Region: East Tennessee
Time Zone: Eastern
Map courtesy of Tennessee Department of
Transportation.
Order a free paper
copy of the Official Tennessee Transportation Map.
Download entire transportation map.
TN 52 enters Scott County from
Morgan County in the west. The road is only in
Scott County for about five miles before TN 52 ends at U.S. 27. From
here, you can go south on U.S. 27 to Harriman (one of the great railroad
junctions in the south) and then to I-40. You can also go north
on U.S. 27 which will take you into Campbell
County where you'll find I-75 and four state parks.
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 |
| (Left)
This sign is on U.S. 27 looking north. It points to the beginning on TN
52. (Right)
This is the eastern end of TN 52, located in Elgin in Scott County, Tennessee.
The road in the foreground is U.S. 27. |
Things to See in Scott County
The Rathole Division
Elgin, Tennessee
If you are a railroad fan, one of the most famous U.S. railroads crosses under
TN 52 shortly after you enter from U.S. 27. The railroad is the "Rathole
Division" of the CNO&TP. The Cincinnati, New Orleans and Texas
Pacific is owned by the City of Cincinnati and is operated by Norfolk Southern
Railway. One section of the CNO&TP running between Wilmore, Kentucky, and
Emory Gap, Tennessee, had 27 tunnels. Most of the tunnels were hot,
crooked and pitch black dark. This was a very hazardous 160 miles of track, and
this section, not surprisingly, became known as the "Rathole Division."
During the early 1960s, Southern Railway improved this track. This project
saw numerous cuts and line relocations to bypass tunnels and reduce the steep
grades and tight curves. Today, only four of the 27 tunnels remain, and
all of those were completely rebuilt. The railroad (double tracked here)
crosses under TN 52. It also crosses over U.S. 27 a few miles south of
where TN 52 ends. Either spot will allow you to see up to 50 trains per
day. The photo above is clipart.
The University of Michigan has an actual photo of a Norfolk Southern train at Elgin here:
http://ipl.si.umich.edu/div/trains/elgin.html
The Museum of Scott County
Huntsville, Tennessee
www.scottcounty.net/Scotthigh/museum.htm
Scott High School is the only high school in Tennessee where the students
actually maintain a full museum. The museum contains displays on coal
mining, the U.S.S. Tennessee, the frontier, pre-historic items and more.
The school's phone number is (423) 663-2801. Photo:
Clipart.
Things to See in Nearby
Counties
Big South Fork Scenic
Railway
(A National Park Concessionaire)
100 Hendersonville Street
Stearns, KY 42647
1-800-462-5664
(606) 376-5330
www.bsfsry.com
Take U.S. 27 north into Kentucky to the town of Stearns where the McCreary
Heritage Foundation operates a scenic railway. "Sit back and enjoy the
breathtaking scenery of the Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area
while the train makes its way through deep gorges and hugs steep cliff lines to
take you back into a bygone era of logging and coal mining." The train
ticket includes a three-hour round-trip train ride, a layover at Blue Heron
where a coal mine tipple still stands along with recreations of various
buildings from the actual 1930s coal camp), and entry to the McCreary County
Museum in Stearns. Text in quotes from
their web site. Photo: Clipart.
The City of Knoxville
Knoxville, Tennessee (Knox County)
www.knoxville.org
Knoxville is just a short drive down I-75 from Scott County. The Knoxville
Tourism and Sports Corporation maintains an extensive web site of things to do and
see around Knoxville. You may visit their web site here:
www.knoxville.org
Photo courtesy Tennessee Department of
Tourist Development:
www.tnvacation.com.
Area Web Sites
Scott County
www.scottcounty.com
