History

a cabin on a lake

The Effort to Turn Cades Cove in the Smoky Mountains Into a Lake

In the 1930s, official plans were drawn up to turn the Cove into a reservoir Driving along the edges of East Tennessee’s lakes, there are signs that things are not always as they have been. Decaying grain silos rise inexplicably from the water and ancient roads and trails lead down to lakebeds without turning. In the days before the Tennessee Valley Authority,

The Bicentennial Capitol Mall State Park is a popular visitor destination in the downtown district

Bicentennial Rap: The story behind the cringiest official state song of all 50 states

A fellow failed rapper breaks down what is probably the worst rap song ever recorded The year was 1993. The mighty Mountaineers of Heritage High School were planning on heading to Roane State Community College for an annual academic competition. In order to give the school its best chance to compete, our beloved English teacher Mrs. Bradshaw was looking for

The Old Mill Restaurant in Pigeon Forge

What Not To Do at the Old Mill Restaurant

A local offers tips on how to avoid faux pas at Pigeon Forge’s premier historical eatery There’s a challenge that comes with some of the “what not to do” articles. And it comes with an assumption of what you, the reader, need to hear versus what other readers need to hear.  For instance, you don’t need to be told not

a man looks upon the biltmore estate from afar

13 Movies Filmed at the Famous Biltmore Estate in Asheville, NC

A movie fanatic ranks famous flicks filmed at Biltmore Estate in Asheville In Selma, the muddy and mighty Alabama River curves under the famous Edmund Pettus Bridge where the infamous Sunday Civil Rights March took place. I worked in one of those buildings, next to the bridge. Working next to an iconic location you get used to a few things, including

guests walking around john oliver place in cades cove

The Fight for Cades Cove and the People Who Refused to Leave

It turns out, not everyone was thrilled when the land became government property When touring Cades Cove today, we see one of nature’s true holy places. The verdant valley with its fields and streams, is surrounded by the high mountains. It’s a place of wonder and we rejoice that our forebearers nearly 100 years ago sought to preserve for us.

Ruby Falls near Lookout mountain in Chattanooga Tennessee

See Ruby Falls! Why the Biggest Wonder of Lookout Mountain Is Not the View From the Top

How a Hoosier With a Dream – and a Surprising Amount of Financing – Found the Largest Underground Waterfall in the Country and Opened It to the Public As a former Hoosier myself, I often joke about the effect that the siren song of the mountains of East Tennessee has on the people of Indiana. Time and again, when researching

What Is a Holler and Why Do the Mountain People Say It That Way? 

Breaking Down the Dialect That Led to the Mountain Term, Holler When I was young and still new to Tennessee, I got a job working at a local grocery store. In those days, grocery stores employed three kinds of people. That would be middle-aged adults for whom the grocery business was their career and youngsters for whom the store was

How Do You Say Appalachian?

A Local Breaks Down the Correct, Approved and Appropriate Way To Say the Name of the Mountain Range in Which the Smokies Are Located I’m a little sensitive about how I pronounce things. I was a big reader growing up – I believe I may be legally obligated to use the term voracious. So, I developed what would be considered

Mind the Gap: This Underappreciated National Park Offers Beauty and History That Rivals the Smokies

Cumberland Gap National Park Is a Must-Visit for Anyone Who Truly Loves the Majesty and History of the Appalachians Where do we start? Well, in a literal sense we start in a massive tunnel that runs under the mountain at the Tennessee-Kentucky Border. The Cumberland Gap Tunnel is a two-bore, four-lane work that carries U.S. 25E under Cumberland Gap National