This October, prepare yourself for bone chilling stories during the Ghost Walk of Gatlinburg. Though this event doesn’t have masked ghouls and chainsaws making you scream throughout the walk, the stories themselves paint the frightening picture of the past 100 years of murder and mayhem in Gatlinburg and The Great Smoky Mountains National Park. This [...]
Archive for the ‘History’ Category
Ghost Stories in The Smokies
Posted in Attractions, Events, Fall, Family Fun, Gatlinburg, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, History, Outdoor on October 4, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
Historic Elkmont
Posted in History on September 24, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
Elkmont, Tennessee is located in Sevier County in the Little River Valley of the Great Smoky Mountains. Elkmont is home to a large campground, a resort and many old structures. Elkmont used to revolve around a logging company which brought many people and a railroad to the area. Once the business stopped, the railroad was [...]
Railroad Days
Posted in Fall, Free Things To Do, History, Museums, Outdoor, Townsend on September 14, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
The final festivities of the Townsend Days Celebration are Railroad Days at Little River Railroad Museum. Activities include museum tours, hand car rides, walking tour of old Townsend and Tremont. The walking tours are both under a mile. Check out Railroad Days to learn all about the Little River Railroad and trains of yester year.
Sam Houston School House
Posted in Attractions, Culture, History on September 7, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
Famed Texan, Sam Houston, who is most known for liberating Texas from Mexican rule, lived in Maryville for a number of years. He was adopted by Cherokee Indians at age sixteen. The Indians called him
“Co-lonneh” or “the Raven”. Two years later, he began teaching students in the season spanning from the completion of corn planting [...]
History of Tuckaleechee Cove
Posted in History, Townsend on September 6, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
Townsend is located in the Tuckaleechee Cove, an area with archaeological finds dating to 2000 B.C. The first known inhabitants of the Cove were Native Americans, notably the Cherokee tribe. ”Tuckaleechee” comes from the Cherokee word “Tikwalitsi”, but the original meaning is unknown. The Cherokees fought with other tribes, including the Shawano. By the time [...]
Mountain Heritage Center
Posted in Culture, History, Indoor, Townsend on September 4, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
The Mountain Heritage Center, located in Townsend, has several events this Fall. Today, Bill Sheffield brings his folk songs as part of the Fall Concert Series. In October, E G Knight rocks the house with his acoustic blues and roots music on the second and Labron Lazenby & LA 3 bring their rockabilly sensibility [...]
History of Gatlinburg
Posted in Attractions, Gatlinburg, History on August 23, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
Want to enjoy a relaxing weekend filled with beautiful sights as well as great shopping and a colorful history? Gatlinburg provides all of the above and more. The Oglesby family from South Carolina was the first family to settle Gatlinburg in the early 19th century. They changed their last name to Ogle and built a [...]
Townsend Artisan Guild Woodcarving Festival
Posted in Arts & Crafts, Culture, Family Fun, History, Townsend on August 17, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
Celebrate East Tennessee & Smoky Mountains’ history at The Great Smoky Mountains Heritage Center. Located in the serene region of Townsend, this grand festival is centered on the remarkable culture that is preserved till this day. Visitors get a taste of Native American and early settler life through a collection of artifacts, which [...]
Little River Railroad and Lumber Company Museum
Posted in History, Museums, Townsend on August 7, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
In 1886, a group of investors from Pennsylvania formed the Little River Railroad and Lumber Company, which logged huge portions of what is now the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Today the site is preserved as museum that shares with visitors the area’s history of logging through photographs, papers, tools and other artifacts. Visitors can [...]
Little Greenbrier School
Posted in History on July 29, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
This historic piece of the Smoky Mountains lies between Gatlinburg and Cades Cove. Constructed in 1881, the building was used as a school house and a church hall, but only until 1935. The entire building was built by hand with special carved lumber. Many children and church goers who attended Little Greenbrier were forced to [...]
Harry and the Train
Posted in History, Museums, Townsend on July 13, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
We love having visitors in the mountains! Check out the video from this blog to see a traveler’s account of the beginning of the Little River Museum in Townsend, Tenn.
