Every cell in your body has a set of chemical strings called DNA. They contain DNA inherited from many of the ancestors in your family tree. Modern technology permits us to find the portions given to you by your forebears. By correlating this information with your genealogical research, you can trace back to most, if not all, of your ancestors...
Lectures
Love history and want to learn more? Explore a variety of historical topics as authors, scholars, and local historians present the latest research and books, as well as new looks at old subjects. Lectures are open to the public and are free of charge unless otherwise stated.
Previous Lectures
-
@ East Tennessee History CenterMarch 25, 2017 - 9:00am to March 26, 2017 - 11:45am
-
@ East Tennessee History CenterMarch 23, 2017 - 3:00pm to March 24, 2017 - 3:45pm
East Tennessee native and best-selling author Amy Greene will deliver the annual Wilma Dykeman Stokely Memorial Lecture. Greene is the author of Long Man and Bloodroot, both set regionally. The Atlantic Constitution describes her writing as “Luminous . . . . In language as unadorned and lovely as a country quilt,...
-
@ East Tennessee History CenterMarch 24, 2017 - 2:30pm to 3:30pm
From a colorful youth growing up in the governor’s mansion to a distinguished military career and eight terms as a United States Congressman, Bob Clement, son of former Tennessee Governor Frank Clement, has enjoyed a firsthand look at the politics of world events in the second half of the twentieth century. In his new book, Presidents,...
-
@ East Tennessee History CenterMarch 15, 2017 - 8:00am to March 16, 2017 - 8:45am
A lawyer, politician, civil rights advocate, and gubernatorial candidate, William Yardley achieved a number of “firsts” at a time when it was unacceptable for an African American to do so. He was born in Knoxville to an Irish mother and an African American father and was befriended and mentored by the Yardleys, a prominent white family from...
-
@ East Tennessee History CenterMarch 1, 2017 - 7:00am to March 2, 2017 - 7:45am
In 1956, twelve courageous young students made history when they walked into Clinton High School, making it the first public high school in the Southeast to desegregate. The community’s initially constructive approach was marred by the violence and strife incited by outside agitators, a storm quelled only by the calling of the National Guard....
-
@ East Tennessee History CenterDecember 7, 2016 - 7:00am to December 8, 2016 - 5:45pm
"From the Archives: Finding East Tennessee’s Marble Story" is the subject of a lecture to be presented by Dr. Susan W. Knowles, Wednesday, December 7, at the East Tennessee History Center.
Her interest piqued by Tennessee marble she saw in the United States Capitol, Knowles set out to learn more about marble from the East Tennessee...
-
@ East Tennessee History CenterNovember 9, 2016 - 7:00am to November 10, 2016 - 6:45am
Kiffin Rockwell, a Newport, TN native, volunteered for the French Foreign Legion at the outbreak of World War I and became the first American pilot to shoot down enemy aircraft during the war. He was awarded the Medaile militaire and the Croiz de gueerre for these valiant efforts. Rockwell died in combat in 1916 when his plane was shot down,...
-
@ East Tennessee History CenterNovember 6, 2016 - 9:30am to 11:30am
Knoxville’s Mid-Day Merry-Go-Round and its cast of musicians are the subject of a lecture and book signing by Ruth B. White at the East Tennessee History Center, November 6. The occasion celebrates the launch of White’s new book, Knoxville’s ‘Merry-Go-Round,’ Ciderville, and the East Tennessee Music Scene.
The noonday radio show...
