As Labor Day Weekend kicks off, there are several fun activities and events at Tennessee State Parks during the holiday weekend and in the coming weeks.
Davy Crockett Birthplace State Park
Join Davy Crockett Birthplace on Saturday, September 3, for a Labor Day Celebration – meeting at the campground pavilion for the park’s “End of the Season” gathering. There will be games for the kids starting at 11 a.m. and a bluegrass musical group from 7-9 p.m. Special activities will be held throughout the weekend.
For more information contact Dawn.Coleman@tn.gov or call (423) 257-2167.
Davy Crockett's birthplace has been preserved by the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation as an historic site within the state park system. The site consists of 105 partially wooded acres of land along the Nolichucky River in Greene County. For more information about upcoming events at the park, please call (423) 257-2167. For additional information about the park, please visit www.tnstateparks.com/DavyCrockettSHP.
Sycamore Shoals State Historic Park
Celebrate Appalachia’s Celtic heritage at Sycamore Shoals’ 11th Annual Celtic Festival, slated for September 9-11. The event will open with a torchlight ceremony on Friday at 6:30 p.m., where ancestral clans and family societies will be on hand to help with family history. Saturday and Sunday events begin at 9 a.m. and run until 5 p.m., including dance, music, food, craft vendors, demonstrations, re-enactments and lectures. A special musical concert will be held at 6:30 p.m. on Saturday. There is an admissions charge. For more information call (423) 543-5808.
Sycamore Shoals will host a variety of Traditional Arts Workshops throughout the month of September, including step-by-step oil painting and beginners spinning. Traditional Arts Workshops are by registration only and must be pre-paid. For complete schedules or to make a workshop reservation, please call (423) 543-5808.
Sycamore Shoals State Historic Park attracts more than 305,000 people every year. The 85-acre site sits on the banks of the Watauga River where the Overmountain Men assembled in 1780 before marching to defeat the British in the Battle of Kings Mountain, a turning point in the Revolutionary War. The park features interpretive exhibits, events, a fitness trail and picnic facilities. It is located off U.S. Highway 321 in Elizabethton. Additional information about the park can be found on the park’s Web site at www.tnstateparks.com/SycamoreShoals.
Fort Loudoun State Historic Park / Sequoyah Birthplace
The Fort Loudoun State Historic Park and the Sequoyah Birthplace Museum are partnering for the Great Island Festival, slated for September 10-11, from 10 a.m. until 5 p.m. each day. The Great Island Festival is actually a series of concurrent events, designed to take visitors back in time to an 18th century Trade Faire and a Cherokee encampment. The 18th century Trade Faire at Fort Loudoun will feature encampments of soldiers, settlers and American Indians. There will be demonstrations throughout the day in artillery and musketry, along with several battle and skirmish re-enactments. Merchants and artisans will be on hand to peddle food and wares reminiscent of the time.
Music and other entertainment acts will include The Traveling Caudells, a traditional vocal duo; Out of the Ordinary, featuring a hammered dulcimer, English guitar, harp and vocals; and the Beggar Boys, talented singers and fiddlers. Common Stocks Curious Booth of Wonders and the Amazing Juggling Budabi Brothers will also delight and astonish visitors of all ages. Returning this year will be Faire Wynds Circus, featuring musicians, a conjuror, equalibrialist, contortionist and an escape artist – just a few highlights of their whimsical act. Visitors can attend an entertaining and educational presentation as Steven Caudill portrays Daniel Boone of Kentucky and historic re-enactor Captain Robert K. Rambo (retired) portrays Attakulkulla, powerful peace chief of the Cherokee Nation (c. 1715-1780).
Meanwhile, at the Sequoyah Birthplace Museum, visitors will have the opportunity to experience Native American food, arts and crafts demonstrations, music and dance. Other special demonstrations and displays will give a glimpse into the Cherokees’ military service, including a Civil War encampment, battle re-enactment and a Cherokee timeline encampment featuring time periods of the 1400s through the 1900s.
Special entertainment will be provided by the Warrior Dancers of Ani-Kituhwa; Diamond Go-Sti, a native educator and culturalist; Cherokee flutist and storyteller Eddie Bushyhead; and a Cherokee Stickball demonstration game. On Saturday, David Haggard with Tennessee State Parks will thrill visitors with his Wildlife Birds of Prey program. The Cherokee Historical Association’s presentation on the Seven Clans will be held Sunday. Visitors also will have the opportunity to meet the reigning Miss Cherokee.
The new 1809 Cherokee log cabin-style Blacksmith shop will be open for demonstrations on both days. Other activities include a poster contest featuring children from the Cherokee Elementary School in Cherokee, North Carolina. Darts, beads, talking sticks, face painting and free Cherokee name cards will be available for children. Traditional Indian Fry bread and Indian tacos, fresh-squeezed lemonade, kettle corn, along with other food and drinks also will be sold.
Festival parking is at Sequoyah Birthplace Museum, located at 576 Highway 360 in Vonore, Tenn. Free shuttle buses will provide transportation for visitors from each site (approximately 1.5 miles). Adult tickets are $5.00 to the Sequoyah Birthplace Museum and $5.00 to the Trade Faire. Kids 12 and under are admitted free of charge.
Fort Loudoun State Historic Area is a 1,200-acre site on the location of one of the earliest British fortifications on the western frontier, built in 1756. Nearby were the principle towns of the Cherokee Nation including Tenase, namesake of our state, and Tuskegee, birthplace of Sequoyah. Today the fort and the 1794 Tellico Blockhouse overlook TVA's Tellico Reservoir and the Appalachian Mountains. For more information about the Great Island Festival, contact the Sequoyah Birthplace Museum at (423) 884-6246 or Fort Loudoun State Historic Park at (423) 884-6217. For more information about Tennessee State Parks, please visit www.tnstateparks.com.
Roan Mountain State Park
Roan Mountain State Park’s 49th Annual Fall Naturalists’ Rally is slated for Friday through Sunday, September 9-11. Join area naturalists for a weekend of hikes, workshops, exploration and fun. Programs include bird walks, forest ecology, wildflowers, stream ecology, geology and more. Reservations are required and can be made by calling (423) 477-2235.
Roan Mountain State Park encompasses 2,006 acres of southern Appalachian forest at the base of 6,285-foot Roan Mountain. Park elevation ranges from 3,000 feet in the valley to around 3,700 feet on surrounding ridges. Rich hardwood forests allow for a great diversity of life and a wide range of outdoor activities. Park guests have opportunities to hike along creeks and ridges, fish for trout, play tennis, swim, tour a century old farmhouse, join rangers and naturalists for educational programs and enjoy mountain music concerts. For additional information about Roan Mountain State Park, please visit the park’s Web site at www.tnstateparks.com/RoanMtn.
Tennessee's 53 state parks and 82 natural areas offer diverse natural, recreational and cultural experiences for individuals, families, or business and professional groups. State park features range from pristine natural areas to 18-hole championship golf courses. For a free brochure about Tennessee State Parks, call toll free 1-888-867-2757. For additional information, visit our Web site at www.tnstateparks.com.