In 1775, pioneers Daniel Boone and William Bean observed the Holston River valley for the first time in Grainger County after crossing the gap at Clinch Mountain during their one of their long hunting excursion.
After fighting in the Revolutionary War a year later, William Bean was awarded 3,000 acres of property in the area he previously surveyed for settlement during his excursion with Daniel Boone.
Bean went on to later construct a four-room cabin at this site which served as his family’s home and also as a inn for prospective settlers, longhunters and fur traders.
Grainger County later went on to be established by the North Carolina State Legislature on April 22, 1796. Tennessee was not yet established into a state until 2 months later on June 1st, 1796. Grainger County was named after William Blount’s Mary Grainger Blount making this the only county in the state of Tennessee to be named after a woman.
In 1801, Rutledge, Tennessee was selected as the counties seat and after Grainger was formed, Anderson, Claiborne, Hamblen, Hancock, Scott, Union and Campbell County were formed from portions of the original Grainger County following its land size reduction from 1801 to 1870.