Ongoing - Tennessee

January - December, Elizabethton Walking Tour (Self-guided). Visit the Chamber of Commerce, 500 Veterans Memorial Parkway, and pick up a copy of the Elizabethton Walking Tour Brochure. During you walk it will take you through the downtown section of Historic Elizabethton, take time to visit our local merchants and indulge yourself to lunch in one of our restaurants in the downtown section.

June 3 - November 1 - Storytelling Live! - Storytellers from across the United States will share stories and entertain guests at the International Storytelling Center from June 3 – Nov. 1.  Live storytelling can be heard daily, Tuesday-Saturday at 2 p.m.  Adults $10, Seniors and Students $9. For more information call 800-952-8392 ext. 222 or 423-913-1276. Jonesborough www.storytellingcenter.net

Last Saturday of each month - Concert Series 2007. Join us for out continuing series of performances which highlight the talents of traditional musicians, cloggers, storytellers and more. These events meet in the theater of Sycamore Shoals. Please call the park for a listing of scheduled entertainers and times. Concerts will not be held in July, November and December. March 27 7 p.m. Pisces 8 p.m. Trailblazer Cloggers, April 24 7 p.m. Patchwork 8 p.m. The Stoney Creek Cloggers, May 29 7 p.m. Fire in the Kitchen 8 p.m. Dance Explosion Cloggers, June 26 7 p.m. Cold Comfort 8 p.m Trailblazer Cloggers, August 28 7 p.m. Moccasin Gap, September 25 7 p.m. Hollow Tree Croakers 8 p.m. Celtic tunes with Skye Overmountain Singers, October 23 7 p.m. To Be Announced 8 p.m. Dance Explosion Cloggers. SYCAMORE SHOALS STATE HISTORIC AREA Information (423) 543-5808

November - February - Smoky Mountain Winterfest Celebration. From November to February, Sevierville, Gatlinburg, and Pigeon Forge is transformed into a wonderland of brilliant lights, dazzling decorations and magnificent shows. For information, call Toll Free at 1-888-738-4378, or visit www.visitsevierville.com. 

2008

May 2008   back to top

May 3 - Thunder in the Mountains - 1st Annual Spring Motorcycle Show. Free pubic admission, food and vendors, family-oriented, live music, $10.00 entry fee for all show bikes. Eleven classes to be judged. Set up will be 8am-10am. For more information call Tim Armstrong at 423-794-9418 or visit the Website: www.thunderinthemountains2008.tripod.com 

May 15-17 - Chevy Classics Roundup – 1955, 1956, 1957 Chevy Classics Show (865)984-3758; MRH&CC** (1-800-429-7700) 

May 16-17 - Bloomin' Barbeque & Bluegrass - A Tennessee State Championship BBQ Competition with free big-name bluegrass concerts, crafts, kids games and more. This is the largest Kansas City Barbeque Society Certified event in East Tennessee. Also enjoy the Mountain Soul Vocal Competition, honoring hometown superstar Dolly Parton on May 17 during Bloomin’ Barbeque & Bluegrass…right by the bronze statue of Dolly on the Sevier County Courthouse lawn. www.BloominBBQ.com

May 17-18 - 15th Annual Siege at Fort Watauga

Saturday & Sunday 10:00am. The Revolutionary War comes to life at the site of the muster of the Overmountain Men prior to the Battle of Kingís Mountain. American and British re-enactors along with Native American Allies from all over the Southeast will demonstrate life on the western frontier during the late

1700ís. Battle demonstrations both afternoons. Sponsored by the Company of Overmountain Men.

May 24 - Rockin' the Docks 1 - Live bands, food, fireworks, children's play area all on the banks of beautiful Fort Loudoun Lake. www.lenoircitygov.com

May 30 - Loretta Lynn in concert Country Tonite Theatre (865) 453-2003; 1-800-792-4308

June 2008   back to top

June 7-8 - Lenoir City Arts & Crafts Festival - Over 200 artists and craftsmen with plenty of food and fun, all on the banks of beautiful Fort Loudoun Lake. www.lcsuburbia.org

June 7-8 - Sycamore Shoals, Native American Festival

Saturday & Sunday 10:00 am - 6:00 pm. A two-day celebration of our Native American Heritage. Come and

discover the arts, music, dance, crafts, legends and stories of our Native Americans with emphasis on the Cherokee culture. Admissions Charge.

