U.S.S.
David R. Ray decommissioned
McMINNVILLE–
More than 300 sailors and civilians gathered last February in
the coastal city of Everett, WA as the destroyer U.S.S. David
R. Ray was officially retired from naval service.
The 8,800-ton Spruance-class destroyer was built by Ingalls Shipbuilding
in Pascagoula, MS and commissioned on Nov. 19, 1977.
David Robert Ray was the son of a pharmacist, who grew up in the
middle Tennessee town of McMinnville and attended the University
of Tennessee, enlisted in the Navy in 1966 and became a medical
corpsman.
In 1969, Hospital Corpsman Second Class David R. Ray and the Marine
battalion he was assigned to came under attack in the Quang Nam
Province in Vietnam. Although injured in the initial attack, Ray
stayed at his post and ignored orders to care for the severely
wounded in the sick bay and instead ran into the thick of the
fighting to start retrieving wounded comrades – many of whom
were in the middle of hand-to-hand combat with the Viet Cong.
Although a medic, Ray fought his way to the heart of the action
and began pulling the wounded marines to safety. He was struck
by enemy fire more than four times, but is credited with personally
saving at least seven men and pulling them to a safe position,
where he began applying first aid and getting them to the rear
to receive medical attention.
His actions drew the attention of the Viet Cong and two soldiers
were dispatched to attack his position. During the fire-fight
that ensued, Ray killed one and wounded another. He held his position
firing and attending the wounded until one of the enemy soldiers
rolled a grenade into the bunker where he was working. Being unable
to toss it out in time and without a thought for his own safety,
HC2C David R. Ray threw himself on the grenade and used his body
to absorb the blast and protect the wounded marine he was attending.
His actions under fire saving wounded marines and fighting the
enemy so impressed his commanders that they Tennessean was posthumously
awarded the Medal of Honor. His father was presented the Medal
of Honor in a White House ceremony.
The Spruance-class destroyer, which was named in his honor, served
the U.S. Navy for 25 years. At the decommissioning ceremony, many
former sailors, who served on the U.S.S. David R. Ray described
the event as a funeral of sorts. Retired Marine Corps Lt. Col.
Wayne Babb, however, who was Ray’s commanding officer in
Vietnam, spoke eloquently of the Tennessean saying Ray’s
actions in Vietnam " went above and beyond the call of duty
and the man for whom the ship was named was truly an American
hero."
The U.S. Navy and the ship’s crew maintained an Internet
site on the ship for the last few years, which was used by numerous
school children in Tennessee as well as family members of those
serving aboard her. David R. Ray is honored in his hometown with
an elementary school and a highway in Warren County named in his
honor.
The ship is now sitting in the mothball fleet in the Puget Sound
Naval Shipyard in Bremerton.
This isn’t the first ship named after a medical corpsman.
The U.S.S. John Harlan Willis was named after Columbia, TN native
Medal of Honor recipient John H. Willis, who was serving as a
Pharmacist Mate at the Battle of Iwo Jima, when he was killed
retrieving wounded marines from the battlefield.
National legislation, which was sponsored by Sen. Bill Frist (R-TN),
passed the House and Senate a couple of years ago clearing the
way for another ship to bear the name of another Tennessean. Marine
Corps Gen. Clifton Cates, who served in W.W.I and W.W.II, rose
to the rank of Commandant of the Marine Corps and successfully
fought to keep the military division its own fighting force following
W.W.II when then-President Harry Truman wanted to see the Marines
absorbed back into ranks of the U.S. Navy.
Gatlinburg Highland games celebrates
21 years
GATLINBURG
– Cold weather, rain and mud didn’t dampen the enthusiasm
of the 21st annual Gatlinburg Scottish Festival & Games this
past Saturday at Mills Park in Gatlinburg. The honored clan at
the year’s festival was Clan Campbell.
"The viewing stands are the best place to be this year,"
said Gerald McKay "but everyone has to wander around and
see the vendors and clan tents and the rain has made it very difficult.
The cold weather is a shock somewhat as I don’t ever remember
it being so chilly and the mud is unbelievable, but everyone seems
to be having a good time."
