Great Stage Road Historic Drive
Follow the frontier highway through Sullivan County, free self-guided audio tour
Why This Route
It's free, it's flexible, and it's one of the best introductions to Sullivan County you can get. The Great Stage Road audio guide works on your schedule, drive the route in an afternoon, or stretch it across a weekend with stops at heritage sites, restaurants, and overlooks. For visitors who are passing through or have limited time, this tour offers a meaningful Sullivan County experience at zero cost.
Coming soon · Route availability preview.
Your Itinerary
Morning
- Stop 1Exchange Place30 minutes Kingsport
Your Great Stage Road journey begins at Exchange Place in Kingsport, the farmstead where stagecoach horses were swapped. Tired Virginia horses were exchanged for fresh Tennessee mounts, and vice versa, keeping the frontier highway's traffic moving. The name stuck, and the place still tells the story.
- Where stagecoach horses were exchanged
- Living history farm on the Great Stage Road
- Heritage breed animals and historic buildings
Follow the historic road alignment east toward Blountville, about 25 minutes of scenic driving.
- Stop 2Old Deery Inn30 minutes Blountville
The Old Deery Inn was the crown jewel of Great Stage Road hospitality in Sullivan County. Every major traveler on the frontier highway stopped here, including three future presidents. The inn is the physical evidence of a transportation network that built a nation.
- The premier stagecoach inn on the Sullivan County stretch
- Three presidents stopped here
- Blountville's position on the frontier highway
Continue south on the historic route toward Piney Flats, about 20 minutes.
Lunch
- Stop 3Rocky Mount State Historic Site1.5 hours Piney Flats
Rocky Mount sits at the intersection of the Great Stage Road network and the Holston River valley, the perfect location for a territorial capitol. Governor Blount's ability to administer the Southwest Territory depended on the road network you've been driving. The living history tour puts you directly into the world that the Great Stage Road created.
- The Southwest Territory capitol, directly connected to the Great Stage Road network
- Governor Blount's administration relied on the road for communication
- Living history tour bringing the frontier era to life
lunch:Continue south on the historic route to Ridgewood Barbecue in Bluff City, 8 miles from Rocky Mount and worth every inch of the detour.
Stops on This Route
Logistics
Exchange Place, 4812 Orebank Road, Kingsport (or any point on the route) → Rocky Mount State Historic Site, Piney Flats (or continue to Bluff City)
Total driving: Approximately 35 miles one-way on the main route
Whatever you're comfortable driving in. Comfortable shoes if you stop at heritage sites.
What to bring:
- • Smartphone with downloaded audio guide
- • Car charger for phone
- • Water and snacks
- • Camera for scenic overlooks
The Great Stage Road was the I-40 of the 18th century, the primary overland route connecting the eastern seaboard to the trans-Appalachian frontier. This free, self-guided driving tour follows its path through Sullivan County with a downloadable audio guide that tells the story of the road, the travelers, and the communities that grew up along it. Presidents, pioneers, merchants, and musicians all traveled this road. Now it's your turn.
Verified by us
Verified 2026-05-30 · next review 2026-08-28