The Field & White Oak Connector Trail Charrette
Please note: this is included in your registration, but you must pre-register here.
The Field & White Oak Connector Trail Charrette
AIA Tennessee will host a Design Charette at the White Oak Connector Trail as part of its Conference on Architecture 2022. At this Charette, we will bring design professionals, stakeholders, and neighbors together to envision ways to acknowledge and bring attention to “The Field” and Pine Breeze Sanitorium location. Although, we understand that a one-evening design charette will not be able to thoroughly or adequately address the history of this place we do hope to come away with strong ideas about how the built environment of the White Oak Connector trail can be improved to help move the conversation forward toward a proper recognition of “The Field”.
Attendees at the Charette will be asked to conceive of ways to improve the White Oak Connector Trail as a gateway to “The Field” and Pine Breeze Sanitorium sites, make the Connector Trail more hospitable and enjoyable as a means of recreation and connection to nature, and improve the character of the surrounding neighborhoods.
We hope that this Design Charette will serve as the next step toward proper acknowledgment and restoration of this historically important site in Hamilton County Tennessee and serve as an example of how AIA Tennessee members can adopt a leadership role in this type of work within their communities.
Background from Trust for Public Land on the White Oak Connector Trail
“The Trust for Public Land has been actively working on beloved Stringer’s Ridge Park for the last decade. From conserving the land from development to the creation of a trail network, we have worked with a variety of partners to create this jewel. For the last 5 years, TPL has been actively working on securing easements and land to extend a trail from Stringer’s Ridge to White Oak Park in Red Bank. In Spring 2022, TPL completed the 2nd phase of trail development, creating a walking and biking connection from Red Bank to Stringer’s Ridge. It allows both recreational access and a commuter connection to North Chattanooga. Through the Stringer’s Ridge to White Oak Trail project, senior adviser for community strategies, Daniela Peterson, has engaged with residents and formed strong relationships with aligned community organizations like the White Oak Bike Co-Op, a recipient of the first round of ECF funding. The City of Red Bank has supported this work and hopes to continue the partnership with TPL for trail planning and development.”
Through the course of the work on the White Oak Connector Trail, the existence of a forgotten cemetery was brought back into the public eye. Although, many in the Chattanooga community have long known of this cemetery their voices have not been acknowledged.
The African America Cemetery Preservation Fund, which has been working officially since 2018, to restore and preserve African American Cemeteries in Chattanooga has been leading the work to acknowledge and restore this cemetery site.
Background from the African American Cemetery Preservation Fund on “The Field”
“The Field was the final resting place for those considered the least of these. The overwhelming number of those buried there were African American, including U.S. Colored troops. Many may not have received much respect in life, but with death being the great equalizer, it should have been a place of respect. It became a barren home of horror for the forgotten and was lost to time. Like every generation before us, we have received an inheritance of bounty and burden. The responsibility to imagine and build a place of honor for those buried in the Field now rests with us.”
The Stringer’s Ridge Park, the White Oak Park, and the White Oak Connector trail bring wonderful opportunities for recreation, exercise, and enjoyment of nature within both the cities of Red Bank and Chattanooga. However, this is one small part of the whole story of this place. The existence of“The Field” and the former grounds of the Pine Breeze Sanitorium, which also stood near the Connector Trail and “The Field” from 1909 to 1968 must be included in the whole story.
Now that the White Oak Connector Trail has opened, many organizations, governmental bodies, and community members desire to shift focus toward awareness and recognition of this long-neglected final resting place.