Officials say the annual event has seen its attendants ebb and
flow over 21 years, but the recent upsurge of interest in family
genealogy has seen the festival grow tremendously over the past
three years. More than 50 clans had tents at the games to share
their family history and offer information on helping others research
their Celtic heritage.
"This region is idea for more festivals like this and I would
like to see some also held on British, Irish and Welsh culture,
" said Mary Stewart, "especially with the tremendous
amount of immigration here from the British Isles. The Scottish
Festival and Games is a long-standing tradition in Gatlinburg
and I have been to practically every one held here. This one is
somewhat of a mess because of the mud, but I had to laugh when
one of the Scottish traditional musicians said this year’s
games reminded him of being home in Scotland."
The Gatlinburg Scottish Festival and Games featured highland dancing,
Scottish heavy athletics and an all-day field Ceilidh with musicians
from Scotland and across the United States. In addition, there
were pipe band competitions featuring bagpipers from across the
country and numerous Scottish agricultural displays. There were
also numerous vendors offering Scottish goods and samples of native
cuisine. New this year was the Kids’ Kastle, which had numerous
activities for children.
The Scottish Festival and Games are held across the nation with
the biggest one being held each year at Grandfather Mountain in
North Carolina.
Officials say they hope next year’s festival and games is
a little drier, but that plans and preparations are already underway
for 2003. For those interested in being a part of the annual games,
you can contact the local Scottish Society in Knoxville or at
numerous on-line web sites on Scottish culture and genealogy.
Federal
Attorney disrupts Confederate
Memorial Day Service
KNOXVILLE – The annual Confederate Memorial
Day Service, which is held at the Confederate Cemetery off of
Dandridge Avenue was interrupted this past weekend by a federal
attorney, who demanded that the ceremony be stopped and summoned
Knoxville police to break up the event.
United States Department of Interior attorney John Austin, who
is with the Knoxville solicitor’s field office, was reportedly
driving by the ceremony when he stopped and demanded that it be
ended.
The Memorial Day ceremony, which featured past Tennessee commander
of the Sons of Confederate Veterans and Covington, TN mayor Russell
Bailey as guest speaker as well as federal representatives from
the Tennessee congressional delegation, is an event sponsored
by the Knoxville Chapters of the Sons of Confederate Veterans
as part of the state’s and Knoxville’s annual observance
recognizing Tennessee Confederate soldiers who died in the War
Between the States.
Knoxville police summoned to the Confederate Cemetery informed
Austin the assembly is legal, they were not going to stop the
Memorial Day Service and that he would have to leave the site
immediately.
While some of those in attendance at the ceremony say they were
intimidated by Austin using his position as a federal attorney
to try and stop the memorial service, others were furious that
he disrupted the event.
Tennessee Conservative Union chairman Lloyd Daugherty, who attended
the ceremony and has often spoken at the Confederate Memorial
Day Service, left the grave site and confronted Austin and the
police to see what the problem was.
"It was unbelievable that he (Austin) would try to use his
position as a U.S. attorney to summon police and stop a ceremony
where descendants were paying tribute to their ancestors,"
said Lloyd Daugherty. "This is clearly a case where a federal
employee used his position to intimidate taxpaying citizens and
should not be tolerated. This event is a lawful assembly held
here every year and has never encountered any problems whatsoever
from the people in the neighborhood where the cemetery is located.
It’s a memorial day service where people who have Confederate
descendants come here to pay tribute to their ancestors, pray
over their graves and hold a small religious service. I commend
the Knoxville police officers, who handled the matter very professionally
and remained until the ceremony was concluded to make sure there
were no other problems."
Following the incident, those in attendance at the ceremony contacted
the office of U.S. Rep. John J. Duncan, Jr. as well as the U.S.
Department of Interior’s Field Office in Knoxville informing
them how upset they were over the federal attorney’s disruption
of the service.
According to reports, the board of the Mabry-Hazen House is expected
to discuss the incident after Austin’s wife allegedly began
a telephone campaign to Knoxville officials and members of the
board reporting that the group gathered at the Confederate Cemetery
were using racial slurs, racing trucks up the small city street
where the cemetery is located, throwing bottles and playing the
song "Dixie" on loudspeakers. Accusations called incredulous
by members of the local S.C.V.
