Trail OF Tears, Franklin County, Tennessee-
THE TRAIL OF TEARS IN TENNESSEE:
A STUDY OF THE ROUTES USED
DURING THE CHEROKEE REMOVAL OF 1838
By: Benjamin C. Nance
The route probably followed what is now State Route 127 into Winchester then joined Highway 64 going west. There are several older segments of the road along Highway 64 south of Winchester including the Old Huntsville Road and Crouch Lane. There is an oral tradition in the area that the Cherokees camped at Rattlesnake Springs near Salem. Lieutenant Oeas issued a pay voucher at Salem on October 28. Just west of Salem, the road crosses Beans Creek, and there is a wide area in the creek on the north side of the present day highway that would have been a likely location to ford the creek. The Peter Simmons House, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, is located south of the existing road on the east side of Beans Creek. Built in 1820, the Simmons house served as a stagecoach stop, and travelers camped below the house on Bean's Creek (Hammerquist 1976). Up the hill on the west side of the creek, there is a well-preserved segment of road (Figures 7 and 8 in Appendix B). It is a sunken dirt road lined with trees located at the top of a hill at Knoer Lane. From here the road would have joined what is now Lee Road, which is currently used mainly as a farm access road. The route went south to Branchville and followed present day Highway 64 into Lincoln County.
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