Sweet Fanny Adams Theater and Music Hall

If you are ready for a show, check out Sweet Fanny Adams Theater. It is the best place for live comedy and musical entertainment in the mountains, and it was named a National Historic Treasure by the city of Gatlinburg. For ticketing and show information, visit http://www.sweetfannyadams.com/.

The Great Smoky Mountain Salamander Ball

The Great Smoky Mountain Salamander Ball was written by Lisa Horstman and the Great Smoky Mountains Natural History Association and published in April 1997.  It is a children’s book for ages 5-7 years old.  The book is about a young girl’s trip to the Smokies.  While camping with her family, she sneaks out of the tent and watches a salamander ball, but then is discovered by them.  This picture book will keep children intrigued.  The book is about $7.00 and can be purchased through the Great Smoky Mountains Association or other online book stores.

Nawger Nob Arts and Crafts Show

Check out the Nawger Nob Arts & Craft Fair in Townsend .  Over eighty crafters will sell wares like woodcarvings, baskets, paintings, pottery, chairs, and many more mountain crafts. The event takes place over the weekend of the 26-28th.  Nawger Nob is located on Lamar Alexander Parkway in Townsend.

Fall Heritage Fest and Old Timers Fair

Coming September 25-26, the Townsend Visitors Center will be hosting its 17th annual Fall Heritage Festival and Old Timers Day as part of the Townsend Days Fall Festival. Come on out to Townsend to enjoy bluegrass music, clogging, local arts and crafts, food, and demonstrations of traditional skills like basketry, spinning, beekeeping, and blacksmithing. The festival is free and open to the public. Call 800.525.6834 for more.

Sam Houston School House

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 in the spring until the harvest in the fall. He charged $8 for tuition., but students could pay in corn or calico, too. Houston’s schoolhouse is typical of field schools of the time. The school is the oldest in Tennessee and was built two years before it reached statehood. Today, the school maintains some of the original logs. The school is located five miles NE of Maryville. School hours are Tuesday through Saturday from 10 until 5 and Sunday from 1-5. More info can be found by calling 865.983.1550.

The Mountain Heritage Center

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 to the festival on the ninth. All shoes are at 7:00 p.m. Aside from concerts and festivals, the Heritage Center is a great place for school field trips and event hosting. The center’s mission is to preserve the cultural heritage of East Tennessee and the Great Smoky Mountains Region. Admission is $6 for adults, $4 for seniors, and children 6-17 is $4.

Wood-N-Strings Dulcimer

Check out Wood-N-Strings Dulcimer Shop in Townsend. Owners Connie and Mike Clemmer build and sell their handcrafted mountain dulcimers along with cellos, violins, and guitars. You are guaranteed to hear some great mountain music while watching a dulcimer being hand-made from carefully chosen woods. Mike may also let you listen to the Ban-Jammer, an original creation of his. For a true taste of the mountains, visit Wood-N-Strings.

Old Fashioned Wagon Rides

A great way to see all that Gatlinburg has to offer in the Fall is to take a tour by old-fashioned wagon rides. From September 1- October 29, wagon rides are available for the whole family. Rides run from 5 p.m. – 9 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and leave about every 45 minutes throughout the day. Not all do the wagon rides provide great views of the beautiful Fall foliage of the Smokies as well as the Winter lights later in the season, the proceeds benefit the United Way. The cost of a ride is $4.00 per person. More info can be found by clicking here.

Townsend Artisan Guild Woodcarving Festival

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 date back from 3000 B.C. to the 1930’s. Native American displays include ceremonial dress, pottery, hunting weapons, and masks that symbolize each of the Cherokee seven clans. Featuring a historic village, visitors experience the authenticity through the cantilever barns, log cabins, sawmill, smokehouse, underground still house, wheelwright shop, and much more. With interactive exhibits, media presentations, and three-dimensional displays, guests will leave with a better sense of the Townsend culture. Along with the festival’s public showings, woodcarvers are able to compete while putting their carvings on exhibit. For additional information, call (865) 448-0044.

Arts & Crafts Exhibit at Townsend Visitors Center

Come to the Townsend Visitors Center Exhibit Room and visit and buy from talented, local artists from April to December. To get a full calendar of exhibits throughout the year visit the arts and crafts page at http://www.smokymountains.org/. Here is a listing of the arts and crafts exhibits that will take place in August:

1-2: Woodturing with Tom Sciple

3-5: Art Exhibit with Dena Eubanks

6-8: Art Exhibit with Cathy Coulter

9-12: Doll making with Carolyn Gregory

10-12: Decoupage plates with Anna Bolton

13-15: Woodcarving with Fred Binning

16: Quilted wall hangings with Sue Ann Tippitt

17-19: Art Exhibit with Randy White

            Woodcrafts with Charles Goosie

20-22: Woodturing with Roy Lindsey and Monte Walker

22: Woodturning demonstration with Monte Walker

25-27: Wooden banks with Harold Joines

28-30: Art Exhibit with Roma McCannon

31: Art and Woodcrafts with Myron and Sanford Downs