Northeast Tennessee

Headed out early this morning with a pretty ambitious list of things to see, unfortunately with the shorter admission hours and the early sundown, I didn't get through half the list before I headed back.  It was really too far to go for a day trip .... the first stop was 2 hours away.

Davy Crockett Birthplace State Park:  Located in the mountains of northeastern Tennessee where the first pioneers entered the state, this 105-acre park contains a reproduction of the cabin where Davy Crockett was born. It is furnished as it would have been had he lived there. The adjacent museum offers exhibits and a short video.

The Andrew Johnson National Historic Site

Lunch was at Pal's Sudden Service .... a fast food chain; there is no inside seating - you place your order on one side of the building and drive around to the other to pick up the order.  I had their "sauce burger" which was a hamburger with a sloppy joe sauce.  Good.

the very first Pal's restaurant, that opened in 1956

The Kingsport water tower is both a water tower and an advertisement. The water tower features vibrant paint and the words "Move to Kingsport" as a way to "promote tourism and local development".

The Grand Guitar is a giant guitar museum and gift shop. View a collection of records and guitars collected over time in the interior of a massive guitar. - when I read this description I added it to my list of things to see.  However, when I drove by, it was closed and very run down.

I also planned to stop at some of the caverns they have in the area, but ran out of time, so I have it on the list for when I return.

Jonesborough is Tennessee's oldest town, founded in 1779, and is host to the International Storytelling Center.  It looked to be quite quaint.

A cool town was Bristol.  State Street, Bristol's main thoroughfare, is bisected by the Tennessee/Virginia border.  The double yellow lines down the street's center denote the dividing line.  The Tennessee flag flies on one side of the street; Virginia on the other.  Each side has their own government and city offices.

Congress declared Bristol the Birthplace of Country Music in 1998 because of the 1927 Bristol Sessions recordings.  They have The Birthplace of Country Music Museum, a Smithsonian-affiliated museum featuring permanent and  rotating exhibits documenting the impact of the 1927 Bristol Sessions recordings on country music.

Earlier I did get to the Lincoln Museum ...

I'm not sure it hit 60 degrees all day, so a little cooler than the rest of the week.  They have forest fires on the eastern state border, so I'm waiting to head to the Smokey Mountains until they are under control.

This is basically the area I'm covering while I'm here  ..

My next adventure is Pigeon Forge to see Dolly!