His body was found on the grounds of the hotel where he was staying in Loudon County around 5 a.m. Earlier in the dark of the morning, Joseph Ross Dew of Knoxville had complained to the proprietor of the inn that he was feeling ill, sick at his stomach. A bit of soda water seemed to help him feel better, and Dew didn’t think whatever was wrong with him was all that serious. Quite obviously, he was wrong. Cholera was the suspected culprit, one of the many unmanaged diseases in the age before proper sanitation, antibiotics and vaccinations. Dew’s body was returned to Knoxville on the noon train, August 17, 1899.

A little over a year prior, J.R., as he was referred to, was noted in the society portion of the papers, visiting relatives in Strawberry Plains following commencement exercises at Carson-Newman College. He was accompanied by his only remaining daughter from his first marriage, Martha Lee, known as Mattie. Miss Mattie was apparently quite the looker, with blonde hair “like tangled sunshine” known for leaving swooning boys in her wake.

Mattie and her father were both listed as residents of Treeville in Knox County. Huh? Treeville used to have its own post office, and was/ is in the area where west Powell and east Karns meet along Emory Road, near Carpenter and Blacks Ferry roads. The name makes sense though, as J. R. had a nursery and was a purveyor of fine fruit trees. He was buried in New Gray Cemetery just shy of his 66th birthday. His second wife, Rebecca, joined him there in 1929.

The reason I was looking him up at all is because of his first wife, Louisa Marian Hall. I frequently take back roads into Halls when I have a quick errand to run from Fountain City – Tazewell Pike to Carter Road to Brown Gap to Crippen. When you’re driving, it’s easy to miss things. But one day recently I was a passenger, and as I was looking around saw it. A cemetery I’d never seen before, closer to Crippen than Carter. A few days later I went back to have a look and get some pictures.

This cemetery is known as Brown-Crippen or Brown Cemetery #2 (there are several Brown cemeteries in Knox County), and my best guess is there are about 38 graves in this one. There are names known to the community: Hall, Brown, Bowling, Crippen among others.

Photo by Beth Kinnane

Louisa has a fairly new marker on her grave. Born in 1834, she was just 46 when she died. She was a granddaughter of Thomas Hall, founding father of the crossroads. She married J. R. in 1860. The next year, they had their first child, a son, William Donald, who lived until 1932. After D.W. (as he was known), Louisa and J.R. endured one heartbreak after another. It was not an uncommon story of the 19th century: many children born, but not all make it out to adulthood. That story is written in the four graves adjacent to Louisa: Anna Jane (1864-1865) Fannie Lee (1868-1872), Lula Helen (1871-1872), Joseph Franklin (1875-1876).

For J.R. and Louisa, their first and last children together are the only two that survived, D.W. and Mattie. D. W. married Mary Alice Rhoads and had four children. He’s buried in New Gray Cemetery. The golden-haired Mattie married Union County native Avi Ira Smith a mere nine days prior to her father’s death. They had three children together. She died in 1959 and is buried in Greenwood Cemetery.

Beth Kinnane writes a history feature for KnoxTNToday.com. It’s published each Tuesday and is one of our best-read features.

Sources: McClung Historical Collection-Knox County Library, Knoxville Journal Digital Archives

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