The Location
Belfast, Tennessee is an unincorporated community that grew up around the former Duck River Valley Narrow Gauge Railroad line which connected Fayetteville to Columbia Tennessee by rail in the late 1870's. Belfast has two structures on the National Register of Historic Places, the old Train Depot, built in the 1870's, and the building which housed Tate's General Merchandise Store which opened in 1808. Revolutionary War veteran, Captain John Medearis, who died in 1834, also lived near Belfast. Born in Essex County, Va., Feb. 22, 1744, he served as an officer in the American Revolution, besides making substantial financial contributions to the cause. At the war's end, instead of reimbursement, he accepted a large grant in this area, naming his holdings "Liberty," saying this alone was worth his contribution.
The Area
In 1825, citizens from Bedford, Lincoln, Giles, and Maury Counties petitioned the General Assembly of Tennessee to form a new county from portions of the four mentioned. These citizens argued that their respective courthouses were too far away for convenience. It was not, however, until February 20, 1836 that the Tennessee Legislature acted upon the petition. The new county took the name Marshall after the noted American jurist, John Marshall. Though communities were already established at Belfast, Chapel Hill, Farmington, and Cornersville, the town of Lewisburg was formed specifically to be the county seat.
The Jack Trail GeoTour
The Jack Trail GeoTour is a series of geocaches along the backroads and small towns of Middle Tennessee. There is no fixed itinerary, like on a traditional trail, but rather a series of points of interest in a self-guided, goal-oriented plan. We have created a special passport, which you can download here, which lets you track your progress as you hunt specially placed geocaches along the tour. This passport will help you collect “code words” to qualify for special geocoins for completion of the GeoTour.
