperous settlements of Unity (now Unitia) and Friendsville. During the Civil War, Friendsville Quakers participated in the Underground Railroad to help conscientious objectors, Unionists, and runaway slaves flee to the North. The Friends raised money at their meetings to help slaves escape to freedom. 503 West Hill Ave., Friendsville, TN 37737 • Map It Directions: From Friendsville, travel 11.2 miles to Lenoir City on TN-73 W/US-321 S. Driving Time: 17 minutes Lenoir’s Station & Lenoir Plantation A June 19, 1863 Union raid and subsequent Federal occupation changed the lives of the owners of the 2,700-acre plantation along the railroad line here. The Lenoir family later claimed damages of more than $70,000 including losses of livestock, timber and grain. 200 East Broadway, Lenoir City, TN 37771 • Map It On June 19, 1863, in an effort to cripple Confederate held railroads in the area, Union troop led by Col. William P. Sanders attacked, destroying the depot, general store and Confederate military supplies here. According to local tradition, the mill was spared due to the exchange of Masonic signs between the owner and the Union military. After this encounter, Sanders continued east, destroying other railroad facilities. Directions: From Lenoir City, travel 4.5 miles on TN-2 W/US-11 S to Loudon, TN. Driving Time: 7 minutes Loudon Railroad Bridge The covered wooden bridge of the East Tennessee and Georgia Railroad here on the Tennessee River was a strategically significant crossing for rail traffic between Richmond and Chattanooga. The Confederacy especially relied on the railroad for troop movements, to transport salt and lead from Southwest Virginia, and to move copper and food from East Tennessee. Confederate guards protected the bridge during the famous bridge burner attacks of November 8, 1861. Sugar Limb Industrial Park, 250 Jamie Dr., Loudon, TN 37774 • Map It Directions: From Loudon, TN travel 15 miles on TN-2 E/US-11 N and TN-95 S to Greenback, TN. Driving Time: 25 minutes National Campground In November 1863, Confederate Gen. James Longstreet besieged Knoxville and Union Gen. Ambrose E. Burnside’s force there. Late in the month, after the Federal victory at Chattanooga, Gen. William T. Sherman led his corps north through largely Unionist Loudon County to Knoxville to relieve the siege. Sherman’s men bivouacked at several places in the county, transforming the countryside into an armed camp. 1849 King Road, Greenback, TN 37742 • Map It Source of Civil War Trails: www.tn.gov