"Where that came from is beyond belief and an outright lie,"
said a Knoxville S.C.V. member Earl Smith. "If that was the
case, I and everyone else there would have called the police ourselves.
Confederate Memorial Day is a highly dignified and reverend occasion
for us that honors our ancestors who fought and died during the
War Between the States. This is something people with Confederate
ancestors do every June across the South, especially in Tennessee
and is duly recognized as state day of remembrance."
Telephone calls and e-mails requesting comment from the U.S. Department
of Interior Knoxville’s Field Solicitor J.T. Begley, who
is Austin’s immediate supervisor, had not been answered at
time of publication.
The Mabry-Hazen Historical site is the caretaker of the Confederate
Cemetery and the Mabry House, which was the home of Joseph Mabry
– one of the city’s early leaders and a Confederate
supporter that supplied Confederate soldiers with uniforms in
the early days of the war. The local S.C.V. has done numerous
"Living History" exhibits on the Civil War era in Knoxville
featuring both Confederate and Union encampments for school groups
and visitors to the site.
"Tennessee’s
world-class marksman dies in Atlanta
WEARS VALLEY – The Tennessee and American sports community
was stunned last week to learn that world-class exhibition shooter
and marksman Robert Michael Blackburn had passed away suddenly
in Atlanta on April 29.
According to medical examiner reports, the Wears Valley resident
was returning home from Alabama on Interstate 285 when he started
feeling seizures coming on and pulled to the side of the interstate.
His wife immediately telephoned emergency personnel who transported
Blackburn to South Fulton Regional Medical Center where he was
later pronounced dead. Blackburn allegedly suffered from a seizure
disorder for a number of years and the official cause of death
reported by the Fulton County Medical Examiner’s office was
a seizure disorder of unknown origin. The Wears Valley resident
was laid to rest in the Smoky Mountain Memory Gardens with graveside
services last Saturday. Michael Blackburn leaves behind a wife
and daughter.
Blackburn was known throughout America as one of the greatest
exhibition shooters with rifle, shotgun and handgun, even holding
a spot in Guinness’ Book of World Records for the smallest
target ever hit by a firearm. He was also an adamant supporter
of the Second Amendment and, when once tested by a crusading reporter
on national television who insinuated to Blackburn he was a gun
fanatic who believed everyone should own a firearm, the marksman
stole the reporter’s thunder when he replied: "I know
many people who shouldn’t be allowed to own a firearm, but
everyone should know how to use them."
The 51-year-old was born in Salem, Ill. on July 29, 1950 and developed
a love for the shooting sports while still a child. He came from
a long line of sportsmen that could be traced back to his great-great-great
grandfather, who was regarded as one of Illinois premier gunsmiths.
Robert Blackburn’s skill with firearms in competitions quickly
drew the attention of some of the nation’s best firearms
experts and he began touring on the profession circuit. He made
his first national appearance during a competition in St. Louis,
MO when an NBC television crew taped him doing some of his remarkable
feats. He would later go on to do a stint with ESPN, but left
the national sports network over a financial dispute and went
back on the road performing for audiences across the nation. He
skill would later earn him a sponsorship from some of America’s
most prominent firearm and ammunition manufacturers, including
the Remington Firearms Company.
His love of firearms and his abilities thrilled crowds of all
ages. While vacationing in East Tennessee as a young man, he fell
in love with the Smoky Mountains and eventually moved to Wears
Valley where he could enjoy the peace and quiet. He was a consummate
shooter who was known for spending hours at a time practicing
when he wasn’t traveling on the road. He always regarded
his talent and skill as an American tradition, even once remarking:
"I’d just like to leave my name in American history.
I’d like to be remembered as one of the best exhibition shooters
ever - remembered as a good guy, as a straight shooter."
Rocky Top Outfitters owner Greg Ward was among those shocked to
hear the news of his death. Ward has a target in his shop from
one of Blackburn’s competitions where the Wears Valley resident
shot a perfect bulls-eye with a nine-shot cartridge from a 12
gauge shotgun, earning him a perfect score.