Sugarlands Visitor Center
Posted in Environment, Family Fun, Free Things To Do, History, Outdoor, Photo Opportunity, Summer, Uncategorized on June 27, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
During your vacation around the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, be sure to stop by the Sugarlands Visitor Center. Before you decide on what trail to hike or where to picnic, you can pick up a park map and have your questions answered by a ranger. There is a 20-minute orientation film that provides an in-depth [...]
Mountain Sage Gallery
Posted in Arts & Crafts, History, Townsend on June 20, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
Come to the Mountain Sage Gallery & Woodshop to view collections from some of Tennessee’s finest artisan’s. The Gallery features hand built crafts, as well as displays of watercolors, oils, prints, and photography within the Smoky Mountains. The Woodshop artisans use both reclaimed and new wood for the custom-built pieces. You can have custom- made [...]
Civil War Reenactment
Posted in Attractions, Free Things To Do, Gatlinburg, History, Outdoor on June 18, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
The 2009 Gatlinburg Living History Civil War Reenactment will be held June 13th through 15th at Mills Park. This historical event will feature period performers that will capture the events of the “Battle of Burg Hill.” One of the most popular features of the event is the Cannon Drill and live music. So bring your [...]
Smoky Mountain Tunes & Tales
Posted in Arts & Crafts, Attractions, Culture, Events, Family Fun, History, Outdoor, Shows, music on June 12, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
At the 49th annual Smoky Mountain Tunes and Tales event, you can visit the past and present of Appalachian history and culture. Held along the Great Smoky Mountain Parkway in downtown Gatlinburg, you will find people gathered listening to the upbeat music and performances of the South. For more information on this exciting event please click here.
Roaring Fork Motor Trail, Gatlinburg, TN
Posted in Family Fun, Free Things To Do, Gatlinburg, History, Photo Opportunity on April 22, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
The Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail is an 11-mile auto loop in Gatlinburg, Tennessee. The trail gives you the opportunity to drive through time. The loop begins in modern Gatlinburg and ends in the midst of unspoiled nature. The trail begins at Cherokee Orchard Road and shows you a glimpse of how modern Gatlinburg originated, [...]
The Cades Cove Loop, Townsend, TN
Posted in Attractions, Cades Cove, Family Fun, Free Things To Do, History, Outdoor, Townsend on April 2, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
Perfect for jogging or cycling, The Cades Cove loop is an 11-mile route full of beauty and history. The loop is relatively flat and runs between mountains and ridges, making it a site for the eyes. Along the loop, you will see preserved structures from the 1800s, which truly captivate the historical aspects of the [...]
The Beauty in Quilting
Posted in Arts & Crafts, Culture, History, local on February 12, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
Quilting is part of the foundation that East Tennessee is based upon. During the colonial times, the spinning and weaving of quilts was a common art form of women. The quilts served as a way to pass down a story, to keep warm, or for trading. Even today you will see many quilts within the [...]
Mt. LeConte is Beautiful
Posted in Cabin Rentals, Environment, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, History, Outdoor, Photo Opportunity on February 10, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
Located within the Great Smoky Mountain National Park, Mt. LeConte is more than a beautiful view, it is an experience. The hike as a whole takes around 5 to 6 hours and nearly 4,000 feet elevation will be gained, putting this peak the third highest in the park. Mt. LeConte is the perfect place to [...]
The World’s Most Unusual Museum, Ripley’s Believe it or Not
Posted in Attractions, Culture, Downtown Gatlinburg, Family Fun, Gatlinburg, History, Indoor, Museums, Uncategorized on January 21, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
Come see Ripley’s Believe It or Not museum, where you can view a variety of uncanny and amazing events. Robert Ripley was an artist, a reporter, an explorer and a collector in the early 1900s. He visited over 200 countries and wherever he went he always looked for the unusual. After 35 years of exploring [...]
