[3] Unicoi is a Cherokee word meaning "white," "hazy," "fog-like," or "fog draped," and refers to the mist often seen in the foothills and mountains of this far northeast county.

This area was long inhabited by indigenous peoples, including the historic Cherokee who encountered European and English traders and settlers.

This company produced a popular brand of dishware, commonly called Blue Ridge China, which featured hand-painted underglaze designs.

[1] On September 13, 1916, a circus elephant, Mary, was hanged in Erwin for killing her trainer in nearby Kingsport.

The first attempt resulted in a snapped chain, causing Mary to fall and break her hip as dozens of children fled in terror.

Voters of Unicoi County, like most of eastern Tennessee, have been strongly affiliated with the Republican Party since before the Civil War, when it was a Unionist enclave.

Since its founding, it has supported the Republican presidential candidate in all but one election (1912, when it backed Theodore Roosevelt's Progressive Party campaign).

At the state level, Unicoi County has historically been slightly more receptive to Democratic candidates, generally when they win by landslides.

More recently, it backed Democrat Ned McWherter in the 1986 and 1990 gubernatorial elections and Phil Bredesen in 2006, when he won every county in the state.