A history exhibit curator and author will present a program and sign his book, “The Great Smoky Mountains National Park/Postcard History Series,” at the American Museum of Science and Energy on Saturday.
The program by Adam H. Alfrey, curator of exhibits at the East Tennessee History Center in Knoxville, will draw from public and private collections of vintage postcards, a press release said. It starts at 2 p.m. Saturday at AMSE.
The press release said the pictorial history “boasts more than 200 vintage images and provides readers with a unique opportunity to reconnect with the history that shaped their community.”
Here’s more information from the press release:
For centuries, the majesty and mystery of the Great Smoky Mountains have lured mankind. The Cherokee were among the first to build thriving communities here, and backcountry frontiersmen were next to put down roots. In time, visitors arrived, eager to take in the cool mountain air and returned home with stories of “hillbillies.” Then, those who used the mountains for their own advantages came such as lumber barons, armed with steam shovels and skidders.
Eventually, civic boosters from Western North Carolina and East Tennessee took note and began advocating for the protection of the Great Smoky Mountains. Before a national park could be established, though, there were competing interests to be sorted and a consideration of the lives affected.
Highlights of “The Great Smoky Mountains National Park/Postcard History Series” include the region’s photographers and the role their images played in the campaign to establish the national park and subsequently in attracting visitors to the mountains. About 200 rare postcards will illustrate how a rallying cry for preservation, pleasure, and profit sustained a campaign to create the Great Smoky Mountain National Park, the most visited national park in the United States.
Following Alfrey’s program, the audience can meet the author and purchase his book in the AMSE lobby, where he will do a book signing. There is no charge to attend Alfrey’s program in the AMSE auditorium or the book signing in the museum lobby.
The American Museum of Science and Energy is located at 300 S. Tulane Ave. in Oak Ridge. It’s open Monday-Saturday from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. and Sunday 1-5 p.m.
AMSE will be closed on Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, and New Year’s Day. For more information, visit www.amse.org.
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