Farragut History
Farragut is a town in Knox and Loudon counties in the U.S. state of Tennessee, and is a suburb of nearby Knoxville. Farragut’s population was 17,720 at the 2000 census. It is included in the “Knoxville, Tennessee Metropolitan Statistical Area”. It is named in honor of American Civil War Admiral David Farragut, who was born just east of Farragut at Campbell’s Station in 1801.
The area was originally known as Campbell’s Station. A fort and stage coach station were built there by David Campbell in 1787. The brick Campbell’s Station Inn was built there in 1810 and still stands on Kingston Pike within sight of the Farragut Town Hall. It is still in use as a private residence. The Civil War Battle of Campbell’s Station was fought there on November 16, 1863.
The historic unincorporated village of Concord (listed on the National Register of Historic Places) was founded in 1854 just east of what would become the eastern boundary of Farragut. Concord is located on the main rail line to Atlanta, Georgia and main channel of the Tennessee River. Picturesque buildings and antebellum homes sit along the river, as well as several very old churches.
Farragut High School was built by the community in 1904.
Farragut was incorporated on January 16, 1980. The first mayor, Bob Leonard, was elected April 1, 1980, along with four aldermen. Alderman Eddy Ford became mayor in 1993 and served in that position until April 2009, when he failed to win re-election, losing to Dr. Ralph McGill, another of the original founders of the town government.
A small part of the $500 million Turkey Creek shopping, office, and housing development, begun in the late 1990s, is within the town’s borders.
