Hail Chattanooga!

Hamilton Bush, your resident history hound, is here again to bring to light those facts, figures, and possibly forgotten fables that have made our city and Hamilton County the great place to live and work today.

Now, as springtime rolls around once again, this young man’s fancy turns to topics of local interest. One of these is the growing use of traffic cameras on the roadways of our fair city. Your lead-footed scribe must readily admit that, at times, he has glanced down at the old odometer of his 1976 Pinto hatchback and muttered something like, “Ease off the gas pedal or smile for the birdie, and get ready to write a check for $50.” And, truth be known, it really is not safe to take some of our twisting and turning byways at any speed greater than that which is posted. The loss of a single life due to irresponsible actions behind the wheel of a car is a terrible tragedy!

However, one item that Old Hamilton feels strongly compelled to speak his mind about is the despicable Kodak, Leica, or whatever brand it is, that our friends in the city of Red Bank have installed at the intersection of Dayton Boulevard and Signal Mountain Boulevard. You see, dear reader, some time ago a friend of yours truly ambled by the office door and poked his head in, as co-workers often do. He proceeded to produce a computer-generated copy of a photograph. Clearly in the frame was an image of his motor vehicle stopped at the intersection in question, wheels slightly across the fat white line, next to which is a prominently displayed sign reading, “STOP HERE ON RED.”

Yes, friends and family, it was a violation of severe magnitude. Maybe it’s called something catchy like “Misdemeanor Wheel Overage” or “Fat White Line Infringement.” Whatever it is, the issue that concerns Old Hamilton is that a ticket for something so petty, especially in this day and time, gives the appearance of nothing more than a money grab cloaked in the strict interpretation of a bogus traffic ordinance. Please spare me the weak line about blocking the road. He wasn’t. The vehicle wasn’t.

Folks, that is a far cry from operating a motor vehicle at an unsafe speed. Here’s hoping that the city of Red Bank spends his money wisely. Goodness knows he needed it, too.

Dear Hamilton Bush,

I entertained visitors from out of town not too long ago and was asked by one of them, who happens to be a Civil War buff, for a trip up Lookout Mountain to Point Park. We ventured up the mountain on a beautiful morning and took in the sights. One of these was the breathtaking view from the Ochs Museum, which is situated a short, but for some, a potentially challenging walk out to a prominence that overlooks the Tennessee River Valley for miles. There is also an interesting display of Civil War artifacts for visitors to view. The enjoyable time we spent at Point Park has raised my curiosity. What can you tell me about the place – particularly the Ochs Museum? I am almost embarrassed to admit that I have lived in the Chattanooga area for many years and had never previously taken the time to visit Point Park.

Sincerely,

Get To The Point

Dear Point,

You know, Old Hamilton is a lifer in Chattanooga – born at Memorial Hospital, raised in the burbs, and educated in the Hamilton County Schools and at UTC. Interestingly enough, yours truly was in conversation the other day with a visiting New Yorker, a native of the Big Apple who acknowledged the fact that he had never set foot on Bedloe’s Island and visited the venerable Statue of Liberty. Seems we all sometimes go far afield to find locales of interest and often forget that some delightful curiosities and places of interest are in our proverbial backyards.

Now, to the business at hand. It was in 1895 that an act of the United States Congress authorized the establishment of the Chickamauga & Chattanooga National Military Park. Today, the park encompasses more than 5,000 acres and its units include: Chickamauga Battlefield, Point Park, Cravens House, Orchard Knob, Signal Point, and various reservations such as Bragg, Sherman, Ohio, Delong, and Turchin, located along the winding course of South and North Crest roads, which traverse Missionary Ridge.

Point Park, in itself, has a wonderful story. Three years after the establishment of the Chickamauga & Chattanooga National Military Park some of the land which now constitutes Point Park was acquired.The historic land is where Union soldiers reached the summit of Lookout Mountain on November 24, 1863. Through the years, various purchases and donations have expanded its size. One of the most notable was a gift of land on the mountain in the vicinity of an old photo studio once operated by a photographer named Robert Linn. It was Linn who had made many photographs of folks on Sunday outings, soldiers in uniform, and other vintage images which preserve moments of a bygone era.

That gift of land in question was in memory of the late newspaper publisher Adolph Ochs, who founded The Chattanooga Times and its notable counterpart, The New York Times. The donation was made with the idea that some sort of suitable memorial to Mr. Ochs, who had been a tireless supporter of the preservation of Civil War sites on Lookout Mountain, would one day occupy the location. The idea of a museum and observatory was presented by a group of citizens and approved by the National Park Service in the spring of 1938. A short time later, $12,000 was donated by a citizens committee to the National Park Service to begin the construction of the museum.

The times were tough during the midst of the Great Depression, and the Civilian Conservation Corps, one of the initiatives during the administration of President Franklin D. Roosevelt to put people back to work, began construction on the museum in 1939. Rock was hauled from a location on Lookout Mountain to the construction site, and a dedication ceremony was held on November 12, 1940. Today, visitors to Point Park still marvel at the breathtaking vistas from the Ochs Museum.

By the way, a few other interesting facts about Point Park include its entrance, which was constructed in 1905 by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers; James Walker’s large painting of the “Battle Above the Clouds,” which is on display at the visitor center; and the New York Peace Monument. The Army Corps of Engineers badge is a replica of the turreted stone entrance structure. Walker’s dramatic painting is a 13- by 30-foot panorama. The New York Peace Monument, erected in 1910 at a cost of $100,000, can be seen for miles. The monument is 95 feet tall and 50 feet wide at its base and is crowned by a Union and a Confederate soldier shaking hands under one flag.

Dear Hamilton Bush,

I moved to downtown Chattanooga a few months ago and noticed some construction activity at the corner of 8th and Market streets. It appears now that Cohutta Banking Company has opened a branch location there. On my own, I did a little investigating and found that the location is the Loveman’s Building and once housed a popular local department store. Since I haven’t lived here for very long, what else can you tell me about the history of this beautiful old building?

Regards,

Down on the Corner

Dear Down,

You are so right! The building of which you speak, at the southeast corner of 8th and Market streets in the heart of downtown Chattanooga, is the historic Loveman’s Building. It was, in fact, constructed in 1892 by David B. Loveman to house his successful department store and was the second of his construction projects on the site. The first, a three-story structure, had been destroyed by fire the previous year. Prior to that, the Centenary Methodist Church occupied the site for a few years.

Many a Chattanoogan recalls fondly the trips downtown to buy shoes and back-to-school clothes at Loveman’s, primarily because there was always a good meal to be had at the lunch counter in the basement, and ice cream was usually involved. Well, the brick-and-stone structure originally stood four-stories tall, and when Loveman bought the building next door in 1904, he added another to it. After Mr. Loveman sold the business, it continued to operate for many years under the same name, and new stores were added around town and even in other East Tennessee cities.

In 1993, the downtown Loveman’s store closed, and the others sadly followed suit, including Old Hamilton’s favorites at Eastgate, East Ridge, and Highland Plaza. As for the store on Market Street, the building stood empty for a while and then was purchased by a local real estate developer who intended to remodel the place into residential condominiums and retail stores. That didn’t pan out exactly as envisioned; however, a succession of owners has since achieved some exciting results.

While the upper floors are all residential condos, the second floor is currently owned by the Chattanooga Land Company, and the first floor is occupied by Real Estate Partners, Stewart Title, and Cohutta Banking Company, which has renovated a whopping 15,000 square feet. The character and charm of the old place have been retained, and once again, one of the most visible corners in downtown Chattanooga has its street-level floor occupied.