Join us as we travel North America's rivers, waterways, and canals; visit U.S. and Canadian cities, historical landmarks, national parks and river towns. We may even take you to the Bahamas.
Clarksville, Tennessee, (en route to Nashville), Cumberland River
Oct. 1; Today’s run: 35 miles
Notice the boat lift on the left side of the picture.Cumberland Fossil Plant. In 1970, two 1000 foot stacks, some of the highest stacks in the world, were constructed to emit emissions high into the atmosphere to lessen damage to the environment. In later years, this was found not to be the case and the stacks have since been replaced by smaller chimneys fitted with more efficient scrubbers (filters). The plant consumes about 20,000 tons of coal a day.‘Castle on the Cumberland’, formally known as Kentucky State Prison, is a maximum security, supermax prison. Built in 1899, the ball and chain was used as punishment for prison offenders until 1940. The electric chair was installed in 1910. Lethal injections have replaced chair executions. A 1910 reform bill, was to separate convicts by age and crime. All convicts under 30 years of age would be kept in a reformatory and those over 30 years of age should be kept in a penitentiary. The prison holds 856 prisoners and is currently full. The nearest town is Eddyville. Why is it situated on valuable river property? In early days, the river provided the means to transport the criminals to the prison.
Clarksville: , population 178,000 including the metropolitan areas of Montgomery and Stewart counties.
Clarksville Marina: It is common to see local boats docked under a covered structure along the river. The entrance to the marina is in the background. A sandbar had crept across the opening and just before entering, we saw a boat running tight to the right-side of the shoreline. It’s always good to have local knowledge.We took an Uber into town from the marina.What is now downtown, was once tobacco warehouses. Farmers brought their harvest to town to have it sold and shipped along the Cumberland River.
As county seat, the quaint, historic town is well cared for. Artificially surfaced parkland in the centre of town offered a good place for two youths to toss a football. Not far away, a Christian group set up candles on a nearby stage for an evening of inspirational talks.
It was by accident that I learned the town proclaims to be the oldest continuous tobacco market in the world. Raised in a small Ontario tobacco town, this interested me. I saw nothing commemorating the tobacco industry that had contributed so much to their heritage, not a bronze tobacco leaf or even a plaque to indicate how important tobacco had been to their early economy. And so I looked further.
Between the years 1904 and 1909, local tobacco farmers rebelled against the American Tobacco Company which at one time, was one of the largest industrial monopolies in the U.S. The unrest was the start of one of the most violent eras in U.S. history, the Black Patch Tobacco Wars. Although Kentucky and Tennessee were the leading worldwide supplier of *dark fired tobacco, these were depressed times and the American Tobacco Company was controlling tobacco prices. It was growers against a steadfast monopoly. Farmers, who often used violent methods on farms supplying the American Tobacco Company, were referred to as the tobacco night riders. Peace came to the counties when World War I closed most European markets for dark-fired tobacco.
*Tobacco leaves are hung inside a barn over burning fires that produce smoke resulting in the tobacco’s distinctive flavour. It is used in snuff, chewing and pipe tobacco.
One of the stained glass windows inside the town’s Trinity Episcopal Church, is a circular designed window encompassed by cured coloured tobacco leaves. The leaves surround a dollar symbol: $ This exquisite fountain is dedicated to Ajax Turner, the mind behind an early distributing business, ( 1933). The business handled Dr. Pepper and Double Cola, a mixture of nutmeg, cinnamon and kola. It continues today as a family run business distributing several non alcoholic and well known wines and beers. Several acres of parkland were within walking distance of the marina. It featured a concrete pad where you could drop your yoga mat, take part in some exercise on outdoor equipment and walk to Pat Head Summit, a point that veered into the river. Pat Head was an incredible athlete and coach. Look her up; she is an NCAA basketball coaching legend.
Traveling the Great Loop 
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