DeVault Tavern

DeVault Tavern is a historic two-story brick building in Washington County, Tennessee, near Jonesborough. Constructed in 1821, it was built in the Federal architectural style and stood along the Great Stage Road, an important historic route connecting Abingdon, Virginia, with Knoxville, Tennessee. Its location placed the property within the network of inns and stopping places that served travelers moving through the region during the early nineteenth century. The building is distinguished by its brick construction, laid in Flemish bond, and by a limestone foundation. It has two front porches arranged on upper and lower levels, with wood construction and a small pediment. A two-story ell extends behind the main block, and portions of the ell's side porch have been enclosed. Original windows and shutters remain among the building's notable historic features. Hand-carved detailing beneath the eaves and around the porch has a honeycomb-like appearance, a decorative treatment also found in several other early houses in Washington County. A brick spring house associated with the property stands across the road. It has deteriorated and is described as being overgrown with vines. The tavern is also connected with regional historical traditions involving prominent nineteenth-century travelers. Andrew Jackson is reported to have stayed there, while Confederate cavalry general John Hunt Morgan reportedly spent the night at the property immediately before his death. The property later left the DeVault family under circumstances involving a disputed or forged will, according to the cited historical account. In its more recent use, the site has been identified as The Tilted Tavern Animal Sanctuary. Available reference material does not establish a current commercial hospitality operation, corporate ownership structure, or conventional consumer-brand business. DeVault Tavern is therefore best understood as a historic place and locally significant heritage name rather than as an internationally distributed product brand.

DeVault Tavern was built in 1821 in what is now Washington County, Tennessee, near Jonesborough. The structure was erected beside the Great Stage Road, a historic transportation route between Abingdon, Virginia, and Knoxville, Tennessee. In that setting, the property functioned as a tavern and stopping place for travelers using the road. The available historical account does not identify the builder, the original operator, or the precise duration of its operation as a public tavern. Architecturally, the building is a two-story brick structure in the Federal style. Its masonry is laid in Flemish bond, and the building rests on a limestone foundation. The front elevation includes wooden porches on both floors, topped by a small pediment. A two-story ell projects from the rear, with part of the ell's side porch later enclosed. The property retains original windows and shutters. Particularly distinctive are the hand-carved details below the eaves and around the porch, whose repeated forms resemble a honeycomb. Similar decorative work appears in other early houses in Washington County, placing the tavern within a local architectural tradition rather than treating it as an isolated design. A brick spring house associated with the property is located across the road. By the time of the cited account, the spring house had substantially deteriorated and was covered in vines. Its presence helps document the historic domestic and hospitality infrastructure surrounding the main building. The tavern is linked by historical tradition to several notable Civil War-era and national figures. Andrew Jackson is said to have stayed at the property. Confederate general John Hunt Morgan is also reported to have spent the night there on the evening before his death. These associations contribute to the site's heritage significance, although the available reference does not provide further documentation or dates for Jackson's visit. The property eventually departed from the DeVault family in a dispute involving greed and a false will bearing a forged signature. The reference material does not identify all parties, establish a legal outcome, or provide a complete chronology for the transfer. In its later history, the site became associated with an animal sanctuary known as The Tilted Tavern Animal Sanctuary. The available material does not clarify when that use began, its legal structure, or whether the historic building remains open to visitors. Because the subject is a historic building rather than a conventional commercial brand, there is no supported evidence of product lines, corporate executives, financial reporting, stock-market activity, or international operating markets. The name's primary significance is architectural, local-historical, and place-based.

• 1821

  Construction of the tavern

  [1]DeVault Tavernen.wikipedia.org

  A two-story Federal-style brick building was constructed along the Great Stage Road in Washington County, Tennessee.

• Association with historic travelers

  [1]DeVault Tavernen.wikipedia.org

  The property became associated with reported stays by Andrew Jackson and Confederate general John Hunt Morgan.

• Transfer from the DeVault family

  [1]DeVault Tavernen.wikipedia.org

  The property reportedly left the family after a disputed transfer involving a forged signature on a will.

• Animal-sanctuary use

  [1]DeVault Tavernen.wikipedia.org

  The property later became associated with The Tilted Tavern Animal Sanctuary.

A historic Tennessee tavern and heritage property associated with early nineteenth-century travel, regional architecture, and later animal-sanctuary use.

1. 1DeVault Tavernen.wikipedia.org