Come along with us as we explore Fayette County, Tennessee and some of its cities -- Rossville, Moscow, La Grange and Grand Junction. The area is filled with historic buildings and homes, many of which predate the Civil War. The cities are tiny -- more like villages -- and seem to be frozen in time. [gallery columns="4" type="rectangular" ids="623,624,622,621,612,611,613,618,610,620,614,616,615,617,609,608,607,619"]
Of the towns, Rossville offered the most -- The Rusty Propeller, a really fun antique store filled with primitive Americana goodness and the Wolf River Cafe. Sadly, it was only 10:30 a.m. when we arrived in Rossville, so we didn't have lunch there. Instead, we walked around the three-block downtown area, and saw each of the beautiful old homes up close.
Next up was Moscow, a town with one antique store, Miss Ann's Antique Treasures, as well as some really neat old buildings with lots of potential. Unfortunately, all were empty and rather sad looking.
From there, we drove to La Grange. This charming village is the home of Retro, a cute consignment and antiques store. When we walked into Retro, no one was in the store (although the door was open -- very creepy!), but fortunately the owner popped out of the Town Office (located next door), just as we were leaving. He told us the building was originally his grandfather's, and he had always wanted to turn it into a store. It was so charming and even had a potbelly stove in the center of the room!
There were several other quaint stores in La Grange, but none of them appeared to be open. We later discovered that Cogbill's was open. We'll definitely check it out next time.
After we left La Grange, we headed to the Ghost River boardwalk. The area served as the inspiration for the local Ghost River Brewing Company. You can see where they got the idea for their logo! The Ghost River was so peaceful and beautiful but also a bit eerie.
Grand Junction, the next town, continued that slightly creepy pattern. It was quite literally a ghost town -- the buildings and signs were all in place, but everything was boarded up and abandoned.
As we headed back toward Shelby County and the twenty-first century, we talked about the potential of Fayette County and how cool it is that so much of its prewar architecture is still intact. We loved that so many families had restored the lovely homes and that several businesses were thriving. It was very inspiring for two people who love the past like we do!