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“Cemeteries of the Smokies"

 by Gail Palmer, Ph.D.

Noon, Wednesday, August 10, 2011

 

Free Admission, Auditorium, East Tennessee History Center

Whether well tended or under a tangle of vines, the cemeteries of the Smokies hold a key to the rich cultural legacy of life and death in the mountains. Dr. Palmer’s research lends interesting insights into funeral and burial customs in the mountains, such as the stopping of clocks, setting up with the body, and the mounding of graves.  The mysterious death of Jasper Mellinger, the pipe-smoking mountain woman Sophie Campbell , Black Bill Walker who sired 26 kids by one wife and several lady friends, and bear hunter Jesse Palmer’s metal coffin built to protect his body from revenge by the bears are among the stories of real people whose memories still linger the traditions and legends of the Smokies.
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 “The Bristol Sessions: The Big Bang of Country Music, 1927-1928"

  by Ted Olson

Noon, Wednesday, September 14, 2011

 

Free to the public, East Tennessee History Center Auditorium

Ted Olson will discuss the Bristol Sessions as the "Big Bang" that propelled country music into the national spotlight. In 1927, producer Ralph Peer came to the small town of Bristol on the Tennessee/Virginia line and set up a makeshift studio to record local talent on behalf of Victor Talking Machine Company. His venture made history that summer with the discovery of the Carter Family and Jimmie Rodgers. String-bands, balladeers, gospel quartets, sanctified singers, and blues acts were among those recorded the following year. Ted Olson and others were involved in projects to assemble and remaster the recordings and publish a volume of interpretive essays, notes on the artists, song lyrics, and never-before-published photos. Musician and music historian Ted Olson will share music and stories from country music's past.

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“Black Leaders of Blount County during Reconstruction"

by Robert Glenn Slater

Noon, Wednesday, October 12, 2011

Free to the Public, East Tennessee History Center Auditorium

 

Following the Civil War, an unusual  political atmosphere prevailed for a time in Blount County as several black leaders emerged to play major roles in rebuilding the county’s economy and community.  Mr. Slater examines the contributions and legacy of these leaders through the stories of nine key leaders, including educator, newspaper publisher, and Maryville mayor W. B. Scott, Sr., and Alan Garner, Jr., an attorney and active politician. Robert Glenn Slater is a doctoral candidate at the University of Tennessee and was chosen by the board of editors as the winner of the McClung Award for best article in the 2009 Journal of East Tennessee History.  
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“Bleeding Kansas"

 by Ed Bearrs

Noon, Wednesday, November 9, 2011

Free to the Public, East Tennessee History Center Auditorium

National Park Service Chief Historian Emeritus Ed Bearrs will discuss the strong pro- and anti-slavery divisions that formed around Kansas’s admission to the Union as a free or slave state. The Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854 led to a rush of new residents for Kansas, as citizens from pro-slavery Missouri and abolitionists from New England and other free states flooded Kansas to influence the decision.  Among these were the fiery abolitionist John Brown and his five sons. Vehement violence, clashes, and skirmishes led to the U.S. Cavalry being called to establish control. Often called “the Pied Piper of History,” Ed Bearrs will emphasize the Bleeding Kansas story within the context of events leading to the Civil War, as well as to tell the dramatic stories of the individuals of both sides caught up in the melee.