June 11 -15 -  42nd Annual Covered Bridge Celebration. Experience one of the region’s most beautiful areas at the 42nd Annual Covered Bridge Celebration in historic downtown Elizabethton, TN on June 11-15. Celebrate summer with fun activities for the entire family. Music on the Bridge will feature toe tapping live entertainment including gospel, bluegrass, 50’s and 60’s beach music and country rock entertainers. Southeastern artisans will display unique and traditional handcrafted arts and crafts.  Kids’ Island will offer fun filled activities including a stocked river and a free fishing clinic.  Plus Saturday evening, the streets of historic downtown will showcase more than 150 classic cars.

June 16-17 - Pontiacs in Pigeon Forge Classic Car Show (865) 982-0008; MRH&CC 1-800-429-7700.

June 20 - Chubby Checker in Concert – Country Tonite Theatre (865) 453-2003; 1-800-792-4308

June 21-22 - 62nd Roan Mountain Rhododendron Festival will be from 10 a.m. till 5 p.m.. The festival is a two-day celebration to memorialize and perpetuate the Rhododendron Gardens, the most gorgeous display of natural beauty on the North American continent.  The Festival is held in the Roan Mountain State Park, Roan Mountain, TN.  The park is located at the foot of Roan Mountain and features handmade crafts, food and a variety of traditional music, plus an array of old-time folkway demonstrations.  The Rhododendron Gardens are located approximately eight miles farther up the mountain.  www.roanmountain.com

July 2008   back to top

July 4th starting at 2:00pm - ANNUAL BOAT PARADE. Parade will start out at Watauga Dam; travel to Shook Branch, then back to Watauga Point and end at Mallard Cove Marina. Prizes awarded to best decorated boats. For more information call: Tommy Cowan at 423-543-0332 or email: slowride@onemain.com

July 4 - 18th Annual Patriot Festival, Pigeon Forge. Patriot Park; (865) 429-7350 

July 4-6- "Farmin' on the Fourth" 38th Annual Jonesborough Days Festival. Festivities will be happening from Tuesday, July 1 until Sunday, July 6. You can come for a week, a weekend, or a day and enjoy family farming fun, our charming town, and Wetlands Water Park. Get out your toothpick and poundin’ stick for a good ol’ community hoe-down with a big helping of barbecue and music to celebrate our farming theme. On Friday, July 4, the parade begins at 10am; July 5 the fireworks begin at 10pm accompanied by the Johnson City Community Concert Band outside the Historic Jonesborough Visitors Center. July 4–6 visit a petting zoo & farmer’s market, see heritage crafts being made along with traditional crafts on display, enjoy fantastic music and study antique farming equipment, old–time children’s and adult games. Enjoy FREE music during the entire the festival. Trey Hensley will be on the Main Stage on Saturday night and there will be gospel singing on the Main Stage on Sunday. Trey Hensley will also be hosting a children’s guitar workshop for young country stars.
July 5 - Rockin' the Docks - Live bands, food, fireworks, children's play area, all on the banks of scenic Fort Loudoun Lake. www.lenoircitygov.com

July 5 - An 18th Century Independence Celebration

Saturday. Celebrate the beginning of our nation's independence! We will be hosting a gala that will include the arrival, by courier, of the Declaration of Independence, raising of the Continental Colors,

refreshments, and contests! Sycamore Shoals State Historic Area.

July 5-6 - Independence Weekend Garrison, Saturday & Sunday. A fine opportunity to visit with the Company of Overmountain Men and become a part of the excitement of 1776! The celebration will take place of Saturday; the garrison will continue until Sunday at 3 pm. Sycamore Shoals State Historic Area.

July 10-12, 17-19, & 24-26 - Liberty: The Saga of Sycamore Shoals, Thursday - Saturday Our 30th Year!

