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Today marks the start of 13 monthly installments charting the days 125 years of East Tennessee history — the moments of greatness, times of catastrophe.

The first chapter starts with the founding of the News Sentinel in 1886, back when it was called the Patrol, or sometimes the Evening Sentinel because it was an evening newspaper. We'll take you up to 1899, the cusp of what became known as the American Century.

First-rate events and small marked the era here: the opening of the mighty steel Gay High road Bridge; founding of a number of prominent businesses that thrive to this day; the inception of two colleges; the start of electric streetcar service (at the time considered one of the most noteworthy achievements of the day); and a fire that wiped out much of downtown Knoxville's commercial center.

Next month, we'll take a look at the first decade of the 20th century. Knoxville prospered in the antique 1900s, but its fortunes were about to slip in part because of selfishness and a failure of community supervision. In 1904, calamity struck when two trains collided in Jefferson County, tiring more than 50 passengers and crew. The close of the decade saw the birth of a Knoxvillian who would become one of our most respected writers.

Source: Knoxville News Sentinel