TDEC hosts virtual discussion about Lone Rock Convict Labor Stockade
October 14, 2022

Archaeology lecture series features “Hell Holes of Rage,
Cruelty, Despair, and Vice”

NASHVILLE, TN -- Dr. Camille Westmont of Sewanee: The University of the South will give a free virtual lecture Thursday, Oct. 20 about the Lone Rock Convict Labor Stockade from the 1800s in Grundy County, part of a series of lectures by the Division of Archaeology in the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation.

The event at 6 p.m. (CDT) is open to anyone who wants to participate. Registration for the program is at this link. The lecture is titled, “’Hell Holes of Rage, Cruelty, Despair, and Vice’: Archaeological Findings from the Lone Rock Convict Labor Stockade.”

From 1871-1896, Tracy City was the headquarters of the Tennessee Coal and Iron Company and the epicenter of the state’s forced prison labor industry. Over the 25 years, over 5,000 prisoners, most of whom were African American men, were brought to Tracy City and forced to work in the area’s coal mines and coke ovens. In 1884, the original makeshift prison was replaced with a purpose-built prison stockade. That structure, named the Lone Rock Stockade, would become notable in state history, including playing a role in the Tennessee Convict Lease War. Since 2020, archaeological excavations have sought to learn more about the stockade, surrounding landscape, and experiences of the prisoners who were held there.

“Dr. Westmont’s research sheds light on a little-known chapter in Tennessee history and has the potential to inform modern debates around labor, mass incarceration, corporations, and institutional life,” said State Archaeologist Phil Hodge. “Her research documents the day-to-day life of those imprisoned at Lone Rock and sentenced to forced labor, as well as the institutions that perpetuated convict leasing in the 19th century.”

This will be the final lecture in the 2022 virtual series hosted by the Division of Archaeology. Details about the series can be found at this link. Anyone who has questions about the series are invited to contact Hodge by email at Phil.Hodge@tn.gov.