Four new city manager applicants bring the total to 12 seeking the position so far.

Four additional candidates have expressed interest in the position of Crossville city manager bringing the total applicants so far to 12.  The deadline for applications is September 30

The latest 4 candidates include:

Wayne R. Bodie of Orlando Florida currently serves as a captain in the Orange Co. fire and rescue department. He has worked for the department since 2005. Bodie holds an MBA and also works as a fire instructor. He has previous experience in financial services.

Steve Foote of Dunwoody Georgia serves that community as the Director of Economic and Community Development. He has served in that capacity as the employee of a contractor starting in 2014 and now as a direct employee of the city. Previously Foote served as director of planning for Mt. Juliet Tennessee from 2009 to 2014. Foote's education includes a BS in Geography and Biology and graduate work toward an Masters in Geography.

Daron E. Jordan of Madisonville Kentucky serves as that city's community development director, a position he has held since 2005. He holds a masters degree in organizational management, is a certified economic developer and also operates a consulting firm that specializes in grant writing and administration.

Adam R. Rabe of Marengo Iowa. Mr. Rabe has served as director of the Iowa Co. Iowa EMS since 2008. Part of his tenure was as a hospital employee then the EMS service became part of the county operation. In addition, Rabe served 8 years on the Marengo city council, currently serves on the local 911 board and holds a BS in public administration.

Previous manager applicants are:

Robert G. Bray, Jr. of Pinellas Park Florida is seeking the position after retiring as the Community Planning Director for Pinellas Park Florida between 1995 and 2016.  Prior to that Bray had additional planning experience from 1985-95.  He also has a Masters of Public Adminsitration.  

Jason Hall of Lyons Georgia where he has served as the current city manager since april of 2013. His previous experience includes serving as city administrator of Varnell Georgia between 2011 and 2013 and a codes enforcement officer for Ringgold Georgia from 2004 to 2011. Hall has an associates degree in education and additional course work in business management

The only local applicant so far is Frank Horvath whose resume lists his current position as business and project manager of Crossville Smiles since January 2013. Mr. Horvath holds an MBA from University of Indianapolis and previously worked as project manager for SciSaves, LLC

Catrina Maxwell of Milwaukee Wisconsin currently serves as the deputy clerk of the court for Milwaukee county. Ms. Maxwell holds a Master's degree in public service with a specialization in criminal justice administration.

Louis A. Ogaard of West Valley City Utah holds a PhD in Botany and has 20 years experience with the state of North Dokota where he manage and environmental restoration program. His latest position was providing environmental support at Dugway Proving Ground in Utah.

Christian Saxe currently holds the position of assistant public works director at Spring Hill Tennessee, a position he's held since October of 2015. From 2008 to 2015 Saxe was deputy director of public works for the city of Orange California. He holds a bachelors degree in public administration.

W. Jordan Shaw has been the assistant director of information technology for Franklin Tennessee since February 2015. Shaw holds a Doctorate of Business Administration from Argosy University.

Tina Tuggle of Kingston Tennessee is currently a municipal finance trainer and previously served as the city manager of Oliver Springs Tennessee from June 2012 to November 2014. She also served as Oliver Springs' city recorder from 2010 to 2012. She holds an associate degree in legal science.   

DRUG RAID LEADS TO RECOVERY OF NARCOTICS AND STOLEN ITEMS

Crossville Police Department Press Release:
August 30, 2016

On Wednesday August 24, 2016, Crossville Narcotics Detective’s long term investigation relating to illegal Narcotics Distribution, led the execution of a search warrant and the seizure of stolen property and illicit narcotics and other evidence related to the crimes, at a 140 Burnett Street apartment in Crossville, TN. Following an in-depth investigation and undercover operations, this action is the latest example of the Crossville Police Department’s resolve to eliminate illegal narcotics in our community.

