June 10th & 11th Rugby, Tennessee

The Rugby Library houses 7000 books is the oldest completely
preserved public library in the US

I’ve been using the book “Off the Beaten Path” that my Partners gave me when I retired quite a bit. One of its entries was for the Village of Rugby in northern Tennessee just a little south of the Kentucky border. Rugby was founded by Thomas Hughes in 1880. It was a British colony intended to be a utopian community where second sons could own land. In Britain the rule was that all the family land transferred to the first born son. So, Rugby was intended to help the remaining sons – no mention of the daughters of course.

Twenty of the original Victorian-era buildings remain and others have been reconstructed. I arrived just in time to join a docent-led tour and got to go inside their original library and the schoolhouse which now houses a small museum. Later I got to see inside the original Christ Church built in the carpenter gothic style. I shopped in the original Commissary and bought a few items made by local artisans, including a pin by D. Stover – possibly a relative?

Thomas Hughes, founder of Rugby

Apparently, the social experiment was not successful for a number of reasons and the village declined as colonists left. The land was sold to the United States in 1909. Today nearly all of the buildings have been restored and there is a strong sense of community. It was a delightful place to visit. 

"Manners Make the Man"
one of the 7000 volumes in the library

Percy Cottage bed and breakfast

The Lindens a private residence

Original Christ Church

Church interior

Central Avenue with Rugby Printing Works (small red) and
the Commisary on right

Quilts - some of the locally made crafts for
sale in the Commissary

A bed and Breakfast hidden away on a side street

The schoolhouse and town center

Kingstone Lisle a beautiful bed and breakfast inn

Exterior of the original library

One of the private homes along Central Avenue that has
been restored