Kingsport travel guide

Kingsport is a city located primarily in Sullivan County, and also partially in Hawkins County, Tennessee, United States.
The name is a simplification of "King's Port," originally referring to the area around Ross's Landing. The city, along with Bristol, Tennessee, and Johnson City, Tennessee, is part of the Tri-Cities, Tennessee/Virginia Metro Area. It is also commonly included in what is known as the "Mountain Empire," which includes a portion of southwest Virginia and the mountainous counties in Tennessee to the east.
The Long Island of the Holston River, today mostly within the corporate boundaries of Kingsport, was an important site for the Cherokee, colonial pioneers, and early settlers. Early settlements at the site were used as a staging ground for people taking the Wilderness Road leading to Kentucky through the Cumberland Gap. First chartered in 1822, Kingsport became an important shipping port on the Holston River. Goods originating for many miles from the surrounding countryside were loaded onto barges for the journey downriver to the Tennessee River at Knoxville. The young town lost its charter after a downturn its in fortunes precipitated by the Civil War. The name "Tennessee" originated from the old Yuchi Indian word, "Tana-see," meaning "The Meeting Place," which refers to The Long Island of the Holston River. (...) more....