140 Burnett St.

With this most recent effort, Illegal Drugs and stolen items were seized, along with other evidence of crimes, during the search warrant service. A local resident, Melanie Savage, who has been under investigation for narcotics and theft crimes, was the target of this operation. Multiple felony charges are pending the outcome of the completed investigation and their presentation to the Cumberland County Grand Jury.

Melanie Savage

Participating in the operation were the Crossville Police Department, 13^th Judicial Drug Task Force, the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office and the HIDTA / TBI Drug Task Force. 

Blankenship court matters continued until November 29

The appeal of the $1500 fine levied by Crossville city judge Ivy Gardner against J. R. Blankenship along with the appeal of the granting of a restraining order against Blankenship requested by Gardner were both set for Judge Jonathan Young's court and have been continued to November 29.

The fine came from a flyer that was distributed in downtown Crossville asking for pictures of elected or appointed officials doing wrong.  Blankenship was cited under a city ordinance about the circulating of "unsigned flyers" that was passed in the 1960s and appears to never have been enforced until the incident earlier this year.

Blankenship is being represented by a Nashville attorney that handles cases involving free speech and the First Amendment as there are possible issues relating to Blankenship's rights in the case.  

In addition, the restraining order case that apparently stems from the court case will be heard on the November case as well.  A series of discovery questions has been requested by Blankenship's attorney in the case.  

Link to previous story on J. R. Blankenship 

Man thrilled with 3D printed prosthetic finger made by recent SHMS grad

What started as a joke between two neighbors has turned in to an amazing learning experience for a recent high school graduate and something special for a man who was missing a finger.

The man with the missing digit is Jeff Bishop and his neighbor Drake Gentry, a 2016 graduate of Stone Memorial High school were discussing Drakes new 3D printer and Jeff said he joked asking if it could make him a finger to replace the one he lost. Jeff said when he first mentioned his thought he really only meant something that would look like a finger, not anything complicated or movable.

Left to right: SMHS engineering teacher Tommy Tatum, Jeff Bishop wearing his new finger 

and Drake Gentry, recent SMHS graduate who made the prosthetic for Bishop.

But this “joke” got young Drake to thinking, and he headed out on the internet to see what he could find that might help his neighbor out. Drake graduated high school this past spring with a concentration in the SMHS Engineering program taught by teacher Tommy Tatum and his father has a machine shop so he had the background to do something special.

The business end of a 3D printer 

And it didn't take long for Drake to find several possible designs on a website called thingiverse.com, where people share things they have designed for 3D printers that can be downloaded and used or adapted by others. After checking out these designs, he used a micrometer to measure what was left of Jeff's finger and fed the data into the computer to adjust the design of the finger to fit him. As Drake began to make the pieces from the design, he realized that he really needed a more advanced 3D printer to get the job done right.

Prototype prosthetic finger created using a 3D printer

And Drake knew who to contact, his SMHS engineering teacher Tommy Tatum as his classroom has several 3D printers that are used in teaching engineering. The school's printers use a more durable type of plastic that was really needed for the project. After getting permission from the principal, the group met on a Sunday to work more on the project together.

Mr. Tatum, left, and Drake Gentry right, watch the 3D printer work making parts

As the initial prototype took shape, Jeff was thrilled because the prosthetic finger was designed to be controlled and moved. Jeff made his own adaptation after a day or so of use by gluing a piece of rubber to the tip to give him some grip.

Jeff Bishop shows off the finger's movement

Jeff said he offered to pay Mr. Tatum for the material used to make the prosthetic but was told the amount of plastic filament used was under 15 cents. The prosthetic is made up of about 10 separate pieces and according to Drake each piece takes about 10 to 15 minutes to be created in the printer and the whole process takes a little under about 3 hours to make.

Jeff Bishop watches the 3D printer make parts for the 2.0 version of his prosthetic finger

Other changes that need to be made in the original prototype made for Jeff included the length and some other suggestions made by Jeff as he has worn it almost constantly since he received it. “After only a few days, now it feels odd without it!” said Jeff.

