Our Museum Collection
The Museum Collection of the East Tennessee Historical Society consists of more than 16,000 artifacts and provides a foundation for fulfilling ETHS’s mission to preserve, interpret, and promote the history of East Tennessee’s 35 counties.
East Tennessee’s Museum Collection
The Museum Collection is primarily comprised of objects of material culture that were either made or used in the region or somehow illustrate East Tennessee life and experience in a significant way. A concerted effort is made to represent people of varied backgrounds and from many time periods through the collection.
Particular strengths of the Museum Collection include
- Decorative arts, especially furniture and paintings
- Textiles, especially quilts
- Civil War items, both from Union and Confederate armies, representing the “divided loyalties” so predominate in East Tennessee
Baseball in Tennessee
Creche
Edward S. Albers Jr. Collection
ETHS Collection
Jim Gray Collection
Linda Claussen and the Thursday Bee Quilt Collection
Quilts and Coverlets
Russell Briscoe
They Sang What They Lived
Tourism
WNOX
All Entries
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Donate to the Collections
Historical objects are powerful connectors to the past. As educational tools from which we can learn about individuals and eras, these artifacts are a valuable historical resources.
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Artifact Acquisition Fund
Artifacts transcend time to communicate the stories of the past. These “messengers from the past” place us in the presence of history. Help fund our next acquisition.
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Artifact Conservation Fund
In some cases, objects are in need of conservation work. Conservation work can be a very expensive cost and in many cases one that the museum cannot afford. Fund our next conservation project.