Gay Street - Knoxville History Project

Contents:

• GAY STREET
• DID YOU KNOW THE 100 BLOCK OF GAY STREET WAS RAISED? TAKE AN UNRGROUND TOUR
• GAY STREET
• NEW GAY STREET SHOP BRGG 'CREDIBLE SMELLS AND LORS' TO DOWNTOWN KNOXVILLE
• ADDISON'S IS LIKE A GAY STREET 'TREASURE HUNT,' WH RARE AND ODD BOOKS OM CENTURI AGO
• ADDISON’S BOOKS TO OPEN AT 126 SOUTH GAY STREET
• GAY STREET BRIDGE NSTCTN ED 4 LN POUNDS OF STEEL | OPN

GAY STREET

Sce the 1790s, Gay Street has played a primary role Knoxville’s historil and cultural velopment.

Gay Street is home to art galleri, historic theaters, the East Tennsee History Center and more – wh many buildgs listed on the Natnal Register of Historic Plac. Gay Street was the se of the 1796 Constutnal Conventn that rulted the foundg of the state of Tennsee, and was a fol pot for the early polil activy of both the cy and the state of Tennsee. On the eve of the Civil War, Gay Street was the se of simultaneo Unn and Conferate recg ralli.

DID YOU KNOW THE 100 BLOCK OF GAY STREET WAS RAISED? TAKE AN UNRGROUND TOUR

Durg the Civil War, Gay Street saw some early vlence, a fatal shootg of a Unnist monstrator, days after the firg on Ft. William Sanrs died as the rult of wounds the Lamar Hoe on Gay. After the war, Gay Street saw extensive mercial velopment as railroad nstctn brought an dtrial boom to Knoxville.

By 1850, Gay Street was home to three-fourths of Knoxville's mercial activy. In 1854, Gay Street beme Knoxville's first paved road.

Almost all public visors to Knoxville ma an appearance on Gay Street. Durg the Civil War, Andrew Johnson was shot at when he gave a pro-Unn speech on Gay Street.

GAY STREET

Others who were seen on Gay Street at one time or another were prohibnist Carrie Natn, Socialist ndidate Eugene V. One of Knoxville’s olst buildgs, the Lamar Hoe, now the ont portn of the Bijou Theatre, was operatg as a hotel facg Gay Street by 1817, when hosted a receptn for Gen. Begng 1908, Gay Street beme the lotn of Knoxville’s first skyscrapers, steel-ame buildgs of 10 stor or more, begng wh the Burwell Buildg, followed by the taller Holston Buildg, and some years later the Andrew Johnson Hotel, which was for almost half a century the tallt buildg East Tennsee.

NEW GAY STREET SHOP BRGG 'CREDIBLE SMELLS AND LORS' TO DOWNTOWN KNOXVILLE

From 1960 to 1963, Gay Street was the se of dozens of civil-rights monstratns, first s-s at all-whe lunch unters, then monstratns outsi the still-segregated movie theaters.

Gay Street has also been the home of multiple partment stor, cludg Miller’s, which mataed a prence s origal bex-arts brick buildg on Gay for 70 years. It was home to the headquarters of furnure giant Sterchi Brothers, whose logo has bee a signature of the Gay Street skyle, and today is one of downtown’s largt and most popular rintial buildgs. Gay Street has always been home to Knoxville’s ft theatr.

In 1872, Swiss immigrant Peter Stb pleted his grand Stb’s Opera Hoe, facg Gay Street. It was the first of several theaters that kept Gay Street l up at night. Those who have performed shows Gay Street theaters between 1880 and 1940 clu Sarah Bernhardt, Lillie Langtry, Will Rogers, Gee M.

ADDISON'S IS LIKE A GAY STREET 'TREASURE HUNT,' WH RARE AND ODD BOOKS OM CENTURI AGO

By the 1920s, Gay Street supported several movie theaters at once, the largt of which were the Riviera (1920) and the more extravagantly rated Tennsee (1928). Today, as day turns to night, theatre lights still lure you down Gay Street for a variety of performanc and cematic entertament at some of the regn’s most popular venu. Knoxville Arts District - 100 Block Gay Street.

Gay Street also wnsed the early days of live-dience rad, as untry stars like Roy Acuff, Chet Atks, the Everly Brothers, and Dolly Parton got their starts on rad statns WNOX and WROL. Live mic n still be found on Gay Street today at the WDVX studs loted si the Knoxville Visors Center. Si note: Televisn was troduced to the regn wh a broadst 1953 om WROL studs the Mechanics Bank buildg on Gay.

Gay Street and events that took place on have been mentned the works of novelists Jam Agee and Cormac McCarthy, humorists Mark Twa and Gee Washgton Harris, and poet and sayist Nikki Gvanni. Gay Street was a settg for paras by the 1850s, and was the scene of many dramatic events, cludg several gunfights, most notably the Mabry-O’Conner gunfight of 1882, which all three batants were killed. Gay Street was the settg of one of the South’s first Deratn Day (later Memorial Day) paras, and by the 1870s, of more joyo St.

ADDISON’S BOOKS TO OPEN AT 126 SOUTH GAY STREET

Bee of s prervatn and ntributns to Knoxville's enomic base and vibrant arts scene, the Amerin Planng Associatn signated Gay Street as one of 10 Great Streets unr the anizatn's Great Plac Ameri program.

Several downtown streets have been renamed over the years, but Gay Street retas s origal name, perhaps bee, om the very begng, the street has been known as the place where Knoxvillians e for fun and entertament. The 100 block of Gay Street was raised one story 1919 to the level is today. Storeonts are still visible the unrground tate velopers see an opportuny to re-purpose unrground the 100 block of the Gay Street we know today is the 100 block of yterday or, rather, ytercentury.

GAY STREET BRIDGE NSTCTN ED 4 LN POUNDS OF STEEL | OPN

Fixg 'the Death Dip' The 100 block of Gay Street was raised to rolve what lol historian Jack Neely referred to as "the Death Dip. "As Gay Street grew and the railroad got by, acmodatg dozens of tras every day, the cy built bridg over the rail yards.

"By 1900, the downward slope of Gay Street and the upward slope of a bridge created a road that seemed more like a roller aster — "a pretty absurd thg to fd a by part of town, " Neely said. The pavement lights people walk over daily on the Gay Street siwalk are illumated om the tunnel directly below where the siwalk ed to unrground street area is now jt a ncrete wall led wh utily box.

People who wanr to the bottom floor of the buildg on the east si of Gay Street n peer through glass doors at a mural pated on a wall where the street once was. But jt a few steps away om the mural, out of sight for Emporium visors, is a portn of unrground Gay Street that Hez believ has the most potential.