Once the prosthetic has been through some additional design changes and further testing, the code that the plastic 3D printer uses can then be fed into machining equipment and a final version is planed to be made out of aluminum at the Tennessee College of Applied Technology.

Drake will be starting at TCAT soon where he plans to study welding and other design programs.

We will update this story in the future.    

Crossville News--Council candidates finalized, New city manager applicants, Blankenship appeal Monday

Crossville News Updates.

1) City council candidate list finalized

There is no change in the candidates for city council. Thursday at noon was the deadline for any candidate to drop out if they wanted to and no requests were made. All 8 of the candidates will appear on the November 8 ballot for Crossville city council and the two candidates who receive the most votes will gain a spot on the council.

The final list of candidates are:

• Jerry T. "J.J" Brownstead
• Charles Cooper, Jr.
• J. H. Graham, III
• Robert E. "Rob" Harrison,
• Terri L. Manning
• Jeanette W. Parsons
• Scot Shanks
• David E. Warner

2) New Candidates for Crossville city manager position

Three additional candidates have submitted letters and resumes for the Crossville city manager job currently being advertised.

New candidates include:

Terence Arrington of Greenville SC whose last job is county administrator for Darlignton Co. South Carolina. Arrignton served in that position from 1-2015 through 8-2016. Arrington has a Masters of Public Administration and is working toward and MBA. He has government experience since 2011 including deputy city administrator of Salisbury MD from 1-2014 to 1-2015.

Allen May of Urbanville IA last held the position of city administrator of Coal Valley Illinois. He started serving in that position in 2014. Prior to that position, May has zoning and planning experience back to 1974.

Bobby Goney of Crossville is a registered nurse that has worked in intensive care for the last several years, curently in Sparta and prior for Cumberland Medical Center. He holds an MBA in healthcare administration. In addition, Goney has previous experience in banking and accounting.

3) J. R. Blankenship Court appearance Monday on appeals

The appeal of two matters concerning J. R. Blankenship are scheduled to be before circuit court Judge Jonathan Young. Blankenship is represented by Nashville Attorney Joseph Johnston. The matter of the $1500 fine placed against Blankenship over “unsigned fliers” is under appeal along with an appeal of the issuance of a restraining order to city judge Ivy Gardener.

A little bit of Crossville history, memories of long gone stores.

Memories of old Crossville retail stores.  (Click the photos and they will enlarge.)

Graybeal and Sons key chain

Thurnam's Men's Store leather fingernail clipper holder

Florsheim Shoes logo on the front of the nail clipper holder

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You'll find interesting collectibles at the VORP Thrift Store

Crossville Police Department Volunteers In Policing (VIP) members introduced at council meeting

The Crossville police department is currently training the first 10 members of their VIP or volunteers in policing class. 

Each volunteer participates in 40 hours of training that will allow them to assist the department with a variety of non-confrontational duties including school crossings, traffic control for parades and accidents, vacation house and welfare checks. Volunteers are not armed. After the two weeks of training the volunteers will have learned patrol techniques, report writing, radio procedures, finger printing, driving new V.I.P. patrol vehicles and many other aspects of police operations.

Members of the class were introduced at the August city council meeting and include Teresa Biebel, Charles Chafins, Robert Coy, Carl MacLead, Richard Oran, Edith Petty, Barbara Prichard, Brooke Salisbury, Jerry Wells and George Willis.

Interim Crossville police chief Mark Rosser, right, stands with 9 of the VIP program participants.

Crossville council votes to begin contract negotiations with retail consulting firm r360

The Crossville city council agreed to hire a retail consultant firm to help the city recruit retail and restaurant businesses to the community.

The council spent several hours hearing from three different companies that provide the services during a work session held on May 26. The three firms that spoke to the council included Retail Strategies, R360 and Buxton. All three companies pitched their services to the city with the idea that they could help increase sales tax collections by recruiting large retail stores and restaurant chains.

