Imagine a log cabin perched on the mountainside with a lazy swirl of smoke exiting the chimney. Add the aroma from a hot cup of apple cider and a day of hiking in nature’s winter solitude, and you have winter in the Great Smoky Mountains.
So, dust off the suitcases, find the mittens and toboggans, and you will be ready to enjoy the mountains.
If you’d like to enjoy nature a little less and thrill rides, gospel music and family entertainment more, then spending time in Pigeon Forge, Tenn., is for you.
Nestled at the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the once sleepy town of Pigeon Forge is now the seventh most popular destination in the United States and is visited by more than 11 million people each year.
Anchored by Dolly Parton’s Dollywood theme park, the town has more than 15 music production theaters combined with hundreds of outlet and specialty shops.
Located inside Dollywood theme park, the self-guided tour of the Southern Gospel Music Hall of Fame and Museum will take visitors on a nostalgic journey back to the Golden Age of quartets and southern gospel music. Operated by the Southern Gospel Music Association (SGMA), the museum plays a variety of music around every corner where visitors enjoy reminiscing about their favorite inspirational or “toe-tapping” songs.
Preserving history
Kim Ownby, director of the museum, said, “The purpose of the SGMA is to build and maintain the museum for the historic preservation of the accomplishment of our music, its people and its ministry. The most popular item in the museum is the original Blackwood Brothers’ bus, where visitors can actually tour the inside of the coach.”
Another favorite is the animatronics (animated wax figures) where visitors can sit on old-fashioned church pews to view the performance. The life-size animatronics demonstrate the shaped note concept on a variety of gospel favorites. The lifelike figures also include a short singing lesson.
Linda Scott of Morristown, Tenn., said, “Visiting the museum brought back so many good memories. I also enjoyed listening to the songs from different eras of gospel music.” There are also film clips from the all-night singings that began in the late 1930s. The Stamps-Baxter Music School added the event as a conclusion of the school’s annual summer program. An acoustic recording booth is also available where visitors can sing and record gospel songs with a background tape.
The Hall of Fame inductees range from Jake Hess to Dottie Rambo. The handwritten lyrics of “Till the Storm Passes By,” by Mosie Lister are also on display. And the display on the late Howard and Vestal Goodman comes complete with Vestal’s large boutique hair dryer from the 1960s. The retail shop has vintage gospel CDs and cassettes that are hard to find anywhere else.
Southern Gospel Jubilee
Martha Winstead, the gift shop manager, said, “The museum receives the largest number of visitors during Dollywood’s Harvest Celebration and Southern Gospel Jubilee Sept. 24–Oct. 30. A lot of people plan their vacations around the Southern Gospel Jubilee. There are performances by more than 30 popular gospel groups and it is also the largest southern gospel event in the country.”
Dolly Parton said she invited the Southern Gospel Music Hall of Fame and Museum to Dollywood because of her upbringing. “I grew up very religious; my grandpa was a preacher and I love to sing gospel music,” she said. “We have always had a lot of gospel music at the park before we actually had the museum.
“We really thought how honored we would be to have the museum here. So we’re just very proud of that,” she said.
For more information on the Hall of Fame and museum, call 865-908-4040 or visit www.sgma.org.
The children will want to rush to the park’s newest $7 million thrill ride, the Thunderhead roller coaster. Thunderhead features a 3,230-foot long ride with a drop of 100 feet and a maximum speed of 55 miles per hour.
Another popular ride is the Dollywood Express, an authentic coal-fired steam train. The Eagle Mountain Sanctuary, a 30,000 square foot aviary that houses the country’s largest presentation of non-releasable bald eagles, is also popular.
The Smoky Mountain Christmas festivities at Dollywood Nov. 6–Dec. 30 are also a favorite for children during the holiday season.
The SMGA Hall of Fame and Museum and Dollywood have the same operating hours and both are closed in January, February and March. For Dollywood seasonal hours of operation from October through December, call 865-428-9488 or visit www.dollywood.com.
Pigeon Forge is also known for the variety of family musical theaters. The Blackwood Brothers Breakfast & Show features the gospel music legends at the Black Bear Jamboree Theater.
For information call 1-800-985-5494. The group Integrity, also delights audiences with outstanding gospel harmonies at the Louise Mandrell Theater. For information call 1-800-768-1170.
Historic landmark
Do not leave Pigeon Forge without stopping by the Old Mill, the most photographed mill in the country, where more than 1 million visitors stop by each year.
The Little Pigeon River has been faithfully turning the mill wheel since 1830. Today visitors can browse through memorabilia and purchase a bag of freshly ground meal or flour.
The Old Mill Restaurant uses many of the products made at the mill in their famous southern recipes. Visit www.old-mill.com.
For more information, call the Pigeon Forge Department of Tourism 1-800-251-9100 or visit www.mypigeonforge.com.
Share with others: