Whether you are reading from your armchair or on the road, this comprehensive tour guide to the state of Tennessee will inform you about the incredible diversity of historic places from east to west. Focusing on the built environment, this reference covers architectural achievements from the state capitol in Nashville to the earliest humble cabins in East Tennessee.
The indelible stamp of the New Deal can be seen across American in the public works projects that modernized the country even as they provided employment during the Great Depression. Tennessee, in particular, benefited from the surge in federal construction. The New Deal not only left the state with many public buildings and schools that are still in active use, but is conservation and reclamation efforts also changed the lives of Tennesseans for generations to come. In Tennessee's New Deal Landscape, Caroll Van West examines over 250 historic sites created from 1933 to 1942: courthouses, post offices, community buildings, schools, and museums, along with the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the Cherokee National Forest, and the dams and reservoirs of the Tennessee Valley Authority. He describes the significant and impact of each project and provides maps to guide readers to the sites described. West discusses architectural styles that are often difficult to identity, and his lively narrative points out some of the paradoxes of New Deal projects-such as the proliferation of leisure parks during the nation's darkest hours. In highlighting these projects, he shows that Tennessee owes much not only to TVA but also to many other agencies and individuals who left their mark on the landscape through roads, levees, and reforested hillsides as well as buildings. An invaluable resource for travelers as well as scholars, this book reveals a legacy of historic treasures that are well worth preserving. The Author: Carroll Van West is projects manager for the Center of Historic Preservation at Middle Tennessee State University. The author of Tennessee's Historic Landscapes, he most recently edited the volumes Tennessee History: The Land, the People, and the Culture and the Tennessee Encyclopedia of History and Culture. He is also senior editor of the Tennessee Historic Quarterly.
Tenth Anniversary Expanded Edition First released in 2011, Tennessee Landscape with Blighted Pine was the debut poetry collection from Tennessee poet Jesse Graves and was awarded the 2011 Weatherford Award in Poetry from Berea College, the Book of the Year in Poetry Award from the Appalachian Writers’ Association, and the Thomas and Lillie D. Chaffin Award for Appalachian Writing. The poems in Tennessee Landscape with Blighted Pine take part in many of the traditions of lyric poetry, including elegies for lost loved ones, odes to the beauty of family and the natural world, expressed through a range of poetic forms and techniques. The 10th Anniversary Expanded Edition includes twelve new poems and an introduction by Matthew Wimberley. from “Emissaries” Some mornings when I’m reading early, no light yet but the table lamp, my left hand will run through scales along the spine of the open book. My hands keep their own remembrance buried in fine grooves of flesh. The fingers turn over ignitions, faucets, always attuned to their proper force, knuckles never breaking things unless my brain overpowers them. They’ve discovered spectacular terrains, soft enclosures I can never enter again. I send them ahead as scouts for survey, emissaries that flip the lights in every dark hallway of the future.
Jens Jensen was one of America's greatest landscape designers and conservationists. Using native plants and "fitting" designs, he advocated that our gardens, parks, roads, playgrounds, and cities should be harmonious with nature and its ecological processes--a belief that was to become a major theme of modern American landscape design. When Jensen died in 1951 at the age of 90, the New York Times called him "the dean of American landscape architecture." In Jens Jensen: Maker of Natural Parks and Gardens, Robert E. Grese evaluates Jensen's work against the background of landscape design traditions that included Andrew Jackson Downing and Frederick Law Olmsted, as well as earlier movements in Europe. Grese examines Jensen's part in the Chicago cultural renaissance that occurred just prior to World War I, a movement that brought social reform, a new understanding of ecology, organic trends in architecture, and great strides in American literature. Drawing on Jensen's writings and plans, interviews with people who knew him, and analyses of his projects, Grese presents a clear picture of Jensen's efforts to enhance and preserve "native" landscapes. Jens Jensen worked with some of the leading architects of his day--Sullivan and Wright among them--so many of his projects involved the extravagant estates of wealthy entrepreneurs in Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin, and elsewhere. But Jensen also worked on schools, parks, playgrounds, hospitals, institutional homes, and government buildings. Long before environmental activists took over the idea, he foresaw the need to preserve the dunes, forests, prairies, and wetlands native to the Middle West. He championed the network of forest preserves around Chicago, protection of the Indiana Dunes (now a national lakeshore), the state park system in Illinois, and numerous parks in Wisconsin. Jens Jensen: Maker of Natural Parks and Gardens offers a compelling look at Jensen's visionary work and remarkable career.