A three year contract with one of the firms would total around $100,000. All the firms do detailed market analysis, and study the so-called market leakage or dollars spent by residents that go to other locations in order to see if a Crossville location would be feasible based on the local spending. Harris asked that the item be placed on the council's agenda and started her discussion saying that a decision was needed in order “to get this ball rolling.”

The firm called r360 is located in Birmingham Alabama and according to council member Pamala Harris had the more flexible contract for the city. The council had placed funds in the 2016-17 budget for hiring a retail consultant and Harris moved to choose r360 as the firm to work with the city. Harris' motion received a second from councilman Jesse Kerley. After a brief discussion, the motion was amended to add that the city would begin negotiations with the firm.

The motion was approved unanimously.   

Crossville Flashback: Political robo Calls did not come from city hall according to 2012 press release.

Crossville flashback: This was the press release put out by the city of Crossville and signed by then city manager Bruce Wyatt following the first batch of robo calls that spoofed the phone number and appeared to have been made from Crossville city hall. The push poll targeted then incumbent city councilman Boyd Wyatt who was running for reelection in the 2012 race.  In the following year after an investigation by the District Attorney's office it was discovered that the calls were ordered and paid for by then candidate Jesse Kerley.  While then DA Randy York said the action violated state law, Mr. Kerley was not prosecuted.

City of Crossville

PRESS RELEASE
August 17, 2012

Recently, a series of politically motivated telephone calls, commonly known as “robo calls” or “push polls”, were made or initiated the evening of August 16th to residents of the City of Crossville. These calls appeared on caller i.d. as being from “City Hall” or 931-484-5113; some calls even stated, “This is City Hall”. Please be assured, these calls were NOT placed from City Hall, nor were they placed by City staff.


The City of Crossville does not and has not endorsed, promoted, or otherwise campaigned for or against any political candidate. We are committed to maintaining a professional approach to the upcoming political season and refuse to inject ourselves into any campaign. We hope there will be no more misuse or misappropriation of the City’s name and telephone numbers.

Bruce Wyatt
City Manager

First candidate sign in the Crossville city council race.

With 8 candidates vying  for 2 Crossville city council seats the race has already started. 

Election day is November 8.  One candidate has already started putting out signs.  With non of the current incumbents seeking reelection the race appears to be wide open.

The future direction of the city of Crossville will be in the hands of voters.

The 8 candidates include:
1) Jerry T. "J.J" Brownstead
2) Charles Cooper, Jr.
3) J. H. Graham, former mayor and councilman
4) Robert E. "Rob" Harrison,
5) Terri L. Manning
6) Jeanette W. Parsons
7) Scot Shanks
8) David E. Warner, former city councilman who served from Jan 1985-Dec 1992

Montrey's Depot Museum is definitely worth a visit

A laid back town not far from the Cumberland Co. border is Monterey Tennessee.  Make sure and stop in to visit the Depot Museum.

The rebuilt Monterey Tennessee Central RR Depot is a museum with a variety of great exhibits of local history and memorabilia.  

Just a few of the many exhibits at the Monterey Depot Museum

Tennessee Central restored crew car.

Old Monterey street signs

Hand drawn map of Wilder Tennessee mine area

Monterey diorama

John Wilder Civil War trail plaque

Trunk that belonged to John Wilder

John Wilder's typewriter

The museum has a caboose and a recently acquired dining car.

Crossville city manager candidates now up to 8. Deadline still 6 weeks off.

The search for a new Crossville city manager is off and running with 8 letters of interest and resumes received by the city so far. The deadline for those interested applying is September 30, 2016.

The applicants so far have a variety of backgrounds from a PhD in Botany to the former city manager of Oliver Springs, Tennessee. Copies of the letters of interest and resumes are being distributed to the council members as they come into the city's human resources department.

