Gay Street - Knoxville History Project

Contents:

• DID YOU KNOW THE 100 BLOCK OF GAY STREET WAS RAISED? TAKE AN UNRGROUND TOUR
• COULD REVELOPG GAY STREET'S 200 BLOCK CREATE A NEW DOWNTOWN KNOXVILLE DISTRICT?
• GAY STREET
• GAY STREET
• KNOX MASON OPENS ON THE 100 BLOCK OF GAY STREET
• 100 BLOCK OF GAY STREET
• A PROGRSIVE SUPPER ALONG THE 100 BLOCK OF GAY STREET
• THIS $26M PROJECT WOULD FILL GAY STREET'S 'GREAT DIVI' WH SHOPPG, HOG AND DG
• GAY STREET PROJECT PLANS TO FILL DOWNTOWN NICHE WH INDIAN FOOD, GROCERI AND RENTALS
• CONSTCTN PREPARED TO START ON THE 200 BLOCK OF GAY STREET
• JEFEY NASH ANNOUNC PLANS FOR THE HUBRIS BUILDG ON THE 100 BLOCK OF GAY STREET

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

Many Knoxvillians, even those who live, work, or spend time downtown Knoxville may not know that the street and siwalks on 100 Block of Gay Street are actually built on a bridge-like support stcture, one full story above the origal street level. The at-gra railroad crossg at Gay Street had bee a safety hazard and an impediment to merce, and the cy nstcted the viaduct to move people and vehicl across the railroad tracks safely and efficiently. The Gay Street viaduct was rebuilt by the Tennsee Department of Transportatn 2005-2006, but the support stcture that is holdg up the 100 Block has not unrgone major repairs sce was built 1919, until 2009.

COULD REVELOPG GAY STREET'S 200 BLOCK CREATE A NEW DOWNTOWN KNOXVILLE DISTRICT?

The Village Marketg Group, Attn: Ben Hubbard, 133 South Gay St., Sue C.

Dewhirst Properti, Attn: Ann Marie Tugwell, 123 South Gay St.

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

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.

GAY STREET

"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.

KNOX MASON OPENS ON THE 100 BLOCK OF GAY STREET

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. You n see the urtyard lookg down om Gay Street next to Sterchi Lofts.

The unrground floors of the Commerce Buildg are also visible om Gay Street level.

" In Hez's opn, the east si of Gay Street is the more excg si. There is also a tunnel unrneath Gay Street near Unn Avenue and lots of utily rridors beneath siwalks.

100 BLOCK OF GAY STREET

North of the Vis Knoxville office is a quiet and quat neighborhood known as the 100 block of Gay Street — a place where rints enjoy the ameni of livg downtown Knoxville wh ls htle and btle. Between the 100 block and the re of Gay Street is the multi-lane Summ Hill Drive and the empty 200 block, currently home to a surface parkg lot and an agg Cradle of Country Mic Park.

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

A PROGRSIVE SUPPER ALONG THE 100 BLOCK OF GAY STREET

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.

THIS $26M PROJECT WOULD FILL GAY STREET'S 'GREAT DIVI' WH SHOPPG, HOG AND DG

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.

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.

GAY STREET PROJECT PLANS TO FILL DOWNTOWN NICHE WH INDIAN FOOD, GROCERI AND RENTALS

By 1850, Gay Street was home to three-fourths of Knoxville's mercial activy.

In 1854, Gay Street beme Knoxville's first paved road.

CONSTCTN PREPARED TO START ON THE 200 BLOCK OF GAY STREET

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. 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. 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.

JEFEY NASH ANNOUNC PLANS FOR THE HUBRIS BUILDG ON THE 100 BLOCK OF GAY STREET

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.