With some 6,000 entries, A Bibliography of Tennessee History will prove to be an invaluable resource for anyone--students, historians, librarians, genealogists--engaged in researching Tennessee's rich and colorful past. A sequel to Sam B. Smith's invaluable 1973 work, Tennessee History: A Bibliography, this book follows a similar format and includes published books and essays, as well as many unpublished theses and dissertations, that have become available during the intervening years. The volume begins with sections on Reference, Natural History, and Native Americans. Its divisions then follow the major periods of the state's history: Before Statehood, State Development, Civil War, Late Nineteenth Century, Early Twentieth Century, and Late Twentieth Century. Sections on Literature and County Histories round out the book. Included is a helpful subject index that points the reader to particular persons, places, incidents, or topics. Substantial sections in this index highlight women's history and African American history, two areas in which scholarship has proliferated during the past two decades. The history of entertainment in Tennessee is also well represented in this volume, including, for example, hundreds of citations for writings about Elvis Presley and for works that treat Nashville and Memphis as major show business centers. The Literature section, meanwhile, includes citations for fiction and poetry relating to Tennessee history as well as for critical works about Tennessee writers. Throughout, the editors have strived to achieve a balance between comprehensive coverage and the need to be selective. The result is a volume that will benefit researchers for years to come. The Editors: W. Calvin Dickinson is professor of history at Tennessee Technological University. Eloise R. Hitchcock is head reference librarian at the University of the South.
A celebration of the antebellum decorative arts of Tennessee, this volume depicts 20 historic homes that have retained their original furnishings. Each entry includes a brief history of the home's construction and occupants, detailed descriptions of its decor, and naturally lit color photographs.
The birthplace of the blues, the cradle of country music, and the home of the Smokies: get to know the Volunteer State with Moon Tennessee. Inside you'll find: Strategic, flexible itineraries, from a long weekend in Nashville to a Great Smokies road trip, designed for history buffs, families, outdoor adventurers, music lovers, and more, including day trips from Memphis and Nashville The best local flavors: Dig in to fiery hot chicken and authentic Southern barbecue or sip on samples at the Jack Daniels Distillery Can't-miss music: Catch a performance on the Grand Ole Opry stage or follow in the footsteps of the King at Graceland. Two-step with the locals at a beloved honkytonk, listen to the strums of bluegrass, or tour studios where legends like Johnny Cash recorded their hits Outdoor adventures: Go whitewater rafting in Cherokee National Forest, hike to rushing waterfalls in Great Smoky Mountains National Park, or spot wild bison in the Land Between the Lakes Expert advice from local Nashvillian Margaret Littman on when to go, where to eat, and where to stay, from rugged campgrounds to historic inns Full-color photos and detailed maps throughout Accurate, up-to-date information on the landscape, wildlife, and history of Tennessee Trusted recommendations for LGBTQ+ travelers, international visitors, seniors, and travelers with disabilities With Moon Tennessee's practical tips and local know-how, you can experience the best of the state. Hitting the road? Check out Moon Nashville to New Orleans Road Trip.
The Dixie Highway Association met in 1915 to plan a highway route from Chicago to Miami, later extending it to Canada. Tennessee's Dixie Highway: The Cline Postcards traces the path of the Dixie Highway along its western and eastern branches through the state, showcasing the works of photographers Walter M. Cline Sr. and Jr. The journey begins in Nashville and travels south to Chattanooga. Chattanooga served as both headquarters of the Dixie Highway Association and home to the Cline family. Moving north of the city, the eastern route arrives near the Kentucky border in Jellico. Many of the places that fascinated the Clines during the 1930s and 1940s are still popular destinations today.
The story of Tennessee's state parks began more than 80 years ago when New Deal agencies worked to rebuild portions of Tennessee's eroded landscape. Along with these conservation measures, the state's early parks were created through the development of recreational areas. The Tennessee Valley Authority built dams that contributed to recreational attractions, and the Division of State Parks was started in 1937. All of these efforts in addition to Tennessee's natural beauty have resulted in 56 state parks. Through their postcard collections, the authors invite readers to discover each park's special place in Tennessee's history and landscape.
