Commercial Truck Insurance in Shelbyville, TN

Shelbyville, Tenn. - Middle Tennessee State University's Aerospace Department is entering a new era as it prepares to move to a new state-of-the-art campus in Shelbyville. Tennessee Governor Bill Lee joined university officials, local leaders, and hundreds of attendees at the announcement event on September 21, 2023.

The event, held at the Shelbyville Municipal Airport, featured MTSU Aerospace-branded planes flanking the stage where Governor Lee and MTSU President Sidney A. McPhee delivered their remarks. The program was livestreamed on MTSU True Blue TV.

Governor Lee expressed his excitement for the new campus, stating, "We've been advocating for this, and MTSU and Shelbyville have created an environment for this to work. This is money well spent. This is one of the leading aviation programs in the nation, and we need to invest in it."

President McPhee highlighted the significance of the move, stating that it marked a new beginning for aviation education in Tennessee and the United States. He emphasized the university's commitment to providing educational opportunities for future pilots and those seeking careers in aviation services.

The plans for the new MTSU Aerospace-Shelbyville campus have been in the works for months due to Aerospace's rapid growth. The program requires expansion and a departure from its current location at Murfreesboro Airport. The move is being funded with a combined $62.2 million from the state and the university.

The temporary facilities will be ready by the end of the spring semester in 2024, and around 10 to 20 aircraft will be relocated to Shelbyville next spring. The groundbreaking for the new campus is scheduled for the summer or fall of 2024, with the eventual relocation to Shelbyville expected by the summer or fall of 2026.

The new campus will include facilities for Flight Operations, aircraft, simulators, and fleet maintenance. It will also offer lab spaces, classrooms, and equipment for the maintenance management concentration.

Mayor Randy Carroll of Shelbyville expressed his support for the move, stating, "We look forward to the future and being a partner with MTSU by offering careers in aviation to the students of the Aerospace Program."

MTSU Board of Trustees Chairman Steve Smith and other university officials also shared their excitement about the project. Chaminda Prelis, Aerospace Chair, called it "an unprecedented opportunity" that would set MTSU apart from other collegiate aviation institutions.

The Department of Aerospace received support from various partners, including airlines Delta and Southwest, aircraft suppliers Diamond Aircraft Canada and Piper Aircraft, and scholarship supporters. Prelis also acknowledged the dedication and hard work of the faculty and staff who will play a crucial role in the transition to the new campus.

MTSU Aerospace, established in 1942, has become one of the most respected aerospace programs in the nation. With over 1,000 students and a team of experienced faculty members and flight instructors, the program attracts students from across the United States and internationally. Aerospace graduates hold prominent positions in companies worldwide.

The move to the new campus in Shelbyville represents a significant milestone for MTSU's Aerospace Department and reinforces its position as a leading institution for aviation education. It is a testament to the state's investment in the future of aerospace education and the opportunities it brings to Tennessee.

SHELBYVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — A Middle Tennessee singer and rapper has been the star of his own TV series. Today, he's sharing a different story: one that changed his life. He's about to launch something to help other people change too.

"This is where I was raised," said country rapper Smo, speaking about his land in Bedford County. "This has been in my family since the 1800s. My cousin operates the cattle farm attached to my property. This is Barbertown is what they call it."

The family land includes an old store.

"My great-grandfather John Benton Barber, he was so good at selling eggs. He extended the building and opened up the General Store called JB Barber and Sons," Smo said.

It was that store where he began recording the music that would launch a career of touring and being the star of a series on A&E, "Big Smo." Smo said everything was moving so fast he didn't consider the way he was living until he felt a heavy pressure on his chest.

"I was right at 400 pounds," he said. "I had to have open heart surgery on that tour, quadruple bypass. It was alcohol. It was bar food. It was a lack of exercise. It was a culmination of bad habits and addictions I had since I was 10, 12 years old."

Smo began a true transformation, beginning with changing his diet, and then extending to exercise. He's just released a new single, "Somethin' Bout Love." He no longer records under the name Big Smo.

"When I dropped the 225 pounds, I dropped the 'big.' I earned that," he explained.

Smo is bringing to his home of Bedford County something new.

"I know everything that's in here," Smo said, standing in a mobile kitchen. "This is my vegan burger wrap. The burger part of this is made with beets, oats, and mushrooms."

In April, Smo is launching a food truck in Shelbyville at 401 N Cannon Blvd.

"Smolicious Mobile Eatery," he said. "It's a plant-based, whole food, oil-free, gluten-free menu that we're offering, and you can't get a menu like that anywhere."

Smo's planning to serve up smoothies, soups, salads, and more.

"And these are the mud tires!" he said, motioning to a plate of cake donuts. "Gluten-free, oil-free."

Smo's hope is he can help someone from his home to live out the same sort of transformation he did.

"My hometown has been my reason for success," Smo said. "I've always had my hometown support me from day one. I want to offer my hometown an option I didn't have. I want to save lives. It's homegrown, grassroots. The change starts here."