Crossville city hall building

Interested applicants so far in alphabetical order include:

Robert G. Bray, Jr. of Pinellas Park Florida is seeking the position after retiring as the Community Planning Director for Pinellas Park Florida between 1995 and 2016.  Prior to that Bray had additional planning experience from 1985-95.  He also has a Masters of Public Adminsitration.  

Jason Hall of Lyons Georgia where he has served as the current city manager since april of 2013. His previous experience includes serving as city administrator of Varnell Georgia between 2011 and 2013 and a codes enforcement officer for Ringgold Georgia from 2004 to 2011. Hall has an associates degree in education and additional course work in business management

The only local applicant so far is Frank Horvath whose resume lists his current position as business and project manager of Crossville Smiles since January 2013. Mr. Horvath holds an MBA from University of Indianapolis and previously worked as project manager for SciSaves, LLC

Catrina Maxwell of Milwaukee Wisconsin currently serves as the deputy clerk of the court for Milwaukee county. Ms. Maxwell holds a Master's degree in public service with a specialization in criminal justice administration.

Louis A. Ogaard of West Valley City Utah holds a PhD in Botany and has 20 years experience with the state of North Dokota where he manage and environmental restoration program. His latest position was providing environmental support at Dugway Proving Ground in Utah.

Christian Saxe currently holds the position of assistant public works director at Spring Hill Tennessee, a position he's held since October of 2015. From 2008 to 2015 Saxe was deputy director of public works for the city of Orange California. He holds a bachelors degree in public administration.

W. Jordan Shaw has been the assistant director of information technology for Franklin Tennessee since February 2015. Shaw holds a Doctorate of Business Administration from Argosy University.

Tina Tuggle of Kingston Tennessee is currently a municipal finance trainer and previously served as the city manager of Oliver Springs Tennessee from June 2012 to November 2014. She also served as Oliver Springs' city recorder from 2010 to 2012. She holds an associate degree in legal science.   

Double rainbow from August 18, 2016

A beautiful double Rainbow captured on Dayton Avenue in Crossville TN on August 18, 2016

Photo Copyright Jim Young 2016

November Ballot includes municipal elections in Crab Orchard and Pleasant Hill

November 8 ballots for Crab Orchard and Pleasant Hill residents will include races for Crab Orchard mayor and 2 seats on the Pleasant Hill council.  Three candidates qualified for Crab Orchard Mayor but only one qualified for the Pleasant Hill race.

Candidates qualified for Crab Orchard's mayoral race include:

1) Michael Findley
2) Emmett H. Sherrill
3) Willard Sherrill

The one candidate for Pleasant Hill town council is Lisa Patrick.  Linda Smith took out papers but they were not returned by the deadline.

The additional seat could either be filled by town council action or possibly a write in candidate.

Eight candidates meet deadline for city council run. Neither incumbent seeking reelection.

The deadline has passed for candidates to turn in nominating petitions to get their name on the ballot for the November 8 city election for two seats on the Crossville city council.

Candidates qualifying include:

1) Jerry T. "J.J" Brownstead
2) Charles Cooper, Jr.
3) J. H. Graham, former mayor and councilman
4) Robert E. "Rob" Harrison,
5) Terri L. Manning
6) Jeanette W. Parsons
7) Scot Shanks
8) David E. Warner, former city councilman who served from Jan 1985-Dec 1992

Neither of the council members who currently hold the seats are running, Councilman Pete Souza previously announced he would not be running and while councilman Jesse Kerley took out papers he did not turn them back in.

While most of the candidates have not held office previously, candidates J. H. Graham has served as both a council member and many years as mayor.  He lost an election 2 years ago to current mayor James Mayberry.  David Warner previously held a council seat from 1985 to 1992.  

The candidates have a week to decide if they want to stay on the ballot and can withdraw by noon August 26 if they choose.  Otherwise their name will appear on the ballot for November 8.

October 11 is the deadline to register to vote in the November election according to the Cumberland County election office.

Early voting opens on October 19 and continues through November 3.
 

