Samuel McCammon

Took this photo of the old Samuel McCammon House on Riverside Drive yesterday. Samuel served as the sheriff for Knox County from 1838 through 1850. During his tenure as sheriff, the family reportedly resided in a space either above or adjacent to the county jail. This federal style home was built around the time he left that office, and is located on what was earlier the site of James White's second Knoxville home. Samuel later served several years in the Tennessee state legislature, representing Knox and Sevier Counties.

Samuel was the son of Thomas McCammon, who immigrated from Northern Ireland around the turn of the nineteenth century. Thomas married Samuel's mother, Sarah Pickens, around 1805 in Sevier County, Tn. (Samuel's sister, Letitia McCammon, was my 3rd great grandmother.)

Contrary to information contained on the Knox County Sheriff's website, Samuel died in Nashville on April 1, 1865 of a bowel obstruction. He was returned to Knoxville and buried at the old Dunn Cemetery. An article written several years ago in the Knoxville News Sentinel (which I have cut out but can't find in the archives online to link to) alleges the house on Riverside Drive, now the site of the Knoxville Gas Company, is actually haunted, presumably by Samuel's ghost.

Samuel, and his wife, Martha Boyd Cowan, are both buried at the Dunn Cemetery, along with Samuel's parents and a number of other members of the McCammon family. The cemetery itself is in terrible shape, and is in grave danger of disappearing altogether.

The following are notes I took regarding the cemetery in 1999 and again in 2005:

This cemetery, alternately referred to as either the “Dunn” or “McCammon” cemetery, is located in South Knoxville, just off of Sevierville Pike in the Kimberlin Heights section. The cemetery was originally affiliated with the “Old Salem Presbyterian Church” which has long since disappeared. The cemetery itself is in deplorable shape; overgrown with weeds with many of the headstones broken or missing.

Interred at this site are Thomas McCammon and his wife, Sarah Pickens. Thomas was, according to existing records, born June 12, 1768 in Ireland, and is the first of the old McCammon line to reside in South Knoxville. Sarah Pickens, the daughter of John and Letitia Hannah Pickens, was born December 11, 1784 in Virginia, and died in February of 1877. Thomas and Sarah were the parents of Letitia McCammon Anderson, who married Allen G. Anderson in Knox County in 1835. They are my third great grandparents.

Also interred at this site are Samuel McCammon and his wife, Martha Boyd Cowan. Samuel was the youngest son of Thomas and Sarah McCammon. He was born May 9, 1808 and died April 1, 1865. Martha died November 4, 1876. Samuel was sheriff of Knox County from 1838-1850, and his old family manse still stands on the north side of the Tennessee River at 1715 Riverside Drive.

Directions to the Cemetery:

Driving south on Chapman Highway, pass under the John Sevier Highway overpass and drive approximately one mile to Kimberlin Heights road on the left. Turn left and follow Kimberlin Heights for about half a mile until you reach the intersection with Sevierville Pike. (This used to be the only road heading south into Sevier County from Knoxville). Turn left onto Sevierville Pike and drive about ¾ of a mile until you see Rollen road on your left. Turn left onto Rollen and then immediately right onto Deadrick road. The cemetery is located in a patch of woods immediately to the left on Deadrick after the turn. (There is a run-down home with some very vicious-looking dogs just to the left of the cemetery.)

The last time I visited this site, the cemetery still had a sign on its dilapidated old gate that read “Dunn Cemetery” and immediately below that one another which read “McCammon Cemetery”. The graves for Thomas and Sarah are located to the left after passing through the gate, right next to a big tree that's split up the middle. The headstone for Thomas is down, and was recently (April, 2005) located about 20 feet from the grave. The footstone bearing the initials “T M” is still standing. Sarah’s grave is marked with a field stone which has become unreadable. The graves for Samuel and Martha McCammon are located just to the right of Thomas and Sarah’s, and are still clearly marked.

Note- On April 14, 2005, I revisited this site; nearly 7 years after my last visit. While the cemetery “gate” is no longer there, the condition of the cemetery itself has thankfully changed very little. During this visit, I managed not only to locate the graves of Samuel and Martha Cowan McCammon but also the headstone of Thomas McCammon himself, which was down and partially covered by undergrowth a ways from the original grave, but still intact. The dates on the tombstone match the written record of Thomas’ dates of birth and death.

Also interred at this site is (moving right from the graves of Thomas and Sarah) Mary McCammon, born December 3, 1831 and died March 9, 1832. Mary was an infant daughter of Samuel and Martha C. McCammon. Two other children, Samuel H. McCammon and Thomas J. McCammon, are buried side by side just a few feet away. The graves of Samuel McCammon and Martha Cowan McCammon are at the extreme right of the line, very close to the road.