WILLOUGHBY STATION HISTORY
The community of Willoughby Station, one of the first planned unit developments in Mt. Juliet, began with the purchase, by Phillips Builders, of approximately forty acres from the three members of the Willoughby family, Charles, William and David in 1988. The initial purchase began the first phase of development of the community, which will eventually encompass approximately three hundred acres and approximately seven hundred and fifty homes. It was felt that an Australian theme would be appropriate for the community, given the Willoughby name, therefore, many of the streets in the development were named for some part of Australia.
The initial amenity area for the community, which consisted of a swimming pool, baby pool, pool house, a basketball court and two tennis courts was constructed during the early stages of the development. A second, junior Olympic size pool was added in 1998, shortly thereafter, the Willoughby Waves, the community youth swim team was formed.
As a planned unit development, Willoughby Station is governed by a set of covenants, restrictions and by-laws that were filed prior to the start of sale of homes in the community. Each year, at the annual meeting of the homeowners association, at least two homeowners are elected to the board of directors for the community. The board of directors is the policy making body for the community. The management company carries out the policies of the board for the community.
Listed below is an article regarding one of the first settlers of Wilson County and Willoughby Station. Mr. Williamson and some of his family members are buried in the cemetery in Willoughby Station
John Williamson (1764-1829), Revolutionary War Patriot
By James F. Williamson, Jr.
When John Williamson and his brother, Thomas, pushed across the Southern Appalachian Mountains into East Tennessee from Virginia in the early 1790s, they were among the earliest pioneer settlers of what was soon to become the 16th state. Both Williamson brothers were to become prominent in the early history of Tennessee.
John Williamson was born in 1764, probably in Montgomery Co., Virginia. At the age of 15, he enlisted with a North Carolina regiment during the Revolution (Tennessee then being a part of North Carolina).
During the Revolution he resided in the Wautauga District in what is now east Tennessee. The Wautaugans were a group of "hard-working, independent-minded yeomen farmers" of Scotch-Irish and English descent who in 1772 established one of the first pioneer settlements in Tennessee. Most had come down the Holston River from Virginia. Skilled at guerrilla warfare tactics learned in their constant battles with the Indians, a contingent of buckskin-clad Wautaugans, including John Williamson, became famous for the successful use of these tactics against the British at the battle of King's Mountain, NC.
In 1781 John married Margaret Cloyd in Montgomery County, VA. He and his family, including his father, James Williamson, arrived in the Cumberland settlement, Sumner County, TN, from Virginia around 1789. The trip was made on horseback and John and Margaret are said to have carried their two little daughters in baskets, one on each side of a packhorse.
John and Margaret subsequently moved from Sumner County to neighboring Wilson County. He served as an officer in the Davidson and Wilson County militias under General James Robertson, the founder of Nashville, and was elected to the Tennessee House of Representatives where he represented Wilson County. There he built his home, Green Hill, where he died and was buried in 1829. The remains of Green Hill, including a springhouse and John's grave, are located at the Willoughby Station subdivision in Mt. Juliet. There one can discover the ghostly outlines of ancient tombstones, most bearing the name Williamson, including that of "John Williamson, Green's Co., N.C. Regt., Rev. War." (According to the Daughters of the American Revolution, John Williamson’s present grave marker was erected by the D.A.R. in 1933.)
Rebecca Williamson Cloyd, John’s sister, also moved to Tennessee, settling near Green Hill. John and her husband, Ezekiel Cloyd, who became a Presbyterian minister, in 1795 established Stoner's Creek Presbyterian Church in Mt. Juliet, the first Presbyterian church in the area.
John’s younger brother, Colonel Thomas Williamson, was also a prominent figure in the early history of Tennessee. He was born in 1767, the same year as Andrew Jackson, with whom his later fortunes were to become closely linked. Both John and Thomas were large landowners and became business partners in Nashville. Following a distinguished military career in Jackson's campaigns against the Creek Indians and the British, including the battles of Pensacola and New Orleans, Thomas was elected to the Tennessee General Assembly, representing Davidson County. In 1816 he served as Speaker of the House. His home was located near The Hermitage.
In recognition of their arrival in Tennessee prior to Statehood in 1796 and their significance in the early history of the state, these Williamson pioneers and their descendants are listed among the “First Families of Tennessee.”
For more information on these early Williamsons see “With Unshaken Firmness: Colonel Thomas Williamson,” Tennessee Historical Quarterly, Winter 2006-07.