Rhori recommends:

“One of the great things about working at NewsChannel 5 is learning about the remarkable history of the station itself. The names: Bob Lobertini…Chris Clark…Hope Hines…and, of course, Oprah. The newscasts, of course. But also: Night Train…Hee Haw…and TALK OF THE TOWN, which is now one of the longest-running locally produced talk shows in the country marking 40 years on the air. Our storyteller-in-chief Forrest Sanders offers this entertaining and nostalgic look back at the popular program we here refer to as…simply…‘TOTT’. Enjoy!”

-Rhori Johnston

Copyright 2024 Scripps Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

By ZOË WATKINS - zwatkins@t-g.com

Did you know that during the American Civil War, Shelbyville was dubbed “Little Boston”?

Bedford County archivist Carol Roberts said this was not necessarily the case in Bedford County but in the city where a business district was just beginning to boom.

“There was tremendous Union sympathy in the citizens. In fact, when there were elections related to secession, it went through two or three state-level elections and referendums of voting,” said Roberts. Tennessee’s governor at the time, Isham Harris, wanted to push the State to secede, but Shelbyville voted not to, according to Roberts.

Shelbyville in the mid-19^th century consisted mostly of business owners, who “were thrilled the Union troops were coming this way” during the march to Chattanooga.

“The citizens, though they were Union sympathizers, just went about their business, kind of like today with political conflicts,” Roberts explained.

From Murfreesboro to Chattanooga

But Shelbyville saw its share of the battles. In fact, the anniversary of one of Tennessee's major cavalry clashes was last Tuesday, June 27—and it happened in Shelbyville.

According to Roberts, Shelbyville was posed as the ideal location as a crossroads town between the cities of Murfreesboro and Chattanooga. The nearby railroad, turnpike, and river systems brought both Union and Confederate forces through the Square as well.

The Courthouse was used as a high point. From the top, you could see Horse Mountain where the Signal Corps. would have been stationed.

“And the river protected it. You couldn’t just cross this river back here and sneak up on anybody. So, it was a good point to guard,” Roberts said.

According to the article, “The Battle of Shelbyville” by Sean Michael Chick, “One of the most dramatic and decisive cavalry clashes of the American Civil War occurred at Shelbyville on Sunday, June 27, 1863.” The battle was part of Union Major General William Rosecrans’ Tullahoma offensive.

Roberts explained that after the Battle of Stones River, around early January in 1863, the Confederate army retreated, their fortifications and people encamped in Shelbyville, a town that Confederate General Braxton Bragg had fortified over the winter.

But the Union troops under Rosecrans had been assigned from Murfreesboro to Chattanooga—and needed to pass through Shelbyville.

To the west, Rosecrans sent two divisions to threaten Shelbyville and attack Bragg’s right flank. However, Rosecrans’ entire offensive was slowed down by a great rainstorm that began on June 24 and did not abate stop until July 4, according to Chick.

But when Union forces began striking a division of Major General Joseph Wheeler’s cavalry corps, the Confederates were out of position. That is, Wheeler’s two divisions were stretched thin, according to Chick.

Bragg heard that the position at Hoover’s Gap in Beechgrove had collapsed. He ordered General Leonidas Polk of the infantry division to give up Shelbyville, and in the early morning, on June 27, the Confederates abandoned Shelbyville.

That same day, Union forces were told to “dislodge” the enemy from Guy’s Gap, just north of Shelbyville.

Marshall Thatcher of the 2nd Michigan Cavalry, who witnessed the clash, wrote: “The sun burst through the heavy clouds and shone full in the faces of 10,000 cavalry, in two lines, division fronts; banners flying, bands playing and the command marching in as perfect lines as if on a parade. Such a sight was rare in the history of the war.”

All these skirmishes in the various gaps throughout the region were meant to hold back the Union headed to Chattanooga.

According to Roberts, Union troops turned around and used these same barricades of entrenchments by Bragg for their fortification. During the construction of the 437 Bypass, an archaeological dig was conducted and determined some of the placement of trenches, according to Roberts.

Then, when Shelbyville was captured by Union forces, many City residents were proud to have the Stars and Stripes flying above the courthouse once again.

Bushwhackers

There were plenty of vendettas, as well. The article “Bushwhackers Terrorize the City” reports how bushwhackers and guerillas went back and forth with each other on both the Union and Confederate sides.

If you were Confederate, you terrorized the Union sympathizers, according to Roberts. “Hung them, even,” she added.

There’s one story about Jacob Moulder, an older fellow from the Unionville area, who went off to join the Union Army. But his poor health sent him home. Upon making it home safely, Confederate sympathizers hung him in his front yard, according to Roberts.

Skull Camp Bridge

The story of Major General Wheeler’s cavalry corps. jumping off Skull Camp Bridge—that is, Memorial Bridge off of Belmont Avenue—is probably mostly legend.

However, the events surrounding it, after Shelbyville’s major cavalry skirmish were real.

“Put out of your mind interstates and four-lane highways. That turnpike from Murfreesboro to Shelbyville is the largest open road, but there was a narrow gap. So only a few horses and wagons could get through,” Roberts said.

