Convenient Location
Chelaque Estates is a private gated community overlooking Cherokee Lake in East Tennessee. Home sites range in size from one-half acre to 59 acres. We are within a day's drive of most of the major U.S. cities east of the Mississippi River. Many major interstate highways from all four directions converge into a hub located less than an hour away.
Morristown, Tn - 30 minutes
Rogersville, Tn - 25 minutes
Knoxville, Tn - 1 hour
Gatlinburg, Tn - 1 hour
The Great Smoky Mountains NP - 1 hour
Chattanooga, Tn - 2 hours
Nashville, Tn - 3 1/2 hours
Charlotte, Nc - 3 1/2 hours
Atlanta, Ga - 4 hours
McGee Tyson Airport in Knoxville, and the Tri-Cities Regional Airport in Bristol, offer regularly scheduled flights by both domestic and international airlines. Major aviation hubs are located in Nashville, Tn., Atlanta, Ga., and Charlotte, Nc. Private airports service Morristown and Rogersville.
Climate and Weather
Our region gets 44 inches of rain per year. The US average is 37. Our average snowfall is 10 inches. The average US city gets 25 inches of snow per year. The number of days with any measurable precipitation is 123. On average, there are 200 sunny days per year in Hawkins County, TN. The July high is around 87 degrees. The January low is 28. Most find east Tennessee the perfect location for those who like to enjoy four seasons but prefer winter to be on the milder side.
Hawkins County, TN - 2010 Census Quick Facts
As of the census of 2010, there were 56,833 people, 26,870 households residing in the county. The population density was 116.7 people per square mile. The racial makeup of the county was 96.7% White, 1.4% Black or African American, 0.3% Native American, 0.5% Asian, 0.01%, 1.3% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. Persons under 5 years was 5.2%. Persons under 18 years was 21.6%. Persons 65 years and over was 18.0%. Female persons was 51.0%
The median income for a household in the county was $36,795. The per capita income for the county was $20,293. About 16.9% of the population were below the poverty line. The median value of owner-occupied housing units was $108,000. Homeownership rate was 77.3%
For more details, click below to visit the census site.
Hawkins County History
Our community wasn't always in Tennessee. Most already know this area was originally part of North Carolina. But what many folks do not realize is that this area was at one time in the State of Franklin.
Franklin was created in 1784 from part of the territory west of the Appalachian Mountains that had been offered by North Carolina as a cession to Congress to help pay off debts related to the American War for Independence. It was founded with the intent of becoming the fourteenth state of the new United States. Franklin was never admitted into the union. The extra-legal state existed for only about four and a half years, ostensibly as a republic, after which North Carolina re-assumed full control of the area.
The nearby town of Rogersville, Tn was settled in 1775 by the grandparents of Davy Crockett, and is the second-oldest town in the state. It is named for its founder, Joseph Rogers. Tennessee's oldest courthouse, first newspaper, and first post office are located in Rogersville.
In 1780, Colonel Thomas Amis built a fort at Big Creek, on the outskirts of the present-day town. That same year, about three and one-half miles above downtown Rogersville, Amis erected a fortress-like stone house around which he built a palisade for protection against Native American attack.
The next year, Amis opened a store; erected a blacksmith shop; and built a distillery. He also eventually established a sawmill and a gristmill. The Amis home was at one time the last place travelers could sleep under a roof on their journey into to the wilderness of Kentucky and west.
The little town just west of Chelaque Estates is called Bean Station. William Bean and Daniel Boone were the first white men known to have viewed the land around what is now Bean Station on a hunting trip in 1775.
Captain William Bean was granted 3,000 acres of land by North Carolina for his service in the Revolutionary war. Remembering the tall timber, fertile soil and abundant wildlife from his trip with friend Daniel Boone, he claimed land near what is now known as Bean Station.
Bean Station became an important location on the Wilderness Trail for supplies and was the last outpost prior to making the journey over the rugged Cumberland Mountains.
Our community is located on what is referred to as Proffitt Ridge. This land was once owned by early settler John Proffitt and his wife Lucy Crockett Proffitt, (second cousin to Davy Crockett).
John and Lucy are buried on a site lower in our community, Morristown, TN which is about 12 miles south where young Davy Crockett's father, John moved and built Crocketts Tavern. A reconstructed museum tavern still stands on that location.
About Cherokee Lake
Ever wonder what this area was like prior to the creation of Cherokee Lake? Here is a map that shows the difference.
Construction of Cherokee Dam began in August 1, 1940, and was completed on a crash schedule on December 5, 1941.
The reservoir has nearly 400 miles of winding shoreline and about 28,780 acres of water surface.
The dam is 175 feet high and stretches 6,760 feet, or well over a mile, from one end to the other.
In a year with normal rainfall, the water level in Cherokee Reservoir varies about 30 feet from summer to winter to provide seasonal flood storage. Cherokee has a flood-storage capacity of 749,400 acre-feet.
Cherokee Dam is a hydroelectric facility. It has four generating units with a net dependable capacity of 148 megawatts. Net dependable capacity is the amount of power a hydroelectric dam can produce on an average day, minus the electricity used by the dam itself.
Check Current Lake Levels here ->
http://www.tva.gov
Source: TVA