"Michael Blackburn was truly one of the greatest marksmen
in the nation," said Ward. "He would go out with his
firearms, set up targets and literally spend all day shooting
and making up shots that would entertain people. His using the
reflection off of a bowie knife to nail a bulls-eye was one of
his best exhibition techniques that would get applause every time
he did it."
He was also a featured guest on the Dixie Angler Radio Network
and a close friend with program host Lloyd Daugherty. The two
even taped a video pilot in the 1990s.
"I considered Michael Blackburn a good friend and he was
undoubtedly the best hand with a gun I had ever seen," said
Daugherty. "He was a huge bear of a man that was as gentle
as a lamb and great with children. You would have to see him to
believe how much natural talent he possessed with firearms. He
will be sorely missed by myself and the untold thousands of people
he entertained and inspired over the years. The American shooting
community has truly lost one of its greatest inspirations. My
thought and prayers go out to his wife and family."
Others across Tennessee expressed their sadness upon learning
of his death and remembered him fondly.
"It is really sad that a man of his skill and talent should
die so young," said Paris, TN resident John Sutter. "I
saw him shoot two or three times and was simply amazed at the
things he could do. You may not know him when he started, but,
by the time he was through, Michael Blackburn was a name you would
never forget. I get angry with sportswriters and broadcasters,
especially on a local level, who ignore people of such considerable
talent because their sport does not involve a ball of some kind
and think their narrow attitudes towards outdoor sports, which
make more money for this state than all college and professional
ball teams combined, put a black mark on their profession. People
like Michael Blackburn only come along once in a lifetime."
An autobiography on the Wears Valley resident entitled: "The
World’s Greatest Sharpshooter: Keeping History Alive"
should be available through your local bookstore or obtained by
contacting Arrowhead Classics Publishing at P.O. Box 1489, Sevierville,
TN 37864. The book details his life and times and also offers
the shooting tips and techniques that made Michael Blackburn an
icon in theAmerican firearms
community.
New
insect threatens Smoky Mountain Hemlock trees
GATLINBURG – Biologists at the Great Smoky Mountains National
Park have confirmed the Park’s first-recorded infestation
with the Hemlock Woolly Adelgid, a tiny aphid-like insect that
attacks and kills hemlock trees. The first outbreak was confirmed
two weeks ago about three miles north of Fontana Dam in the Swain
County, NC portion of the Park and a second infestation was found
last week a mile from Cades Cove in Blount County.
The Hemlock Woolly Adelgid is native to China and Japan and is
a close relative of the Balsam Woolly Adelgid that has devastated
more than 90 percent of the Park’s Fraser firs at areas like
Clingmans Dome and Balsam Mountain. The hemlock adelgid was first
detected in the mid-Atlantic states in the 1920s, but was not
recognized as a serious pest until its population exploded when
it reached large forested area such as Shenandoah National Park
in the 1970s. In Shenandoah, officials say around 80 percent of
the Park’s hemlocks are infected and most are expected to
die.
Throughout the 1990s, federal and state biologists monitored the
adelgid’s slow spread north into Maine and south along the
Appalachians. The tiny insect can be spread by larger insects,
on the feet of birds and by wind, but the fastest spread occurs
when infested landscape materials are brought in for planting
in developed areas. Between 1999 and 2001, the insect is believed
to have made the jump quickly from the Virginia/North Carolina
border down to the Robbinsville, NC area via this human transport.
The hemlock adelgid feeds by sucking sap from the bases of the
tree’s needles starting with the underside. The parasitism
retards the host’s growth and causes its needles to discolor
from deep green to grayish before they drop off. The loss of new
growth generally results in mortality of the tree within a few
years. The infested twigs are fairly easy to recognize because
the insects clump together at the base of each needle into a whitish
mass that resembles a small cotton swab.
