An old African proverb states that when an elder passes, it’s as if a library was burnt to the ground. That is no truer to me than when I’m running into road blocks on some piece of Fountain City history and our late contributor, Dr. Jim Tumblin, isn’t available for a quick chat or an email. If he didn’t know exactly, the worst he could do was point me in precisely the right direction.

The story I needed him for will require a few more weeks of work, but in the meantime, what he left behind has helped with my story today. Dr. Jim wrote often of the historic homes of Fountain City, those still standing and those long gone. One that left us in 1980 was what most residents of this far North Knoxville community commonly called the Williams Mansion. Officially, its name was Park Place.

Thomas Pruden, pho from 1916 Central High School Sequoyah

For the younger set or those new around here, the location of the Kroger in Fountain City used to be a considerable hill. Perched on top of it was a grand Victorian mansion of red brick and stone. Built by Col. J.C. Woodward in 1890, its last and longest owners, the family of J.C. Williams (1917-1980). Before the old manse and the hill were eventually brought down, you could stay where the current Chick-fil-A’s parking lot is on Broadway and not see Gentry Mortuary on the other side on Cedar Lane. You can read more about its history in Dr. Tumblin’s story here.

In between the Woodwards and the Williams residencies, the house was owned by Thomas Pruden from 1909-1917. Pruden was a native of Newcastle, England, (born 1856) and came to the United States at the age of 22. He first started working in the Ohio coalfields then made his way to Mingo Hollow, Kentucky, just over the Tennessee state line not far from Middlesboro. There, he eventually became the superintendent of the Fork Ridge Coal and Coke Company.

By the age of 43, he had purchased a controlling interest in the company and proceeded to become the exact opposite of the worst things you ever read about Big Coal bosses in the early 20th Century. He endeavored to improve the lives of the miners and their families in both working and living conditions, and was much beloved for his efforts. By 1904, he’d sold out of Fork Ridge and formed the Pruden Coal and Coke Company, continuing his new operation in the same way he’d done the former. The old coal town bearing his name sits at the Tennessee/Kentucky border on Highway 74, northeast of LaFollette. It is of note that at no point during his lifetime, there was never a strike at his mines.

But another place that bears his name still sits on some pretty hallowed ground in Fountain City. One of the final acts of his considerable philanthropy before his death from a heart attack in 1915 was a contribution to establish a football field at Central High School (now Gresham Middle School). While $500 may not sound like much, that’s over $15,000 in today’s dollars. The 1916 Central yearbook devoted three pages to celebrate the man who helped make it happen, including a photo of that check.

Though the Friday night lights went out several decades ago, Pruden Field stands forever as the birthplace of the Central Bobcats.

Thomas Pruden is buried in Greenwood Cemetery

Beth Kinnane writes a history feature for KnoxTNToday.com. It’s published each Tuesday and is one of our best-read features.

Sources: McClung Digital Collection at Knox County Library, Fountain City: People Who Made a Difference by Dr. Jim Tumblin