National Treasure To Be Sold at Absolute Auction

The treasures of the world are always sold at auction. On May 5th, 2007 a rare treasure in Tennessee will be offered to the public in a premier real estate sales event.

Telliquah, Tennessee (PRWEB) May 3, 2007 -- The treasures of the world are always sold at auction. On May 5th, 2007 a rare treasure in Tennessee will be offered to the public in a premier real estate sales event.

Telliquah (www.telliquah-preserve.com) was established in 1736 in the heart of the vast Cherokee nation that stretched from northern Alabama to southern Ohio. The Cherokee called their lands Shaconage, Land of the Blue-Grey Smoke, and believed it was the first place the Creator made in all the Earth.

Each summer the Cherokee clans gathered in Telliquah to celebrate and settle their differences peaceably. Telliquah was sanctuary, a place it was not permitted to spill blood. Eventually the Cherokee passed along the Trail of Tears to Oklahoma. The Cherokee Removal created a land rush in the mountains. Gold fever was afoot, and Cherokee farms and land were highly prized. Among other treasures the Cherokee left behind was a rudimentary iron foundry in Telliquah. The foundry was acquired by James Bradley and Michael Carrol, who formed the Tellico Iron Company.

In 1845, the foundry and 30,000 acres of surrounding property, including a blockhouse site, came into the possession of a northern industrialist named Elisha Johnson, who was the former mayor of Rochester, New York. Johnson had been advised of the many economic opportunities in the area by his son Mortimer, who was hiding in the mountains to escape from the law for having killed his former brother-in-law in a duel back East.

Elisha Johnson built a substantial home for his family on the banks of the Tellico River. Legend has it that the floor-to-ceiling windows brought in on wagons at great expense were installed so that Mortimer might make good an escape in the event he were discovered by the law. It was rumored that a tunnel was built from the house to the river to serve the same purpose.

Legend also has it that General William Tecumseh Sherman visited the town at the start of his infamous March to the Sea. According to this legend, Sherman accompanied by a large detachment of Union soldiers, encamped at Tellico Plains on December 10 and 11th of 1863. They had come to destroy the Tellico Iron Works because it was producing material for the Confederate Army.

The Iron Works was destroyed, but after learning that Mr. Johnson was a Yankee and a Union sympathizer, General Sherman had a change of heart and left the mansion house intact. It is said that Mr. Johnson was a most hospitable host and that he lubricated Sherman with some of his finest whiskey.

The mansion stood overlooking the river until a fire destroyed much of its roof structure in the 1990's. Because of ravages caused by exposure to the elements, the mansion was eventually disassembled and put in storage where it remains to this day. Plans are in the works to rebuild the mansion on a site next to the Charles Hall Museum in downtown Tellico Plains.

The Mansion site and 24 adjoining properties will be sold in an extraordinary auction sales event with no minimum and no reserves. This dramatic collection of properties is as rare and unique as their history and will be easily recognized as heirlooms that will be passed on from generation to generation. Each site is fronted by the pristine free flowing Tellico River and backed by over 2 million acres of National Forest land in the smoky mountains.

Why are these properties being auctioned? In selling real estate over a prolonged period of time, the cost of maintaining a sales office and staff, advertising, interest expense, maintenance and other related costs - all of these expenses are added into the price and passed along to the buyer. With the speed of the auction process, the seller can save on many of these costs and pass the savings along to the successful bidders. It is a sound business decision and offers an outstanding opportunity to the perceptive buyer.

Auctioning provides another dimension to marketing real estate that gives the seller an important and viable alternative to private sales. The treasures of the world are only sold at auction. Due to the scarcity of this type of property, the 24 Telliquah sites are perfectly suited for the exclusive auction event format.

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