Areas of the Smokies which are primarily hemlock occupy only about
5,000 acres of the half-million acre national park, but individual
hemlocks are scattered widely throughout the Park from the lowest
elevations to about 5,000 feet. The hemlock is of particular importance
when it grows along stream banks where its deep shade helps to
keep mountain streams sufficiently cool to host the Park’s
cold water fish population.
Officials say there may be a way to stop the disease are hoping
new techniques will stop the spread of the disease and save the
hemlocks.
"There is a range of treatment alternatives that may slow
or hopefully someday prevent the widespread loss of hemlocks from
our forests, " said GSMNP Supervisory Forester Kris Johnson.
"Trees can be treated by injecting a pesticide into the soil
where it is taken up through the roots and/or can be soaked with
a soap solution. There are also some promising results from introducing
an Asian beetle that feeds exclusively on the adelgid. The soap
and pesticide must be applied by hand so it is not practical to
treat large or isolated stands, but in the developed areas or
with smaller outbreaks we may be able to keep an outbreak in check."
Park vegetation staffers treated the North Carolina stand last
week with both the soap and the pesticide and will continue to
monitor those trees to see if those treatments were effective.
The extent of the infected stand near Cades Cove has not yet been
mapped so managers have not decided on a course of action.
Park managers are asking hikers and others visiting the Park to
report any sightings of hemlocks with the characteristic cotton-swab
deposits on their needles to the Park’s Vegetation Management
Office at (865) 436-1707. Specific locations and close-up photos
are especially helpful in confirming any new infestations. Homeowners
who suspect that hemlocks in their yards or other non-park areas
may be infested can report their sightings to the county agricultural
extension agents.
The
‘last Viking’ dies of brain cancer
Although not directly related to Tennessee history, a death in
the historical community brought to an end an era that literally
changed the way the subject was studied world-wide.
There are few people in our time that have had so much impact
on historical studies in the humanities as archaeologist and explorer
Thor Heyerdahl of Norway. The 88-year-old man, who revolutionized
the way we thought about mankind and our capabilities, passed
away last week in Colla Micheri, Italy from brain cancer. While
his death received little attention in the states, his remarkable
life inspired millions of people around the world.
Heyerdahl was born in Larvik, Norway in 1914 and, from his earliest
days, was an enthusiastic explorer. He graduated from the University
of Oslo with a degree in Zoology and began his career on an expedition
to Polynesia in 1937. He made such an impression on the local
chief that he and his wife were adopted by him and the Norwegian
began an intensive study of the people on the island of Fatuhiva
in the Marquesas.
His studies and growing knowledge of the people soon led him to
lose faith in textbooks on the region and the prevailing theories
of stone-age Asian settlement of the Pacific islands. He became
convinced that settlement had come from South America instead
and his theories went so against the grain of scholars of the
day as they pointed out that South American natives were incapable
of building a craft that could have withstood the ocean’s
currents and violent storms. Heyerdahl abandoned his zoological
studies and took a position at the Museum of British Columbia,
where he published his theory suggesting that Polynesia had been
reached in two waves of immigration from Peru and Easter Island
on balsa rafts.
Heyerdahl’s theory caused immediate controversy, but his
studies were interrupted by W.W.II. The Norwegian patriot returned
to his nation to volunteer for the Free Norwegian Forces, where
he served in a parachute unit in Finland.
After the war, Heyerdahl continued to meet resistance and ridicule
to his theory from scholars. It was then that Heyerdahl built
a replica of the aboriginal raft from balsa wood named the "Kon-Tiki."
In 1947, Heyerdahl and five companions pushed off in the craft
from Callio, Peru and crossed 4,300 miles in 101 days and reached
the Polynesian Raroia Archipelago – proving his theory that
using the natural westerly currents Peruvian ancestors could have
traversed the distance.
It was a thumb in the eye to scholars, who could no longer dismiss
the Heyerdahl theories of how the Pacific islands may have been
settled. The book the Norwegian later wrote of the expedition
sold untold millions of copies and was translated into 64 languages.
Heyerdahl’s "hands on" approach to archaeology
was revolutionary for its day and the Norwegian was later entrusted
by his government to lead an expedition to the Galapagos extending
South American archaeology into the Pacific. He paralleled this
project with working to reinvent and rediscover the "guara"–
a Native American center-board used by the Indians of Peru and
Ecuador for Ocean navigation. Although not used on the "Kon-Tiki
voyage," it further proved that South American Indians had
the ability to navigate on long voyages.
