Bledsoe County is located in East Tennessee, one of the state's three "grand divisions." Bledsoe County was formed in 1807 from Roane County.

The Land

Bledsoe is divided into three distinct areas by nature...the Cumberland Plateau, Walden's Ridge and the Sequatchie Valley.

The Cumberland plateau was named for the Duke of Cumberland by Dr. Thomas Walker, a Virginian. Sequatchie/Sequachee is of Cherokee origin and means "hog trough" or possibly opossum. There are two stories of the naming of Walden's Ridge. One story supposes it is named for a hunter, John Walling who died there; the other suggests it was named for Elisha Walden.

Many early settlers were farmers. The rich fertile land around the Sequatchie River provided the perfect environment for the corn crops which were the mainstay of the settlers.

Migration

Most early settlers in Bledsoe county came from eastern seaboard states (North Carolina, Virginia and South Carolina ) or the counties of upper east Tennessee namely, Roane, Grainger, Anderson and Knox. Expansion was rapid in the early days of the county. iMore than 3000 people immigrated in the 5 year period between 1805 and 1810.

Bledsoe County is surrounded by White, Cumberland, Rhea, Hamilton, Sequatchie, and Van Buren Counties. Click on a county name to visit the TNGenWeb County pages for further research.

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