Wheeler was sent to the area to aggravate Union troops. When they were close to being surrounded and captured, Wheeler had to escape to Tullahoma and Chattanooga via what is now U.S. 130. General Nathan Bedford Forrest’s calvary was coming from the west, in Columbia, but wasn’t coming on time, Roberts explained.

“As it happens, that year was the rainiest, wettest, muddiest year. There was mud and trouble, and something blocked the bridge. But he was determined not to get caught. So, he jumped his horse and numerous others of his cavalry and they escaped by fording the river,” Roberts said.

Considering there are no high bluffs on the Duck near the bridge, that last part is probably an exaggeration. But it has been depicted in Harper’s Weekly magazine and become one of the many legends of America’s Civil War.

SHELBYVILLE, TN - A little over 20-miles south of the Murfreesboro City Limits along Highway 231 South, in Shelbyville, Tennessee, a motorist crashed into a 450 to 500-pound animal. After the accident, the driver had to call a tow truck due to the extensive damage on the front end of the vehicle.

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The animal that caused the crash is one that few encounter with their car... the animal was a BLACK BEAR that weighed up to 500-pounds, according to a TWRA estimate. From nose to tail, the bear was 78-inches long and its paws appeared to be about 7 or 8-inches wide.

Tad Craig of Craig & Wheeler Realty & Auction, told WGNS, “...we were all very sad to see him dead, but even more shocked to even see a black bear in Bedford County.” The incident occurred in front of Mr. Craig's home.

Evidently, the bear versus car accident happened on Saturday night about 400-yards from the Shelbyville City Limits. Bedford County Sheriff's deputies worked the accident and the Highway Patrol showed up to assist. According to the homeowner, he was alerted to the wreck when a Tennessee Highway Patrol Trooper called him to say a dead bear was in his front yard, which Mr. Craig thought was a joke. After he made his way to the road this past Saturday night (11/11/2023), he quickly realized the Trooper was serious.

After the wrecked car was towed away, something had to be done with the bear. A tractor with a scoop on the front was used to pick the bear up, due to its girth. The deceased animal was then loaded into the bed of a TWRA Game Warden’s truck.

Craig told WGNS News that he has hunted in Alaska and has hiked the Great Smoky Mountains for years and has seen lots of black bears, but this was one of the largest black bears that he has ever seen. Keep in mind that this bear was not in the Smoky Mountains, it was in Bedford County, just 400-yards from the Shelbyville City Limits.

After reviewing past news stories that originated in the area of Shelbyville and Bedford County, this looks to be the very first confirmed black bear sightings in Bedford County, TN.

Click the photo above this article to see more pictures. To see larger photos, click one of our three extended view pictures – Photo 1, Photo 2, Photo 3.

Pearl Jam’s Eddie Vedder and Post Malone teamed last night (Feb. 17) at the second Reportin’ for Duty benefit concert at the 250-capacity Nearest Green Distillery in Shelbyville, Tn., to perform Pearl Jam’s “Better Man,” the late Tom Petty’s “I Won’t Back Down” and a cover of the ’60s song “Last Kiss,” which became an improbable massive hit for Pearl Jam in 1999.

Earlier in the evening, Vedder covered another Petty song, “Keep Me in Your Heart,” solo acoustic and also played solo and Pearl Jam material such as “Elderly Woman Behind the Counter in a Small Town,” “Far Behind” and “Porch.” Other performers included Jelly Roll, the War and Treaty, Ruby Amanfu and Jake Wesley Rogers. Proceeds from the event will support EB Research Partnership (EBRP), which works to identify treatments and cures for the debilitating skin disease Epidermolysis Bullosa.

In 2010, Vedder and his wife Jill co-founded the organization, which hosted a similar event last year at Nashville’s Grand Ole Opry also held in memory of late actor and EBRP champion Leslie Jordan.

Malone is a longtime Pearl Jam fan who previously covered the band’s version of “Last Kiss” at a 2022 Rome Show. He also tackled “Better Man” during an appearance on The Howard Stern Show earlier that year. During the latter, Malone credited his brother Jordan, a Marine, for introducing him to Pearl Jam and recalled listening to “Better Man” repeatedly while on a trip to visit him in Hawaii when he was 12 or 13 years old. “He introduced me to Pearl Jam in a big fuckin’ way,” Malone said.

Pearl Jam Blast Back On Punky Single ‘Running’

For Vedder, the concert came ahead of Pearl Jam’s upcoming 12th album Dark Matter, due April 19, and world tour, which begins May 4 in Vancouver. He will also lend a hand at Roger Daltrey’s Teenage Cancer trust benefit shows, which descend upon London’s Royal Albert Hall from March 18-24.

Fresh off performing “America the Beautiful” at the Super Bowl in Las Vegas, Malone has a handful of festival appearances on tap this year, including Rolling Loud in Los Angeles on March 16, Stagecoach in Indio, Ca., on April 27 and Bonnaroo in Manchester, Tn., on June 14.