Incumbent Jesse Kerley not seeking reelection 

Incumbent Pete Souza not seeking reelection 

Resumes coming in for Crossville city manager search

The search for a new Crossville city manager is off and running with 7 letters of interest and resumes received by the city so far. The deadline for those interested applying is September 30, 2016.

The applicants so far have a variety of backgrounds from a PhD in Botany to the former city manager of Oliver Springs, Tennessee. Copies of the letters of interest and resumes are being distributed to the council members as they come into the city's human resources department.

Crossville city hall building

Interested applicants so far in alphabetical order include:

Jason Hall of Lyons Georgia where he has served as the current city manager since april of 2013. His previous experience includes serving as city administrator of Varnell Georgia between 2011 and 2013 and a codes enforcement officer for Ringgold Georgia from 2004 to 2011. Hall has an associates degree in education and additional course work in business management

The only local applicant so far is Frank Horvath whose resume lists his current position as business and project manager of Crossville Smiles since January 2013. Mr. Horvath holds an MBA from University of Indianapolis and previously worked as project manager for SciSaves, LLC

Catrina Maxwell of Milwaukee Wisconsin currently serves as the deputy clerk of the court for Milwaukee county. Ms. Maxwell holds a Master's degree in public service with a specialization in criminal justice administration.

Louis A. Ogaard of West Valley City Utah holds a PhD in Botany and has 20 years experience with the state of North Dokota where he manage and environmental restoration program. His latest position was providing environmental support at Dugway Proving Ground in Utah.

Christian Saxe currently holds the position of assistant public works director at Spring Hill Tennessee, a position he's held since October of 2015. From 2008 to 2015 Saxe was deputy director of public works for the city of Orange California. He holds a bachelors degree in public administration.

W. Jordan Shaw has been the assistant director of information technology for Franklin Tennessee since February 2015. Shaw holds a Doctorate of Business Administration from Argosy University.

Tina Tuggle of Kingston Tennessee is currently a municipal finance trainer and previously served as the city manager of Oliver Springs Tennessee from June 2012 to November 2014. She also served as Oliver Springs' city recorder from 2010 to 2012. She holds an associate degree in legal science.   

New Crossville police officer Brandon Griffin sworn in

Crossville Police Department Press Release:

The City of Crossville Police Department is pleased to announce the addition of a new member to our team. The Crossville Police Department has had a recently opened patrol officer position available. After testing and interviewing quite a few qualified applicants, this position has been filled.

                                                  Mayor Mayberry swearing in Officer Brandon Griffin

Cumberland County, TN resident, Brandon Griffin, has been selected to fill the patrol officer position. Officer Griffin is a 2016 graduate of the East Tennessee Regional Law Enforcement Academy. The hiring of Officer Griffin will return the Crossville Police Department’s patrol division to full strength and will provide continued officer presence and call coverage within our city. This will ensure that calls for assistance and daily operations are handled more effectively, providing for a safer community.

Crossville city council looks at policy on press releases

It was not clear what sparked the concern of Crossville city council member Pamala Harris about the subject of press releases and a policy about them, but the discussion was put on the agenda by Ms. Harris.

Interim city manager Steve Hill told the council he had looked into it and currently the city does not have a policy on press releases. He added that he thought a good policy would be to have all press releases go through the marketing and public relations director and then to the city council.

Harris added that she has seen press releases from different city areas, something she described as “willy nilly.” Harris moved that press releases go through marketing and public relations under the approval of the city manager. Harris' motion was supported by councilman Danny Wyatt.

It has been mentioned at a previous council meeting that Ms. Harris and city marketing/PR director Billy Loggins have a personal relationship.

Councilman Pete Souza addressed the issue saying that there had previously been a press release policy that went through the city manager and he had discussed it with the previous city attorney Ken Chadwell. “What happened to that policy, I don't have a clue,” added Souza. Souza also said that he felt the mayor should be involved in every press release “because he is the spokesperson for the city.”

