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Rogersville Offers Many Firsts in History and Mystery in This Captivating Tour of Tennessee's 2nd Oldest Town!!
Will you dare to spend the night at the Hale Springs Inn?
| What secrets are contained within one of Rogersville's most historic structures known to history as the Clay-Kenner House. What spirits haunt the Mountain Star Mall? Do ghostly visitors still stay the night at the Hale Springs Inn? What famous figures are buried in one of Rogersville's most historic cemeteries? What tragedy befell a |
| weary Civil War Soldier in front of the Masonic Hall? Ongoing activity around many of the historic structures along this tour route have given way to a great number of unique and startling experiences for our guests. The "Hale |  |
 | Springs Inn" (pictured left) is one of the oldest, continually operating inns in the State and as one of the featured stops along this tour route, guests will learn about the tremendous history and hauntings there. |
| Rogersville is also host to the oldest Courthouse in the State and the site of Tennessee's first Post Office. The town even had it's very own "underground railroad". Might they yet haunt the old tunnels under several of the towns historic buildings? Discover Haunted Rogersville! |
The Rogersville Ghost Tour Departs From:
407 East Main St, Rogersville, TN 37857
| Appalachian GhostWalks' "Haunted Historic Rogersville GhostWalk" Lantern-Led Tour operates year-round by request. Advance reservations online with a minimum of two participants in your party are required to reserve as follows... |
March through October  RESERVE NOW
Evening Lantern-Led Rogersville Ghost Tours Begin at 8:30 PM DST |
November through February RESERVE NOW
Evening Lantern-Led Rogersville Ghost Tours Begin at 6 PM EST |
| Tours and dates are booked on a first come first served basis so it's a good idea to reserve your date as soon as possible. Keep in mind that if you book a tour and need to change the date, or even postpone your tour indefintely, you may do so as often as needed without limits, or change fees for up to one year from the date of purchase. By reserving your tour in advance, you're worry free knowing you will have the tour and date of choice for you and your travel companion, family, or tour group. |
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Here Are a Few Reviews From Past Tour Guests
My First Experience On A Ghost Tour - During fall break my son and I went on our first ghost tour through Appalachian GhostWalks, it was amazing. My son had been anticipating the tour all day and he was not disappointed. He could not stop talking about the next day! I was very pleased with the level of detail that went into this tour. Our tour guide Stacey was extremely knowlegable about the sites we visited and was very professional and pleasant. As a pastor myself I was impressed with the way he wove the supernatural and bilical truths together. All I can say is it was fascinating and I highly recommend it. Needless to say this will be a permanent fixture on our vacations to Tennessee. Can't wait for the next one! - Yossi S.
I just can't tell you how much fun we had. I am ready to go on another one tonight! At least I have my DVD to watch. Tom and Whitney and me and my best friend Lindsey are planning on staying at the Martha Washington Inn sometime next year. We will let you know if we experience anything. And again, thanks for a great night of history, haunts and humor. - Brandi Lane
I am not usually impressed with a paranoramal investigator. It takes a lot to impress me and for me to compliment someone... well, that means a lot. I feel so honored that Kris introduced me to you. Never have I ever been blown away like I was on your ghost tour. I have met many paranormal investigators, but no one had matched up to your knowledge nor have they met the qualification and professionalism as you. I saw in Jonesborough that you are the real true blue paranormal investigator! I am just so glad we crossed paths! Your the only one I have met that I can say, this is how it is to be done! I am looking so forward to returning there soon and the anticipation has already begun. If I can help you in any way, to help promote you, which I definitely intend to get word around, I will do so! Thanks again!!! - The Meyers
These are just a few of the many kind words expressed by our past guests. Read hundreds of other testimonials on the Guest Review page of our site. Many thanks to our wonderful past guests who we have toured with for more than twenty years. We appreciate you sending us your gracious feedback. We hope to see you again soon for another simply SPOOK-tacular good time!!! |
A Brief History of This Very Haunted and Historic Town
| Rogersville is a town in and the county seat of Hawkins County, Tennessee, United States. It was settled in 1775 by the grandparents of Davy Crockett. It is named for its founder, Joseph Rogers. Tennessee's second oldest courthouse, the Hawkins County Courthouse, first newspaper The Knoxville Gazette, and first post office are all located in Rogersville. The Rogersville Historic District is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Rogersville is part of the Kingsport-Bristol-Bristol, TN-VA Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is a component of the Tri-Cities region. The population of Rogersville as of the 2010 census was 4,671. |
| HISTORY: Hawkins County Courthouse, ca. 1835–36, is situated at the center of Rogersville. Still in use, it is the second oldest courthouse in Tennessee. In 1775, the grandparents of Davy Crockett, a future member of the United States Congress from Tennessee and hero of the Alamo, settled in the Watauga colony in the area in what is today Rogersville near the spring that today bears their name. After an American Indian attack and massacre, the remaining Crocketts sold the property to a Huguenot named Colonel Thomas Amis. |
| In 1780, Colonel Amis built a fort at Big Creek, on the outskirts of the present-day town, with the assistance of fellow Scots-Irish settler John Carter. That same year, about 3.5 miles (5.6 km) above downtown Rogersville, Amis erected a fortress-like stone house, around which he built a palisade for protection against Native American attack. The next year, Amis opened a store, erected a blacksmith shop, and built a distillery. He also eventually established a sawmill and a gristmill. From the first he kept a house of entertainment. |
