1854 – 1876
Madison College
The West Tennessee Baptist Male Institute was chartered at Spring Creek in 1854 and later became Madison College. The school operated until the building burned in February 1876.
Preserving Spring Creek
Remembering where we came from is part of building where we are going.
Preservation is part of our mission
Preservation is one of The Ledge’s five core values: we celebrate timeless values and nurture places where community life can flourish for generations. That includes the story of Spring Creek itself, and the people who built a community here long before our doors opened.
A short note on Spring Creek’s story
Spring Creek sits in northeast Madison County, Tennessee, along U.S. Highway 70 East. It takes its name from the stream, a tributary of the Middle Fork of the Forked Deer River. A few moments from its early history, in brief:
- 1820s: The area was settled soon after Madison County was organized, and a Spring Creek post office opened in 1824.
- A plantation as a crossroads: Colonel Samuel Dickins’s Hazlewood plantation became a focal point, and roads were routed through the young community.
- 1840s: Neighbors built a grist mill and a steam-powered cotton spinning “factory” on the creek. The spinning mill closed in the 1850s.
- The cemetery: Spring Creek’s cemetery began as the Hazlewood family graveyard and still holds many early residents.
This summary draws on Jonathan K. T. Smith’s A Genealogical Miscellany II, Madison County, Tennessee (1996), “Spring Creek, Tennessee: A Historical Sketch.” For the full account, with dates, deeds and family histories, read it at TNGenWeb.
Places that shaped Spring Creek
Some of Spring Creek’s story is tied to particular places. These are the ones we are gathering photographs and memories for first.
Early 1900s – 1943
Spring Creek High School
Built in the early twentieth century, the high school closed in 1943 when it was consolidated with others to form North Side High School. The elementary school stayed open until 1964.
December 19, 1862
Forrest’s Raid
A Tennessee Historical Commission marker at Spring Creek records Confederate General Nathan Bedford Forrest’s raid through the community.
Details from Wikipedia and the TNGenWeb historical sketch. Do you have a photo of the old college or school sites, or a story about them? Tell us; we would like to add each place to a Spring Creek historic spots series.
How we are keeping the stories
- The Spring Creek Celebration each fall includes Historical Archives & Storytelling.
- Our stories record the building of The Ledge and the speakers who visit Biscuits ’n’ Tips. Start with Spring Creek: the past and our future.
- The hall itself is the preservation project: a place where neighbors of every generation still gather.
Help us preserve it
If you have old photographs, church or school records, newspaper clippings, family stories, or memories of how Spring Creek used to be, we would love to hear about them. Tell us what you have and we will talk through how to document it together. Bringing something to the Celebration works too.