Why We're Embracing Our True Identity: Tennessee's First Capital
Why We're Embracing Our True Identity: Tennessee's First Capital
A message from Cody Boring, Executive Director
Last month, I was working with a fourth-grade school group when their teacher asked me the kind of question that makes you stop mid-sentence. "I'm confused," she said. "You keep saying 'Tennessee Starts Here,' but based on everything you're describing—Governor Blount, the U.S. Constitution, governing the whole territory—wasn't this literally the first capital? Why not just say that?"
I opened my mouth to explain, then closed it. She was right. Her question cut through months of my own deliberation, forcing me to ask: why had we been hesitant to boldly claim our most significant historical distinction? She'd just summed up what I'd been overthinking for months. We had the most important title in Tennessee history, and we were treating it like a secret.
The Journey From "Starts Here" to "First Capital"
For years, we've marketed Rocky Mount with the tagline "Tennessee Starts Here." It's served us well—it's memorable, it's true, and visitors get it. But that teacher's question exposed what I'd been sensing for months: we'd been underselling ourselves. "Tennessee Starts Here" could mean anything—the first settlement, the first school, the first anything. We weren't being clear about what actually started here: the government itself.
We weren't just where Tennessee started—we were its first seat of government, the de facto capital. The place where Governor William Blount set up shop in October 1790 and ran the entire Southwest Territory from William Cobb's log house.
Think about that. The foundational documents, appointments, and governmental decisions that organized the territory which would become Tennessee—they happened right here on our grounds. This wasn't just any frontier settlement. This was the seat of territorial government.
The "Aha" Moment
That teacher's question sent me down a research rabbit hole (the best kind). I pulled out primary sources, read Blount's letters, studied territorial documents. And the more I dug, the more obvious it became: we weren't telling our full story.
Consider this: In October 1790, William Blount—a signer of the U.S. Constitution—rode up to this log house and established the first seat of federal governance for the Southwest Territory, a critical step in proving the American experiment could work beyond the original thirteen states. For roughly 16 months (October 1790 to early 1792), Rocky Mount served as the capital while the permanent capital at Knoxville was being planned and built.
Blount himself wrote on October 20, 1790: "I am very well accommodated with a Room with Glass Windows, Fireplace…" This wasn't roughing it—this was the working headquarters of American government on the frontier.
Rocky Mount at a Glance (1790-1792)
• De facto territorial capital
• Executive office of Gov. William Blount
• 35,691 residents counted in first census
• Site where seven initial counties were brought under federal territorial governance
From here, he re-commissioned officials for the existing counties that North Carolina had created—Washington, Sullivan, Greene, and Hawkins in the east, plus Davidson, Sumner, and Tennessee counties in the Mero District. (He would create Knox and Jefferson counties in 1792, after moving to Knoxville.) The territorial census—initiated early 1791 while Blount was based at Rocky Mount—tallied 35,691 residents by midsummer. Early correspondence and logistical planning for Native American diplomacy began here too, though the actual Treaty of Holston negotiations would take place at White's Fort/Knoxville in July 1791.
Let's Address the Knoxville Question
Now, I know what some of you are thinking: "But wait, isn't Knoxville Tennessee's first capital?"
This is where it gets interesting (and where that fourth-grade teacher was way ahead of us).
Here's the timeline: Rocky Mount served as the initial territorial capital from October 1790 to early 1792. White's Fort had existed since 1786, but Blount selected it as the next capital and renamed it "Knoxville" in 1791, with the town officially laid out that October. Knoxville then took over as territorial capital in early 1792 and continued in that role until Tennessee became a state in 1796. Knoxville was officially designated as the territorial capital through federal correspondence. At statehood, Knoxville became Tennessee's first STATE capital, serving until 1812 (with brief returns in 1817-18).
So yes, Knoxville was both a territorial capital AND the first state capital. But Rocky Mount? We were the Territory's First Capital—before Knoxville was even laid out. We proved the system could work.
Every state needs a cradle; Rocky Mount was Tennessee's.
Both stories are true. Both are important. But ours came first, and it laid the foundation for everything that followed.
What This Means for You
So what changes when we embrace "Tennessee's First Capital" instead of "Tennessee Starts Here"?
Everything. And nothing.
The buildings are the same. Our dedicated interpreters are the same. The beautiful historic site is the same.
But the story we tell? That's getting an upgrade.
When you visit now, you're not just visiting some vague notion of "where Tennessee started." You're visiting THE FIRST CAPITAL. The actual place where the territorial government operated. Where formal U.S. democratic governance first took root in this territory west of the Appalachians. Where a Constitution signer proved that American governance could work on the frontier.
When you visit, you're not just learning about 'early Tennessee'; you are standing on the very ground where its future was forged. This is where the framework for Tennessee's first laws took shape, where its initial counties were brought under federal governance, and where the pivotal first census was commanded. Imagine, too, the figures who walked these grounds: frontier legend Daniel Boone is widely believed to have passed through, John Sevier (Tennessee's future first governor) was a prominent figure here during the capital years, and a determined young lawyer named Andrew Jackson actually lodged at this historic homestead for six weeks in 1788, years before he became President, his early ambitions taking shape on this very site.
That's not just clearer—it's more powerful.
Looking Forward to America's 250th
This change couldn't come at a more opportune time. As we approach America's 250th birthday in 2026, Rocky Mount's story becomes exceptionally relevant. We weren't just Tennessee's beginning—our history stands as a vital testament to the fact that the American experiment could successfully expand beyond the original thirteen states.
The system of organized governance and record-keeping initiated on these very grounds—the system that ultimately enables every Tennessee birth certificate, every driver's license, every state function today—laid the critical foundation for the Tennessee we know. Our new identity as "Tennessee's First Capital" empowers us to tell that national story with clarity while honoring our specific, provable, and remarkable history.
Our "Road to 250" initiative is already unfolding, and we invite you to watch for special "Capital at 250" programs and events, particularly as we move into 2026, that will further illuminate this pivotal era.
Join Us on This Journey
Change can feel uncomfortable. I get it. "Tennessee Starts Here" has been with us for a while. But sometimes growth means embracing the full truth of who you are, not just the comfortable version.
We're not competing with Knoxville. We're not rewriting history. We're simply claiming our rightful place in it: Tennessee's First Capital.
I hope you'll visit us soon to experience this story for yourself. Bring that curious fourth-grader in your life. Bring that history buff friend who thinks they know everything about Tennessee. Bring anyone who wants to understand how a frontier territory became the sixteenth state.
Because while Tennessee may have started here, more importantly, Tennessee was governed here first. And that makes all the difference.
See you at the First Capital,
Cody Boring
Executive Director
Rocky Mount State Historic Site
Want to explore the primary sources and evidence behind our First Capital designation? Visit www.rockymountmuseum.com/tennessee-first-capital