| Founding of the Town: In 1785, the State of Franklin organized Spencer County (which includes the area of present-day Hawkins County, Tennessee) and declared the seat of county government to be located at what is today Rogersville. Thomas Henderson was chosen county court clerk and colonel of the militia. William Cocke and Thomas King were elected representatives to the Franklin General Assembly. The remaining county officers are unknown. |
| In November 1786, North Carolina began once more to contend with the Franklin government for control over the area, and that state's General Assembly passed an act creating Hawkins County. It included within its limits all the territory between Bays Mountain and the Holston and Tennessee rivers on the east to the Cumberland Mountains on the west. The county court was organized at the house of Thomas Gibbons. As had the state of Franklin, North Carolina set the new county seat about the property of Joseph Rogers. |
| Joseph Rogers founded Rogersville on land granted to him by his father-in-law after his marriage to Mary. Joseph Rogers (August 21, 1764 – November 6, 1833) was born near Cook's Town, Ireland, the son of James Rogers and his wife, Elizabeth Brown. He traveled to the area, by then known as the State of Franklin (which had been carved out of far west North Carolina), by 1785. During a stay at a tavern adjacent to Colonel Thomas Amis' home, Rogers met the colonel's daughter, Mary Amis, whom he wed, on October 24, 1786. Her father ceded the lands near Crockett Spring to his son-in-law— the same land that Colonel Amis had purchased from the heirs of David Crockett. |
| When North Carolina considered where to establish the county seat for its new Hawkins County, Rogers successfully lobbied to have the government located near his home. He volunteered his tavern, which had been established about 1784–85, as the first county courthouse, where it was finally established in 1787. With the help of other local settlers, Rogers laid out a plan for the town, and the town of Rogersville was chartered by the North Carolina General Assembly in 1789. The plan included a public square, deeded to the town government, which would host the town's public well and a county courthouse. |
| In November 1792, Rogers was appointed the first postmaster at Rogersville. The town's second post office, built by Rogers c. 1815, still stands at the corner of east Main Street and south Hasson Street. Rogers was the father of fourteen children with Mary. He died on November 6, 1833, at Rogersville, and is buried in Rogers Cemetery. His wife, Mary, died a month later. |
| In November 1863, during the Civil War, Rogersville was the site of a battle between occupying Federal forces and invading Confederate troops. Union forces had encamped just outside the town. The Confederates, led by Brigadier General William E. Jones, were able to surprise the Union forces and pursue them across the Holston River and into Greene County. The Confederates held the town for the remainder of the war. |
| Sentiment in Rogersville was divided. Many supported the efforts of twenty-six East Tennessee counties seceding from the state (much as the State of Scott had done) and re-joining the Union. Others saw President Lincoln's invasion of Tennessee as an unprecedented invasion of their homes and an incursion by Federal power; these people became strong Confederates. Rogersville was spared destruction during the war. In fact, structures such as the Hale Springs Inn were used by the different occupying armies. |
| Downtown Rogersville has been home to many of the town's numerous newspapers and publications. George Roulstone was Tennessee's first printer. He was encouraged to settle in Rogersville by William Blount, the new governor of the Southwest Territory. Roulston printed Tennessee's first newspaper on November 5, 1791. Because Knoxville, the intended seat of the new territorial government, had not yet been established, Roulstone published the first year of his paper near the Rogers tavern. |
| Roulstone called the newspaper The Knoxville Gazette and in October 1792, he moved his press to Knoxville, where he continued to publish the Gazette as well as other papers until his death in 1804. After the Gazette was moved, there was no newspaper in the area until 1813, when John B. Hood began publishing The East Tennessee Gazette at Rogersville. Other papers shortly followed, including The Western Pilot, c. 1815, and The Rogersville Gazette from the same era. |
| Specialty publications emerged during these early days, including The Rail-Road Advocate, The Calvinistic Magazine, and The Holston Watchman. Numerous other newspapers have been published in Rogersville over the years, most surviving only a short time and having modest circulation. Among them were The Independent, The Rogersville Spectator, The Weekly Reporter, The Rogersville Gazette, Rogersville Press and Times, Holston Journal, Hawkins County Republican, Hawkins County Telephone, and The Rogersville Herald. |
| Rogersville's longest-lasting newspaper is The Rogersville Review, which began publication as The Holston Review in 1885 by William T. Robertson. A year later, Robertson changed the name to the present banner. The Review's closest competitor in lifespan was The Rogersville Herald, which was published from 1886 to 1932. The town's printing heritage is chronicled by the Tennessee Newspaper and Printing Museum, located in the town's historic Southern Railway train depot, c. 1890. In 2020, the Rogersville Town Council acquired a three-acre site of a vacant shopping center with plans to turn the site into a civic service campus, consisting of a new community center, town hall, and a concessions area for users of Rogersville town park, which borders the complex site. |
| GEOGRAPHY: Rogersville is located in the Ridge and Valley Ecoregion, part of the Appalachian Mountains. Rogersville is located slightly southwest of the center of Hawkins County. According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 3.4 square miles (8.8 km2), all land. The town is in the valley of Crockett Creek, a southwest-flowing tributary of the Holston River. The elevation of Rogersville is 1,286 feet (392 m). Via U.S. Route 11W (see below), it is 28 miles (45 km) southwest of Kingsport and 65 miles (105 km) northeast of Knoxville. |
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