Yancey's Tavern - History

History

In 1779, James Hollis, Sr. (1727-1794) erected the house where the second meeting of the Sullivan County Commissioners was conducted. The County Commissioners continued meeting there and at other houses until the land for the county seat in Blountville was donated in 1792.

In 1784, John Yancey, a tavern owner from Abingdon, Virginia, purchased the Hollis house and converted the structure to Yancey's Tavern. The tavern continued to operate well into the nineteenth century.

By the 1840s, ownership of the structure had passed to John Shaver. Operated as Shaver's Inn, the site served as a regular stagecoach stop on the route from Abingdon due to its location between Old Deery Inn in Blountville and Netherland Inn in Kingsport. Shaver's Inn is located approximately ten miles (16 kilometers) from both Old Deery Inn and Netherland Inn. The location was convenient since horses were normally changed after ten miles (16 kilometers) and drivers after twenty miles (32 kilometers). From 1842 to 1866, the building also served as the Eden's Ridge post office which had previously been located at the Exchange Place.

In 1889, John Spahr of Southwest Virginia bought the house and 230 acres (0.93 km2) from the Shaver family. In 1903, the existing barn was erected. The Spahr Farm continued operation until the early 1950s when East Lawn Cemetery was founded. Most of the former farm area is now occupied by the cemetery. The last occupant of the house was John Spahr's daughter, Mary. After her death in 1962, the house remained vacant for 42 years. Minimal maintenance of the structure was performed during the occupancy of Mary Spahr or the subsequent ownership by her heirs and nieces, Dorothy and Ruth Wexler.

Upon the death of Ruth Wexler, an estate auction was held in 2004. The house was purchased and restored by Rann Vaulx. The barn was purchased and repaired by G. A. Agett. In 2006, Vaulx purchased the barn from Agett.