East Tennessee

KNOXVILLE

Founded in 1786, Knoxville is the third-largest city in the state. Of Tennessee’s four major cities, Knoxville is second oldest only to Nashville. Knoxville also was the state’s first capital when Tennessee was admitted into the Union in 1796. One of Knoxville’s nicknames is The Marble City. In the early 20th century, a number of quarries were active in the city, supplying Tennessee pink marble to much of the country. Knoxville is home to the University of Tennessee’s main campus. The university’s sports teams, called the “Volunteers” or “Vols” are extremely popular in the surrounding area. Knoxville is also the home of the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame, almost entirely thanks to the popularity of Pat Head Summitt and the University of Tennessee women’s basketball team. The sporting events at the University of Tennessee play a big part of living in Knoxville. Whether you are a big orange fan or simply trapped in the traffic patterns casued by big orange fans, you can’t avoid the University of Tennessee and its events. This rapidly growing city is accessible from an international waterway. Three interstates run through the City of Knoxville. Knoxville is also located just outside of the the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. It is predicted that thousands of new houses, condominiums and apartments will be built in the the Knox County region this year alone, and home prices will remain affordable when compared to other overheated metropolitan housing markets.
ECONOMY

Knoxville’s economy is largely supported by the regional location of the main campus of the University of Tennessee, the Tennessee Valley Authority, the Oak Ridge National Laboratory and the National Transportation Research Center. Due to its central location in the eastern half of the United States and proximity to two major Interstate highways, many distribution and warehousing companies operate in and around Knoxville.
CULTURE

Knoxville is home to a rich arts community and hosts many festivals throughout the year. Its contributions to old-time bluegrass and country music are numerous. The city also hosts several art festivals, including the 17-day Dogwood Arts Festival in April, which features art shows, craft fairs, food and live music. Autumn on the Square showcases national and local artists in outdoor concert series at historic Market Square, which has been revitalized with specialty shops and residences. Every Labor Day brings Boomsday, the largest Labor Day fireworks display in the United States, to the banks of the Tennessee River between the University of Tennessee football stadium and downtown.
SPORTS

The Volunteers won the 1998 NCAA Division IA National Championship in football. The Volunteers are coached by Phillip Fulmer and play at Neyland Stadium, which averages over 105,000 fans per game. The men’s basketball program is headed by Bruce Pearl. Through his guidance, the men’s program has been revitalized. Tennessee produces the strongest women’s basketball teams at the college level, the Lady Volunteers. Pat Summitt, the Lady Vols’ head basketball coach, is the all-time winningest basketball coach in NCAA history, having won over 900 games as of 2006. The University of Tennessee baseball team has reached the NCAA College World Series four times (1951, 1995, 2001 and 2005). In recent years the women’s softball team has gained notoriety, reaching the Women’s College World Series 3 times in 4 years. UT’s best-known athletic facility by far is Neyland Stadium, home to the football team, which seats over 107,000 people and is one of the country’s largest facilities of its type. Other area sports include the Knoxville Noise(American Basketball Association), United Wrestling Association, Knoxville Ice Bears(Southern Professional Hockey League), Tennessee Smokies(Southern League, Double-A affiliate of the Chicago Cubs), and the Knoxville Rugby Club(Division II member of the South Territory, USA Rugby Union).
SITES OF INTEREST

Bijou Theatre
Bleak House
Blount Mansion
Civic Coliseum
Fort Dickerson
Frank H. McClung Museum
Haley Heritage Square
James White’s Fort
Knoxville Botanical Gardens and Arboretum
Knoxville Greenways
Knoxville Police Museum
Knoxville Museum of Art
Knoxville Zoo
Knoxville Convention Center
Mabry-Hazen House
Governor John Sevier Historic Site – Marble Springs
Market Square
Museum of East Tennessee History
Neyland Stadium
Old City
Ramsey House
Tennessee Theatre
Volunteer Landing
Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame
World’s Fair Park
National Register of Historic Places, Knox County, Tennessee

AREA EVENTS

Boomsday
Corvette Expo
Dogwood Arts Festival
Destination Imagination Global Finals
Great Knoxville Rubber Duck Race
GreekFest
Honda Hoot
Knoxville Brewers’ Jam
Knoxville Marathon
Knoxville Symphony Orchestra
Kuumba Festival
Market Square Farmers’ Market
Rossini Festival
Ska Weekend
Sundown in the City
Vestival

No related posts.

Comments are closed.