Friendsville, TN

Friendsville is a Blount County city founded in the 1790s by Quakers from North Carolina, on three hills near the Tennessee River. The Friends Meetinghouse is still part of the town's identity, and the local history includes a serious Underground Railroad story: William Hackney, a Friendsville Quaker, is credited with helping fugitives and Unionists move through the area, using Cudjo's Cave as part of the route. State Route 333 stretches from Fort Loudoun Lake toward U.S. 321, so the modern map runs between water and highway. Friendsville's name tells you who settled it; the meetinghouse, cave, and lake tell you what kind of place it became.