In 1955 to 56, he led major archaeological expeditions to the
mysterious Easter Island where the first sub-surface excavations
of the island were attempted.
At the 10th Pacific Science Congress in 1961, scholars –
citing Thor Heyerdahl’s work in the islands – issued
the unanimous statement supporting the Norwegian’s theories.
One of Heyerdahl’s greatest accomplishment would not come
until 1969 and 70, when he turned his efforts to ancient Egyptian
archaeology. Of interest to him, were the ancient reed boats made
from papyrus. While legendary in their travels up the Nile and
other short-haul situations, scholars again said the crafts were
not seaworthy enough to withstand an open Atlantic Ocean crossing.
In 1969, he purchased 12 tons of papyrus and worked with local
experts to construct an ancient-style vessel, which he launched
from the ancient Phoenician port of Safi, Morocco. Sailing under
the United Nations flag with seven men from seven different countries,
the craft christened "Ra" sailed 2,700 nautical miles
in 56 days until storms forced the craft down one week away from
Barbados.
Not one to give up, the old Norwegian tried again ten months later
with a smaller vessel using the ancient techniques. The vessel
"Ra II" crossed the Atlantic Ocean at its widest part
sailing 3,270 nautical miles from Safi and landed safely at Barbados
in the Caribbean. The scholars’ theory that Mediterranean
vessels built prior to the Europeans could not have crossed the
Atlantic was literally blown out of the water and proved that
commercial trading traffic between the two continents could have
existed thousands of years earlier than previously thought. Later
work on Egyptian mummies would find trace amounts of cocaine in
hair follicles, which also lent credibility to Heyerdahl’s
theories about possible trade routes existing between the two
continents in the Egyptian Dynastic era. He voiced the unspoken
knowledge that a good commercial trader in any era would never
reveal his sources of cargo and the Americas could have been one
of the best kept secrets in the eastern world.
Heyerdahl would receive numerous awards, honors, medals and be
a contributing member to numerous international scientific congresses.
His flamboyant, rough-and-tumble techniques of proving his theories
often angered many scholars who held close to their antiquated
ideas of immigration and sociological evolution. Forcing open
the minds of supposedly open-minded scientists made enemies and
his theories often referred to as "forbidden archaeology"
had its critics.
Upon news of his death, some scholars immediately started pushing
the pre-Heyerdahl theories saying the Norwegian’s work had
fallen out of favor with "respectable science." Evidence
supporting Heyerdahl’s theories, however, continues to be
found, especially in the field of South America as archaeologists
in the 1990s found primitve wall paintings on the continent that
pre-dated the Bering land bridge and conventional theories of
how people first immigrated to the Americas.
Until his death last week, the Norwegian remained active and continued
his work on numerous archaeological projects around the world
as well as serving as an international promoter of cooperation
and understanding between people from around the world focusing
on the commonalties that existed between people of all nations.
While he was regarded as a citizen of the world, the best epitaph
for Thor Heyerdahl came from his own people.
While Heyerdahl didn’t raid villages, loot churches or lay
waste to nations, he did do so to the pillars of science. Like
his ancestors before him, from small crafts on vast, unforgiving
oceans, he raided the antiquated ideas of scholars, looted theories
and laid waste to the world-wide empirical premises that governed
how scholars viewed the abilities of ancient peoples. To Norwegians
and those who knew him and his work, he will be forever remembered
as "the last Viking."
Regional
partnerships credited with
2001 tourism increase
KNOXVILLE – East Tennessee tourism officials announced that
2001 was a banner year for tourism in the region because of its
involvement with the East Tennessee Marketing Partnership.