Souza said he wanted to make one thing clear, “Press releases from the city are one thing, the city council is another things, the city council, and each elected member and each sovereign member of this county can speak to the press, or anybody they so desire anytime they want to. But when they speak, they are speaking for themselves, not the city.

Souza suggested that the city manager develop a policy and it come back before the council for approval adding, “There are some details that are being left out here.”

City engineer Tim Begley asked to address the council and pointed out that the public works department sometimes has water interruption announcements and public service announcements that he felt could be described as press releases. “These items need to be addressed as there is not a lot of time to go through the manager. Currently the public works secretary sends a fax to all the radio stations.”

Begley added that when there is work planned, they also try and get word out to the paper and if they are going to keep the public informed then the policy needs to include something for those type of announcements.

Councilwoman Harris then spoke to amend her motion to have the city manager develop a policy on press releases and it be brought back to the council for consideration. The amendment was supported by councilman Jesse Kerley.

Mayor James Mayberry said that he guessed his announcement that the city received a $500,000 grant had sparked the discussion. Mayberry said he received a call one evening from the state informing him of the grant, that it would be posted on the state's website that evening and the city could announce it the next day.

Mayberry continued that he had tried to work with the marketing department in the past adding that things did not work out in a timely manner adding, “If they worked out at all.” Mayberry said that was something the policy might need to consider.

The mayor said that as the elected executive officer of the city there were certain things he had to do and announced he had received a letter earlier that day from Governor Bill Haslam inviting him on a trip to Japan.

With that, Mayberry called for a roll call vote on the motion to have the city manager work on a policy to bring back to the council. The motion was approved by all five members.  

Garrison Park Grandstand, brief history and photos of current condition

While there are some efforts to try and save the old grandstand at Garrison park, the structure is not in very good shape with leaks and mold problems, and the city says there are plenty of baseball fields at Centennial Park that are in better shape.

Crossville recreation director Tammie French said that the park would become a community park that would provide activities and play for children in the area and for adults, a walking trail.  The second phase of the project will include a multi purpose field that would allow football and soccer games as well.  French pointed out that the city currently has no football fields in its inventory. 

In 1947, the start of the city of Crossville’s recreation department included approval by the Crossville city commission to approve the financing of the construction of Garrison Park Grandstands. The dream of grandstands had been in the works back into the 1920's when a fund raiser was held at the Mecca. It is not know what happened to any funding raised, but until almost 1950 there was just a baseball field at Garrison Park.

The property at Garrison Park was most likely acquired when the city got the land for the construction of City School on Fourth Street. The city kept ownership of the park when they gave the city school to the county to operate.

From it's construction until the time the Crossville Blues semi-pro baseball team was disbanded in the early 1950's it was their home field. It was a big part of the warm weather entertainment of that time. After the semi-pro team disbanded, the field and grandstands were used for a variety of local teams to play baseball including the Cumberland Co. High School team and it was operated by the city recreation department.

The field was named after Bill Garrison, a local resident who went north to make his fortune in Chicago. He was also known as “Dollar Bill” for the story that he left Crossville with only a dollar in his pocket. When he returned he built the Will-Nell building where Highland Federal is today and the Palace Theatre. He also owned the house on 70-E that was also known as the Oaklawn Country Club.

The story is that he donated money towards the construction and that is the reason the park was named after him. If the city's current plans goes through, the park would remain known as Garrison Park.    

Below are some photos of the current state of the grandstands.  We were able to get access to the space under the grandstands and there are leaks and mold problems currently.

This photo shows an area under the grandstand that is leaking badly.  

This is below both the roof and the concrete seats.

Ladies Restroom

Door frame rusting out

Under the grandstand

Bricks, rust and water under the grandstand

Water coming in causes the white scaling

Concrete damage and rust

The photos below are exterior damage.  It appears that the brick exterior may be of a later date then the original construction.