[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 49 (Monday, April 12, 1999)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E602-E603]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         TRIBUTE TO DICKSON, TN

                                 ______
                                 

                             HON. ED BRYANT

                              of tennessee

                    in the house of representatives

                         Monday, April 12, 1999

  Mr. BRYANT. Mr. Speaker, on Thursday, April 22, this year, the day 
will mark the 100th anniversary of the creation of one of the finest 
towns in the United States--Dickson, Tennessee.
  Dickson was first chartered 1873 after Mr. C. Berringer of Allegheny 
County, Pa., established a colony of farmers and mechanics, who, like 
Berringer, were immigrants from Pennsylvania. Berringer first purchased 
the land in 1857 and began plotting lots and sold them on the real 
estate market.
  The name of the colony, Smeedsville, was eventually changed to 
Dickson in 1873 when the town was chartered, but that charter was lost 
and never recovered. A second charter was established on April 22, 
1899, which is now being celebrated throughout Middle Tennessee.
  At the outbreak of the Civil War in 1861, the eastern branch of the 
Nashville and Northwestern Rail Line had been completed from Nashville 
to Kingston Springs. After the Union Army took Fort Donelson in 1862, 
Gen. Ulysses S. Grant ordered the completion of the line to 
Johnsonville on the Tennessee River. Gen. Alvah H. Gilliam was placed 
in charge of that work which was done primarily by black infantry 
soldiers.
  In 1864, W. H. Crutcher is believed to have constructed the first 
store on North Main Street, as well as the first hotel. By 1870, the 
town of Smeedsville had grown to a population of 150. With the end of 
the Civil War and the advent of the railroad, the community grew 
rapidly over the next 20 years. Dickson developed, as many communities 
in Tennessee, as a railroad town. Much of the commercial activity that 
took place was due to the agriculture and timber business. There were 
many sawmills in and around Dickson. The Dickson Planing Mill operated 
by the Cowan Brothers was the largest. Tool handles, hardwood flooring 
and white oak barrels (for oil), and spokes for buggy wheels were some 
of the products manufactured locally for the retail market. Early 20th 
Century business included the U.S. Tobacco Company, Henry J. Siegel 
(HIS) Company, the American Cigar factory and Red Cap Garment Company, 
which is still in business today.
  In 1905, a fire devastated most of the downtown district. The 
community rebuilt and by the end of the first quarter of the new 
century, the population had reached almost 3,000. Banks,

[[Page E603]]

industrial growth, agriculture and manufacturing all contributed to the 
substantial growth of the town. General merchandise, hardware, drug and 
clothing stores, along with restaurants, hotels and other places of 
business made Dickson a thriving market town. With the advent of the 
``Great Depression'' and then World War II, many businesses suffered 
greatly. The growth since then has been slow but steady.
  The railroad still plays an important part of Dickson's continuous 
history. Ten to 12 trains run between Memphis and Nashville each day. 
The depot still serves as a crucial monitoring point along this line.
  In 1913, J. T. Halbrook, a local businessman, constructed the hotel 
directly across from the depot. This facility served rail passengers, 
railway personnel, farmers, merchants and drummers (traveling 
salesmen.) The hotel stands today as a reminder of this role in the 
commercial history and development of Dickson. In 1917, Belle S. Goad, 
a widow from Scottsville, Kentucky, moved to Dickson and leased the 
Halbrook Hotel. She ran this facility with the help of her sister, 
Maybelle. In 1919, Maybelle married Robert S. Clement, who later became 
a prominent attorney in Dickson County. On June 2, 1920, their son 
Frank G. Clement was born in the hotel. In 1952, he was elected 
governor of Tennessee and subsequently served a total of three terms. 
The Halbrook Hotel is listed on the National Register of Historic 
Places and owned by the State of Tennessee.
  Dickson has blossomed into one of Tennessee's most beautiful 
metropolitan areas and I am especially proud to be able to honor the 
city in this way.

                          ____________________