What is it about old places that draws a body? Creaking boards, slightly sunlit beams, narrow and steep stairs, and marshy little spring branches all seem to have a lure that we just can't resist. They give us that warm feeling like we belong there or was maybe once a part of these magical old places that represents our history. Old houses, old farms, old stores, and old school buildings reach out and grab us by the collar and just won't let go until we pay our due respects to them.

The National Register of Historic Places recognized these hoarders of memories that are important to our history and heritage. In fact, this is the United States Federal Government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, and objects deemed worthy of preservation and has been managed by the National Park Service since 1966. The more than 90,000 listed in the National Register represents 1.4 million individual resources. Almost every county in the United States has one or more places listed on the National Register. Union County, Tennessee has five!

The communities of Luttrell, Maynardville, and Sharps Chapel all have properties listed on the National Register. Over the next few weeks we will explore these historic places and learn about the tales they hold of families torn by war, homesteading, tomato canning, effects of the great depression on the population, the grocery business, love stories, and more.