John Hendrix Memorial
Prayer Walk
A historic ½-mile nature trail commemorating the story of John Hendrix and the community whose sacrifice helped win World War II.
As you meander along Hendrix Creek you will discover eight trail markers which tell the story of a farmer named John who came to be called "The Prophet of Oak Ridge." You will hear the story of a community who gave up their land for the secret city now called Oak Ridge, Tennessee — where the uranium was produced for the first atomic bombs so the massive killings of WWII could be brought to an end.
Along the trail you may watch for wildlife, hear the water running down the creek, look for the Hendrix rose bushes and wildflowers, fruit trees, chestnuts, and periwinkle ground cover in bloom. Several benches are available to rest along the trail. Train tracks still lay right beside John Hendrix's old farm site.
Eight Trail Markers
PLACEHOLDER — Add description of Marker 1 here. This marker covers John Hendrix's original farmland along Hendrix Creek.
PLACEHOLDER — Add description of Marker 2 here. This marker tells the story of John's forty nights sleeping with his head on the ground.
PLACEHOLDER — Add description of Marker 3 here. This marker recounts the prophecies John shared with his neighbors.
PLACEHOLDER — Add description of Marker 4 here. John predicted great factories would be built in Bear Creek Valley.
PLACEHOLDER — Add description of Marker 5 here. John foretold a great city would rise on Black Oak Ridge.
PLACEHOLDER — Add description of Marker 6 here. In 1942 the War Department seized this land to build the secret city of Oak Ridge.
PLACEHOLDER — Add description of Marker 7 here. The creek that bears John's name still flows through this property today.
PLACEHOLDER — Add description of Marker 8 here. John Hendrix died in 1915 of tuberculosis, thirty years before his prophecies were fulfilled.
John's Gravesite
After finishing the trail, venture up the street to John's gravesite, located to the left of 127 Hendrix Drive. Until recently a boxwood bush planted there by John's six-year-old son Curtis when John died in 1915 grew to billow 50+ feet in the air. A local school group purchased the gravestone in 1970.
Get Directions to the Trail