Don't miss Tennessee's longest running outdoor drama, depicting the 18th Century settlement of Northeast Tennessee. Presented each year by local performers in the shadow of Fort Watauga. The drama tells the 

story of the major events surrounding the Watauga Settlement on the grounds where they actually happened. Seating is available in the Fort Watauga Amphitheater and performances begin evenings at 7:30 pm. Sponsored by Friends of Sycamore Shoals State Historic Area. Admissions Charge.

July 25-26 - George Jones in Concert – Country Tonite Theatre (865) 453-2003; 1-800-792-4308

August 2008   back to top

August 3 - 7th Annual Elizabethton Butterfly Count

Sunday Meeting times: 9:00 am & 1:00 pm. Join naturalist Don Holt for this day long winged adventure. Come for all or part of the day. Sponsored by the North American Butterfly Association & Sycamore Shoals State Historic Park. (Rain Date: Saturday, August 9.)

August 9-10 - Carter Mansion Celebration & Garrison

Saturday & Sunday 10:00 am - 4:30 pm. Join us at the oldest frame house in Tennessee, the beautiful Carter

Mansion, located on Broad Street Extension for two days of music and fun. The detailed interior of this house, built around 1775, is unparalleled in Tennessee. Camped along the bank of the Watauga River, you can visit 18th century re-enactors, demonstrating period skills. Elizabethton.

August 22 - Mickey Gilley in Concert at Country Tonite. Call 1-800-792-4308 or 865-453-2003 

September 2008   back to top

September 5-6 - 26th Annual Smoky Mountain Fiddlers Convention - Presented by Loudon Rotary Club.  Bluegrass performances, individual and band competitions, antiques and arts & crafts.  No alcoholic beverages. Food and drinks available. Bring your own lawn chair. No passouts, no pets. Admission: Friday: $10 and Saturday: $10 (children under 12 admitted free) www.loudoncity.com/fiddler.htm

September 5-28 - Dollywood’s Barbeque & Bluegrass (closed Thursdays); 1-800-DOLLYWOOD

September 9 - October 31 - Maple Lane Farms Corn Maze - One of the largest corn mazes in the Southeast, along with musical entertainment, handmade jams, jellies and Southern specialties at the farm store, and hayrides to the pumpkin field where you can pick that future Jack'O Lantern. Stay late and enjoy a huge campfire. Come get lost in the fun! Call ahead to see which activities and entertainment will be offered on the day you plan to visit. Visit our web site at: www.thecornmaze.net

September 12 - October 31 - 12th Annual Pigeon Forge Harvest Festival (865)453-8574; 1-800-251-9100

September 12, 13, & 14 - 8th Annual Sycamore Shoals Celtic Festival, Friday Night Torchlight Ceremony 6:30 pm; Saturday - Sunday 9:00 am - 5:00 pm. Saturday Night Concert 6:30 pm. Come celebrate our Celtic heritage! Opening with a torchlight ceremony

Friday Night, Clans and Family Societies will be on hand to help with family history; dance, music, food, vendors, demonstrations, reenactments of 18th & 19th Century heritage, lectures, and a special musical concert on Saturday evening. Admissions Charge.

September 20-21 - Overmountain Victory Trail Celebration. Saturday & Sunday 10:00 am. Join us for an encampment by the Company of Overmountain Men militia before the Battle of King's Mountain in 1780. Call the park for the schedule of events.

September 25 - Overmountain Victory Trail March, Thursday. Members of the Overmountain Victory Trail Association have recreated the historic march of the Overmountain Men since 1975. This year the marchers will cross the Watauga River at Sycamore Shoals, just as the militia did 227 years ago for the muster before they rode to victory at King's Mountain. Approximate time of crossing the river is 1:30 pm to 2:30 pm.

