Historic Rugby (Cookeville, Gatlinburg, Monterey: houses, school, subdivisions)

[JMT]

I was all over the place this weekend and passed through Rugby up on the Cumberland Plateau. From the Historic Rugby web page:

"Time stands still at Rugby, Tennessee - the restored Victorian village founded in 1880 by British author and social reformer, Thomas Hughes. It was to be a cooperative, class-free, agricultural community for younger sons of English gentry and others wishing to start life anew in America. At its peak, some 350 people lived in the colony. More than 70 buildings of Victorian design graced the townscape on East Tennessee's beautiful Cumberland Plateau.

"This would-be Utopia survives today as both a living community and a fascinating public historic site, unspoiled by modern development. Twenty original buildings still stand at the southern edge of the Big South Fork National Park, surrounded by rugged river gorges. Four are shown daily on tour."

Here are some pictures of Rugby I took on Saturday October 6.

Christ Church (Episcopal):



The schoolhouse:



The Thomas Hughes Library:



Inside the library, containing what most consider to be the largest collection of original Victorian-era books in America:



The printing shop, a cafe, and other buildings in the "commercial" area (note the wooden sidewalks):



A couple of cottages in Rugby:

[jguillot]

JMT, you never disappoint us. We can always count on you for pictures of beautiful Tennessee. I'm sure I can speak for all of us who want to be in Tennessee by saying thanks. Your efforts to make these pictures available are appreciated. I will definitely have to add the town of Rugby to my list of places that I want to see.

[TnHilltopper]

Sat. Oct. 6th... Didn't by any chance make it to the pumpkin festival in Allardt did you?

[JMT]

Originally Posted by TnHilltopper

Sat. Oct. 6th... Didn't by any chance make it to the pumpkin festival in Allardt did you?

Actually, YES! But I had no idea what it was. I was minding my own business, headed toward Jamestown from Rugby, and holy cow as soon as I got near Allardt the traffic came to a complete standstill. There had to be THOUSANDS of very happy people there. It looked like a ton of fun! There must've been 100 food vendors and 100 other booths set up there in the park in "downtown" Allardt. If I weren't in such a hurry to get to Cookeville to Tech's homecoming game, I would've stopped and taken some pictures. It looked like something I'll have to check on next year. The Allardt Great Pumpkin Festival.

And thanks to you too, jguillot, for all that you do to promote our beautiful state and, in particular, the oft-overlooked Cumberland Plateau. I thought of you when I stopped at the Dairy Queen in Monterey!

[ScrappyNana]

JMT
Your photos make me so homesick! I'm a seperated person...my body is here in the sand hills of florida but my heart, soul and mind are still roaming heavens hills of east tn and the plateau.
I was hoping to get up there this month to spend a little time with my daughter and grandson and enjoy the leaves changing. Crossing my fiingers that I'll make it in time
I enjoy your pics so much! If only life would stop getting in the way of what I want to do. lol

[JMT]

Originally Posted by ScrappyNana

JMT
Your photos make me so homesick! I'm a seperated person...my body is here in the sand hills of florida but my heart, soul and mind are still roaming heavens hills of east tn and the plateau.
I was hoping to get up there this month to spend a little time with my daughter and grandson and enjoy the leaves changing. Crossing my fiingers that I'll make it in time
I enjoy your pics so much! If only life would stop getting in the way of what I want to do. lol

Thanks so much, ScrappyNana. I hope you can get back up this way, too. Are you from the Rugby area? Every time I go there, I keep thinking how nice it would be to live in such a peaceful, incredibly beautiful setting. The Cumberland Plateau is overlooked, kind of like the forgotten stepchild compared to the Smoky Mountains. But I'll take a quiet weekend in the rugged Big South Fork over a noisy weekend in Gatlinburg anytime. (And for the record, I really do like Gatlinburg, I just don't like the crowds.)

I hope you can get back up this way!

[12buttons]

Originally Posted by JMT

Actually, YES! But I had no idea what it was. I was minding my own business, headed toward Jamestown from Rugby, and holy cow as soon as I got near Allardt the traffic came to a complete standstill. There had to be THOUSANDS of very happy people there. It looked like a ton of fun! There must've been 100 food vendors and 100 other booths set up there in the park in "downtown" Allardt. If I weren't in such a hurry to get to Cookeville to Tech's homecoming game, I would've stopped and taken some pictures. It looked like something I'll have to check on next year. The Allardt Great Pumpkin Festival.

And thanks to you too, jguillot, for all that you do to promote our beautiful state and, in particular, the oft-overlooked Cumberland Plateau. I thought of you when I stopped at the Dairy Queen in Monterey!

Cute houses. This I take it is the big tourist draw in the area...but ....
What does the rest of Rugby look like? WHere do the living people live? haha

Subdivisions like everyplace else? Neighboprhoods? IS there a town close by where there is a Krogers or Walmart? How far from cookeville is Rugby?

I am looking for a sleepy little historic town with lots of old trees ( hard to find here in MIddle Tennessee as most of it is barren farmland) where the air is cooler and cleaner than the city...oh yes, and are the natives friendly?
If I can find something nice here, I won't have to move back to expensive CT!
I do like TN very much...
Thanks!

[hiknapster]

Originally Posted by 12buttons

I am looking for a sleepy little historic town with lots of old trees ( hard to find here in MIddle Tennessee as most of it is barren farmland) where the air is cooler and cleaner than the city

And a Walmart?

Isn't that a conundrum?

[12buttons]

Originally Posted by hiknapster

And a Walmart?

Isn't that a conundrum?

I don't need to throw a rock and hit it from my yard - just don't want do drive 60 miles to the nearest one..lol

[JMT]

Originally Posted by 12buttons

Cute houses. This I take it is the big tourist draw in the area...but ....
What does the rest of Rugby look like? WHere do the living people live? haha

Subdivisions like everyplace else? Neighboprhoods? IS there a town close by where there is a Krogers or Walmart? How far from cookeville is Rugby?

I am looking for a sleepy little historic town with lots of old trees ( hard to find here in MIddle Tennessee as most of it is barren farmland) where the air is cooler and cleaner than the city...oh yes, and are the natives friendly?
If I can find something nice here, I won't have to move back to expensive CT!
I do like TN very much...
Thanks!

What you see in my pics is pretty much all there is to Rugby, although there are a few more houses. It's in a very, VERY rural area of Tennessee. Rugby is on the south end of Big South Fork National Recreation Area which is thousands and thousands of acres of virgin, rugged wilderness, steep cliffs, beautiful gorges, whitewater rafting, etc.

As for the creature comforts, you'll have to drive into Jamestown for the nearest Wal-Mart. That's about 15 miles from Rugby. Jamestown is about 45 miles from Cookeville, the nearest big town with a big hospital and more shopping.