Monterey is a town in Putnam County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 2,850 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Cookeville, Tennessee Micropolitan Statistical Area.HistoryMonterey is rooted in a settlement that developed around a landmark known as the "Standing Stone" in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. The stone was as a guidepost for travelers along Avery's Trace, and is believed to have earlier served as a boundary marker between the territories of the Cherokee and Shawnee. By 1805, three families had settled permanently in area, and the Standing Stone Inn was established to cater to westward-bound migrants.In the Spring of 1864, during the Civil War, 200 Union soldiers led by Colonel William B. Stokes entered the Monterey area with orders to root out Confederate guerrilla activity. On the morning of March 12 of that year, Stokes' men entered the home of William Alexander Officer near Monterey and killed six of his guests, having accused them of being Confederate guerrillas. A Tennessee Historical Commission marker on Commercial Avenue in Monterey remembers the event.The current town of Monterey was established in 1893 by the Cumberland Mountain Coal Company as a hub for its operations in the area. Several hundred acres were purchased from Thomas Jefferson Whittaker, and the town was surveyed and platted. It was given the name "Monterey" after the Spanish term for "King of the Mountain."