Dolly Parton
Posted in Great Smoky Mountains National Park, History, Sevierville, local on January 19, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
Dolly Parton was born right outside of the Great Smoky Mountains in Sevierville, Tennessee. Growing up in the Pentecostal Church of God, music was a large part of her childhood. Performing as a child on local radio stations and at the Grade Ole Opry, Dolly incorporated traditional elements of East Tennessee Folklore into her popular [...]
General Stores, A part of Gatlinburg, Tennessee’s history
Posted in Downtown Gatlinburg, Gatlinburg, Grocery Shopping, History, Indoor, Local Dining, Shopping, local on January 18, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
As you travel through East Tennessee and the Great Smoky Mountains, visitors are able to experience these “one-stop” general stores that originated in the late nineteenth century. General stores were once the primary retail establishments in small, rural towns and sold everything from hardware to bulk food. These stores not only served as a venue [...]
Tennessee Aviation Museum
Posted in Attractions, Events, Family Fun, Gatlinburg, History, Museums, Photo Opportunity, Pigeon Forge, Sevierville, Transportation, Uncategorized on January 12, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
Built in 2001, the Museum of Aviation is located in Sevierville near Gatlinburg-Pigeon Forge airport runway. This unique location allows for the history of aviation to be brought to life by the vintage aircrafts flying overhead for the visitors. The mission of the museum is to honor the history of aviation and to advance aviation [...]
The Great Smoky Mountains National Park
Posted in Culture, Environment, Free Things To Do, Gatlinburg, History, Outdoor, Photo Opportunity, Uncategorized on January 7, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
Our own Great Smoky Mountains National Park has the highest visitation of all the national parks in the country. There are between eight and ten million visits to the park annually. This is due to the convenient location. The Park is located within a two-day drive for half of the nation’s population. Educational programs offered [...]
Getting through Winter in the Smoky Mountains
Posted in History, Winter on December 15, 2008 | Leave a Comment »
Winters in the Smokies can be long and gray, so what did the early settlers do to pass their time and keep warm in the winter? In the mid-19th century, the farm homes were usually small, and the families themselves were rather large. Frequently there would be multiple generations living in one house, and a family [...]
The History of Cades Cove
Posted in Cades Cove, Culture, History on November 28, 2008 | Leave a Comment »
Cades Cove is one of the prettiest parks in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, but where did all of this land come from? How was it used back before it was a national park? Cades Cove was a small Appalachain community back before the park was marked as a national park. The historic buildings [...]
Celebrate Veterans Day in Gatlinburg
Posted in Downtown Gatlinburg, Events, Family Fun, Free Things To Do, Gatlinburg, History on November 11, 2008 | Leave a Comment »
Each year Gatlinburg celebrates Veteran’s Day at Ripley’s Aquarium downtown. The event will include musical tributes, spoken salutations, and an American Eagle appearance. Join us to honor our veterans on this special day.
The Sam Houston Historic School House
Posted in History on October 21, 2008 | Leave a Comment »
The schoolhouse is named after the great statesman and pioneer from East Tennessee. Built of poplar logs, the schoolhouse is a typical “field” school from the 1700s. It is the oldest school in Tennessee, built only two years before TN became a state. The schoolhouse stands on the original site in rural Maryville, and around [...]
History of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park
Posted in Great Smoky Mountains National Park, History on July 28, 2008 | Leave a Comment »
It was a long hard journey for the Great Smoky Mountains to become a national park. Unlike other national parks in the U.S. the Smokies contained many farmers that owned the land, and getting them to sell their family’s homestead to the government was not an easy task. There was also argument about whether the [...]
The John P. Cable Mill in Cades Cove, Tennessee, Great Smoky Mountains National Park
Posted in Cades Cove, Free Things To Do, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, History on July 19, 2008 | 2 Comments »
In beautiful Cades Cove, there are numerous historical sites throughout the area. One of these is the John P. Cable Mill, which was an early grist and saw mill. There were few sources of power in the 1800s, so the water wheel at the mill was a key element in the lives of the pioneers. [...]