September 26 - B.J. Thomas and Billy Joe Royal in Concert For tickets call the Country Tonite Theatre at 1-800-792-4308 

October 2008  back to top

October 1-31 - 12th Annual Pigeon Forge Harvest Festival (865)453-8574; 1-800-251-9100

October 1-31 - Maple Lane Farms Corn Maze - One of the largest corn mazes in the Southeast, along with musical entertainment, handmade jams, jellies and Southern specialties at the farm store, and hayrides to the pumpkin field where you can pick that future Jack'O Lantern. Stay late and enjoy a huge campfire. Come get lost in the fun! Call ahead to see which activities and entertainment will be offered on the day you plan to visit. Visit our web site at: www.thecornmaze.net

October 3 - November 1 - Dollywood’s & Harvest Celebration (closed Thursdays) – 1-800-DOLLYWOOD

October 2-5 - 14th Annual Sycamore Shoals Quilt Show

Thursday - Saturday 8:00 am - 4:30 pm Sunday 1:00 pm - 4:30 pm. This four-day exhibition, sponsored by the Sycamore Shoals Stitchers, features a show and demonstrations by local quilters held in the park

museum. Bed quilts, wall hangings, holiday and baby quilts, miniatures and antique quilts will be on display. Sycamore Shoals State Park.

October 3-5 - National Storytelling Festival - The National Storytelling Festival is the nation’s oldest and most dynamic event dedicated to the oral tradition.  The program includes a wide variety of accomplished artists whose stories can take listeners back to their childhood, across cultures and borders, and into the world of imagination.  For information contact the International Storytelling Center at 800-952-8392 or visit the festival web site at www.storytellingcenter.net. Jonesborough

October 4-5 - Fort Watauga Knap-In, Saturday &Sunday 10:00 am - 4:30 pm. Help us celebrate Tennessee Archaeology Week at Fort Watauga with demonstrations of how pre-historic man made stone tools and weapons.

Displays of replicated primitive artifacts and demonstrations with primitive weapons such as bow and arrow and atlatl fill the days. Come and make your own projectile points!

October 10-11 - 4th Annual Tennessee State Bar-B-Q and Fall Festival - Bar-b-que competition, food and fun for the entire family. www.tennesseestatebbq.com

October 30 - Scary Stories at the Carter Mansion, Elizabethton. Thursday 7:30 pm. Strange things happen around the time of All Hallows Eve, especially in a graveyard. Join us for tales of woe and terror, the weird and macabre, with a touch of wit thrown in for good measure. Don't be afraid, the graveyard at the Carter Mansion isn't haunted, we don't think!

November 2008   back to top

November 6 - 19th Annual Winterfest Kickoff, Pigeon Forge. Patriot Park; (865)429-7350

November 8 - January 3 - Dollywood’s Smoky Mountain Christmas Festival Operating days vary. Closed 11/27, 12/24, 25 & 31) 

November 14,15,&16 - Christmas Craft Show, Friday 10:00 am - 4:30 pm; Saturday 8:00 am - 4:30 pm; Sunday 1:00 pm - 4:30 pm. Don't miss this tremendously popular craft extravaganza just in time for Christmas. Forty-eight local crafts persons exhibit and demonstrate their talents with a Christmas twist. Sycamore Shoals State Park.

November 22-23 - Thanksgiving Garrison at Fort Watauga, Saturday-Sunday 10:00 am - 4:00 pm. Join us as Hardin's Rangers provide a glimpse into the past with an 18th century Thanksgiving at Fort Watauga. Plenty of food and demonstrations.

December 2008   back to top

December 4-6 - Eddie Crook Company Christmas in the Smokies Gospel Concert Packages available, (615)851-1360; MRH&CC 1-800-429-7700 Pigeon Forge

December 5-6 - Christmas at the Carter Mansion, Friday & Saturday 6:00 pm - 9:00 pm. Spend the evening in this 18th century home built on the frontier around 1775 featuring the beautiful interior craftsmanship decorated for Christmas in the style of 1780. Costumed interpreters, candlelight, refreshments, and music highlight the evening.

December 6-7 - Christmas Garrison at Fort Watauga, Saturday & Sunday 10:00 am - 4:00 pm. Ring in the Christmas season with the Company of Overmountain Men as they celebrate with living history demonstrations of the 18th century in the backwoods of Colonial America.