East Tennessee History Center

First through train from Louisville, KY, to Knoxville, TN, Southern Railway, June 3, 1883.

From the Knoxville City Tribune, June 8, 1883: "Engine 36." We saw yesterday at McCrary & Branson's the first finished photograph of the engine and first through train from Louisville which arrived in Knoxville Monday. It is a splendid photograph 14 by 22 inches and is an excellent view of the engine with all its decorations, the crowd surrounding it and the throng on the bridge above. The view was taken by Mr. McCrary himself."

This copy of that photograph was made March 25, 1922 by Thompson Brothers, one of thousands of historic images available to view on the online McClung Historical Collection.

Fifth Annual Drummers picnic program, Knoxville, Tennessee, May 8, 1890. Cover with illustrations of life on the road and the office for a traveling salesman.

The picnic was held at Elmwood Park for the benefit of Margaret McClung Industrial Home and the St. John's Orphanage.

The Museum's newest exhibition, Lines Were Drawn | ᏚᏂᏍᏓᏅᏅᏁᎯ (Du Ni Sda Nv Nv Ne Hi): The Treaty of Holston and Its Legacy, opens today, June 1! Come learn about this important moment in American history.

Museum admission is FREE for 250 days in honor of the 250th Anniversary of the United States.

Pages from the Prospectus of the East Tennessee Land Company pamphlet.

The East Tennessee Land Company was chartered May 25, 1889. Property was purchased around what is now the town of Harriman with the plan to create a town based on prohibitionist principles and also utilize the natural resources of the area to develop subsidiary companies to attract industry. The initial land auction held in February 1890 was highly successful, but by November 1893 the East Tennessee Land Company was forced into bankruptcy.

View the pamphlet in its entirety in the online Calvin M. McClung Historical Collection.

A portrait of Knoxville Journal employees, May 1937. Photo by Thompson Brothers. From the online Calvin M. McClung Historical Collection.

Pages from a pamphlet promoting the new YMCA building in downtown Knoxville (corner of Clinch Ave and Locust St). The building was designed by Barber & McMurry architecture firm and completed in 1929. It's the 3rd oldest YMCA building in the U.S., and it's listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places.