Special Events Help Mark Smoky Mountains 75th Anniversary
Six Pigeon Forge special events, including Wilderness Wildlife Week in January and Dolly’s Homecoming Parade with Smokies-born entertainer Dolly Parton as grand marshal in May, are on the official calendar of Great Smoky Mountains National Park’s 75th anniversary.The sanctioned events include a quilt festival, a storytelling festival and two events dedicated to traditional music. Each event puts a special focus on the national park that is Pigeon Forge’s next-door neighbor.
Great Smoky Mountains National Park was created in 1934 as the largest piece of wilderness in the eastern U.S. (800,000 acres after all land acquisitions). Today, it attracts more than nine million people a year and is the most visited of all of America’s national parks.
The 75th anniversary calendar includes festivals, events, programs and commemorations both inside the park and in gateway communities such as Pigeon Forge.
The first sanctioned Pigeon Forge event is the Jan. 10-17, 2009, Wilderness Wildlife, an annual salute to the national park that began in 1991. More than 100 volunteer experts offer nature photography shows and classes, lectures and demonstrations relating to the park’s flora, fauna and social history. Hikes in the national park are another major component, and participants in the last Wilderness Wildlife Week tallied almost 5,000 trail miles.
The 75th anniversary calendar includes festivals, events, programs and commemorations both inside the park and in gateway communities such as Pigeon Forge.
The first sanctioned Pigeon Forge event is the Jan. 10-17, 2009, Wilderness Wildlife, an annual salute to the national park that began in 1991. More than 100 volunteer experts offer nature photography shows and classes, lectures and demonstrations relating to the park’s flora, fauna and social history. Hikes in the national park are another major component, and participants in the last Wilderness Wildlife Week tallied almost 5,000 trail miles.
The other sanctioned Pigeon Forge events:
Jan. 13, 2009—3rd Annual AppalachiaFest, a tribute to traditional music featuring Riley Baugus, Tim O’Brien, Dirk Powell and Boogertown Gap.
March 11-15, 2009—15th A Mountain Quiltfest™, featuring quilt shows, quilting classes and related events. Pigeon Forge is sponsoring a $2,500 prize for best presentation of a special Great Smoky Mountains quilt pattern it commissioned. The winning quilt will be donated to the national park.
May 8, 2009—Dolly’s 2009 Homecoming Parade, featuring hometown favorite Dolly Parton as grand marshal along with marching bands, floats, twirlers and other parade units from several states. Dolly, born just outside the national park boundary, is a devoted promoter of the region’s mountain culture and history.
June 4-6, 2009—18th Annual Smoky Mountains Storytelling Festival™, featuring performances by professional storytellers, seminars and the National Youth Storytelling Showcase. This year’s lineup will feature tellers of Appalachian tales.
August 14-15, 2009—5th Annual StringTime in the Smokies™, a celebration of bluegrass and traditional music featuring the SteelDrivers and Michael Cleveland & Flamekeeper.
Jan. 13, 2009—3rd Annual AppalachiaFest, a tribute to traditional music featuring Riley Baugus, Tim O’Brien, Dirk Powell and Boogertown Gap.
March 11-15, 2009—15th A Mountain Quiltfest™, featuring quilt shows, quilting classes and related events. Pigeon Forge is sponsoring a $2,500 prize for best presentation of a special Great Smoky Mountains quilt pattern it commissioned. The winning quilt will be donated to the national park.
May 8, 2009—Dolly’s 2009 Homecoming Parade, featuring hometown favorite Dolly Parton as grand marshal along with marching bands, floats, twirlers and other parade units from several states. Dolly, born just outside the national park boundary, is a devoted promoter of the region’s mountain culture and history.
June 4-6, 2009—18th Annual Smoky Mountains Storytelling Festival™, featuring performances by professional storytellers, seminars and the National Youth Storytelling Showcase. This year’s lineup will feature tellers of Appalachian tales.
August 14-15, 2009—5th Annual StringTime in the Smokies™, a celebration of bluegrass and traditional music featuring the SteelDrivers and Michael Cleveland & Flamekeeper.
“Pigeon Forge’s special events provide great reasons to visit. Each of the six selected offers special connections to the national park we treasure so much,” said Leon Downey, the city’s executive director of tourism.
Information courtesy of Pigeon Forge Department of Tourism
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