The Partnership place more than $193,000 in print media to market
East Tennessee as a vacation destination. According to reports,
advertisements were placed in 53 magazines and newspapers with
a circulation of more than 60 million. The advertisements resulted
in an impressive increase in visitor traffic to the partnership’s
web site and in inquiry fulfillment. The partnership’s web
site at www.easttnvisit.com received 178,481 individual user sessions
totaling a 216 percent increase over 2000’s activity of 52,
718. The partnership fulfilled 67,133 requests in 2001 a 100 percent
increase over the 32,988 requests for it’s vacation guide
in 2000. More than 90,000 guides were printed in 2001 to meet
the demand.
A new venture in 2002 will make it even easier for tourists to
come to East Tennessee. The partnership has contracted with All
in One Destination, vacation packages in an effort to get visitors
to stay longer and spend more money during their stay. Providing
organized, easy-to-purchase vacation packages in one way the East
Tennessee Marketing Partnership hopes to increase visitor travel
to the area.
"East Tennessee offers such diversity to travelers and families,"
said Chairman of the Smoky Mountain Tourism and Development Council
Leon Downey. "The partnership allows us to pool our resources
to educate visitors about all the attractions in this part of
the state."
More than 60 communities participate in the partnership, which
is made up of a group of tourism professionals that has actively
promoted the region as tourism destination since 1997.
"The organization has really been an asset to this region,"
said one tourism official. "In the past, individual cities
were on their own in trying to promote tourism and attract people
and the unwritten rule was not to use the money you had budgeted
to do that to promote another attraction, which might sit in an
adjacent city or county. In a region like East Tennessee, it is
foolish to do that when it comes to attracting the numbers of
visitors it takes to make tourism profitable. By working together
through partnerships like this one, a small city like Vonore in
Monroe County can attract tourism day-trippers to Fort Loudoun
or the Sequoyah Museum and the next day they can drive to the
craft and tourist destinations in Cosby, while staying in Gatlinburg
and seeing the Great Smoky Mountains. Everyone one wins through
these kids of promotions."
For more information on East Tennessee vacation packages, officials
say to visit the web site www.easttnvisit.com or call toll free
at 1-866-327-8861.
Dykeman
steps down from state historian post
NASHVILLE – Tennessee State Historian Wilma Dykeman Stokely
announced last week she is stepping down from her post after 22
years.
Tennessee Historical Commission’s Executive Director Herbert
Harper said the Newport native has served the state well and helped
raise awareness of the state’s rich heritage during her time
as state historian.
Wilma Dykeman was first appointed to the post in 1980 by then-governor
Lamar Alexander. Among the many reasons cited for her appointment
was her award-winning work as a writer and contributor to numerous
national publications on Tennessee history.
In addition, she has authored numerous books, lectured at some
of the nation’s most prestigious colleges and universities
and fills 30 to 50 speaking engagements every year. Dykeman-Stokely
is also noted for her work with women’s studies and as a
travel writer. She sits on numerous boards and has been a force
in conservation on both a state and national level.
After more than 20 years as state historian, Dykeman says she
just feels it is time to step down.
"I have really enjoyed what this position has allowed me
to accomplish," said Dykeman from her home in Newport. "It
has taken me across the state speaking and raising awareness of
Tennessee’s rich and diverse heritage. The time has come
for someone else to take over the position. I am still writing
my books and will continue my work."
Dykeman says she hopes whoever is chosen for the position will
continue raising awareness of the state’s heritage. While
a lot has been accomplished over the last 20 years, she is concerned
that many public schools have diminished their programs on Tennessee
history in the last few years and would like to see more importance
placed on the subject and history taught differently than it is
now.
"The biggest problem with the way history is taught is the
emphasis on times and dates," said Dykeman. "The last
part of history is ‘story’ and students should first
learn the stories and then go back and find the dates. It makes
the subject much more meaningful. History tells us who we are
and why. It is a subject that you can’t place enough importance
on in a classroom because it shows us how to interpret the present
and the future."
Dykeman is the first person to hold the honorary position of state
historian. Since it is a gubernatorial appointment, it is officially
separate from the Tennessee Historical Commission.
"Wilma Dykeman has done a lot for Tennessee history,"
said Tennessee Historical Commissioner Executive Director Herbert
Harper. "She has written a lot of books on the subject and
really worked to raise awareness of it across the state."
