Museum of Appalachia

October 12, 2023

2819 Andersonville Hwy, Clinton, TN 37716

“The Museum of Appalachia, located in Norris, Tennessee, 20 miles north of Knoxville, is a living history museum that interprets the pioneer and early 20th-century period of the Southern Appalachian region of the United States.” - Wikipedia

“What better way is there to know a people than to study the everyday things they made, used, mended, and cherished…and cared for with loving hands.” - John Rice Irwin, Founder

I highly recommend visiting this museum. “This unique collection of pioneer buildings and artifacts was amassed over half a century by one man. He traveled back roads, collecting untold thousands of everyday items from the colorful and interesting mountain folk of Southern Appalachia.” What most fascinated me about the museum was the first-person connections made to many of the artifacts, especially in the Appalachia Hall of Fame, “devoted to numerous displays of artifacts belonging to notable, historic, famous, interesting, colorful and unusual folk from the surrounding region.” The Display Barn housed a huge collection of frontier and pioneer memorabilia, folk art, and trade tools displayed in a manner you would expect of a barn.

Throughout the grounds there were several interesting buildings, such as the Mark Twain Family Cabin, which was home to Twain’s family before he was born, and the “Dan’l Boone” Cabin, built in the early 1800s, the cabin was used by 20th Century Fox as the frontier home of Daniel Boone in the TV series for CBS called Young Dan’l Boone.

After spending about 3 hours touring the grounds I treated myself to a home-cooked meal in the museum’s restaurant. The food was delicious and quite reasonably priced.

You can tell how much I enjoyed this museum by the number of photos that follow, probably the most I’ve ever posted from just one visit.

Tom Cassidy's House, the smallest dwelling on the property.

Cordell Hull was US Secretary of State under FDR.

This was a basket large enough to fit a man.

A crib from the Irwin (museum founder) family.

Music played a large role in the lives of the people of Appalachia.

A display of toys, most of which were hand made.

A perpetual motion machine, which obviously didn't work.

James Rice's Old Blacksmith Bellows and Great Grandpa Weaver's Meat Trough

You don't often see pictures of a one-room school in session.

Arnwine Cabin, built between 1790 and 1820. Since it was built, it was continuously inhabited well into the 20th century.

Bank vault door from the Bank of Madisonville, TN.

Weasel, used to measure out a skein of yarn.

The sign says, "What the Revenour did to this still from Campbell Co., TN."

This recreation of a general store is probably much closer to the truth than many others in museums.

Cedar Creek Charlie, was one of eleven children. He never learned to read or write. After his father died and the other children left the house, Charlie stayed on to care for his mother. When she passed, he started his now famous hobby of painting almost everything in sight, red, white, and blue--most often with stripes and especially with polka dots. The room is a replica of his bedroom, but all the items came from his home after his death.

Wooden water pipes, and a drill bit that made them.

Set pieces from "Christy", an American period drama which aired on CBS from 1994 to 1995. The story was about a young woman who left a comfortable life in N.C. to teach in an Appalachian school. Much of the show was shot in Townsend, TN, but one episode was shot at the museum and starred Kellie Martin and Tyne Daly.

Hand carved wooden bicycle by James Bunch.

The Hagood Harness & Saddle Shop from Persia, TN.

I had never heard of an Upping Block until I got to this museum. They were used to mount horses.

The McClung House, built in the 1790s by the McClungs, who later became one of East Tennessee's most prominent families. Tradition has it that this house was used as a hospital for wounded soldiers during the Civil War.

Inside the Blacksmith Shop/Wheelwright Shop.

Irwin's Chapel Log Church, built around 1840.

The Underground Dairy, used to store milk and other perishables before the days of the icebox and refrigerator.

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