Robie and all This from "History of White County" by Monroe Seals, pub 1935: page 65 _ The Rhea House was built for the Sparta branch of the old State Bank. page 112- James Whitcomb Riley spent a month once a the Rhea House on his vacation, during which time he wrote some of his most famous poems. Opie Reed stayed at the Rhea House in Sparta while he was writing the two novels "The Waters of Caney Fork" and "The Jucklins." page 138- Sparta has two excellent hotels and some inns and private boarding houses. The Rhea House was originally build for a branch of the State Bank. During the many years the Rhea House has run as a hotel it has enjoyed a fine patronage of the traveling public and has been through all the years a kind of family hotel as well, many of the business and professional men and women of Sparta making their homes there. A number of famous men and women from the outside have spent a while at the Rhea House. James Whitcomb Riley once spent a part of the summer there, and while there wrote some of his best known poems, among them being, so it is said, "The Old Swimming Hole" and "An Old Sweetheart of Mine." Opie Reed spent a summer at the Rhea House once and while here wrote probably his most famous novel, "The Jucklins." It is said also that he gathered the material for "The Waters of Caney Fork" while here. At present it is owned by Mrs Stanton Dibrell, and the managers are her son and daughter, Mr and Mrs S. S. Dibrell, Jr. page 149- Sparta is well supplied with restaurants and eating houses. The most popular of these being the Lee Hotel, B. & B. Restaurant and the Rhea House. Marna in Rockford, Illinois -----Original Message----- From: RJLOR@aol.com <RJLOR@aol.com> To: TNWHITE-L@rootsweb.com <TNWHITE-L@rootsweb.com> : Date: Friday, July 09, 1999 7:12 PM Subject: [TNWHITE-L] Rhea House Hotel - Sparta >Does anyone know anything about the Rhea House Hotel that was in Sparta, >Tennessee? One of my relatives ran and owned it and I was wondering it's >history. Was it a large hotel? What years were it open? Etc. Would there >be any records left from it? > >Thanks for any information. > >Robie >