This story initially appeared within the Winter 25 print version of the Tennessee State Museum Quarterly Newsletter.
By Miranda Fraley Rhodes, Ph.D.
“I’m only a Tennessee nation boy who occurred to get into this sport,” remarked Montgomery County, Tennessee native Philip Van Horn Weems in 1939. Orphaned as a toddler, he attended the U.S. Naval Academy, graduating in 1912. After serving in World Conflict I, he grew to become well-known for his writings and innovations associated to aerial navigation. Throughout World Conflict II, he returned from retirement to energetic responsibility, commanding convoys of ships carrying troops and important provides throughout the Atlantic. By the Nineteen Sixties, he was working with NASA on area navigation.
Weems is likely one of the exceptional Tennesseans featured within the Tennessee State Museum’s new exhibition, Tennessee Voices, American Tales, a part of our commemoration of the 250th anniversary of the USA. Scheduled to open in January 2026, the present explores how particular person Tennesseans have linked with and contributed to the creation and improvement of the nation.
Clothes design is a crucial a part of Choctaw tradition. Lacie Thompson Bell realized this artform from her mom Annie Thompson. Gown, by Lacie Thompson Bell, 2003, Tennessee Arts Fee Assortment, 2004.50.11.1 and .2
The exhibition, which spans from the 1760s to the current, begins with the story of Ostenaco, a Cherokee navy and diplomatic chief born in Tellico whose experiences replicate the advanced decisions Indigenous peoples confronted in the course of the Revolutionary Conflict period; and ends with the artworks and cultural traditions of the Bell Household, members of the present Choctaw neighborhood positioned in Henning, Tennessee. We’re grateful for the help of representatives from the Japanese Band of Cherokee Indians and the Choctaw neighborhood of Henning for collaborating with Museum workers on this undertaking.
The American Revolution encompasses each the nation’s formative battle with Nice Britain and the continuing means of absolutely realizing the nation’s foundational beliefs. Tennessee Voices, American Tales options three areas centered on key ideas from the preamble to the USA Structure: “We the Folks,” “A Extra Good Union,” and “The Blessings of Liberty.”
Every space contains artifacts and tales associated to distinctive individuals who helped to construct Tennessee and the USA. A few of these people are well-known; others will not be. Nevertheless, every has made their very own contributions to our shared previous.
WE THE PEOPLE
Within the “We the Folks” space, guests discover how aspirations of freedom and self-governance ignited and fueled the American Revolution. Tennesseans from numerous backgrounds have contributed to the nation’s steady pursuit of those beliefs.
Tennessee State Flag, flown on Worldwide Area Station by astronaut Barry Wilmore, 2024 to 2025, 2025.11
This exhibition blends new acquisitions with cherished gadgets preserved by the Museum for a few years. In 2024, the Museum acquired a quilt that based on household historical past was made by early settler Charlotte Robertson. This quilt can be proven for the primary time, alongside a costume she wore that has been within the Museum’s care for the reason that Forties. This part additionally features a not too long ago donated architectural piece from the 1804 Lincoln County residence of Joseph Greer, often known as the Battle of Kings Mountain Messenger, in addition to an overcoat worn by Greer. The coat was final displayed when the Museum was positioned within the Conflict Memorial Constructing. It has since undergone conservation remedy.
Carte de visite, Fisk Jubilee Singers, together with Ella Sheppard, sixth from left, 1871 to 1872, 2020.46.3.2
Tennesseans have continued to exemplify the pursuit of freedom. Born enslaved in Nashville, Ella Sheppard was a pacesetter within the unique Fisk Jubilee Singers, the primary Tennessee musicians to realize worldwide fame. Initially from Mount Juliet, Barry Wilmore had a distinguished profession as a naval aviator earlier than becoming a member of NASA as an astronaut. Most not too long ago, Wilmore returned to Earth on March 18, 2025, after spending 286 days in area.
A MORE PERFECT UNION
The “A Extra Good Union” part focuses on how Tennesseans have been on the epicenter of labor crucial to enhance and in the end maintain the nation. They’ve served as public officers, risked and typically sacrificed their lives as troopers, and expanded whose voices are acknowledged and revered in public life. In their very own methods, these people have helped their communities and the nation transfer ahead.
John Sevier, by Charles Willson Peale, 1791, Tennessee Historic Society Assortment, 1.849
John Sevier led Patriot forces to victory on the Battle of Kings Mountain in 1780. When Tennessee achieved statehood, he was elected governor. Addressing the Tennessee Common Meeting in 1797, Sevier said “The happiest reward I might probably obtain for previous companies, consists within the public approbation….”
Charles Woodville Omohundro’s World Conflict I Uniform, by Kahn Tailoring Firm, about 1917, 94.45A and B
Charles Woodville Omohundro had a prolonged and various profession in public service. Throughout World Conflict I, he served in the USA Military’s 306th Army Police Regiment. He later labored for the Nashville Fireplace Division and Tennessee Freeway Division. Throughout World Conflict II, Omohundro was “engaged in protection work at Oak Ridge.”
BLESSINGS OF LIBERTY
In “The Blessings of Liberty” zone, friends will find out about how the sacrifice and arduous work of generations of individuals have created a nation by which artists, inventors, and entrepreneurs can obtain nice issues. They enrich the lives of individuals of their hometowns, throughout the state, and all through the nation. Tennesseans have used their freedoms to provide stunning and helpful objects and to fill the hearts of individuals all through the world with music.
Bedspread, by Margaret Wooden Dodge and John Wooden Dodge, 1860, The James Leonard Mee Household, 2019.58.1
Quilt, by Rebecah Foster, 1808, 78.92.1
Rebecah Foster expressed her political sentiments in a quilt that includes a placing picture of an American eagle with seventeen stars, the variety of states in 1808. Margaret Wooden Dodge and her son, painter John Wooden Dodge, collaborated in making a patriotic bedspread in 1860 on the eve of the Civil Conflict.
Gown, by Ellen J. Weed Dennis, Eighties, 2009.8.1.1 and .2
Ellen Dennis had a exceptional profession as a dressmaker in Nashville from the 1870s into the 1910s. A couple of century later, Sia Moua was a small enterprise proprietor and textile artist based mostly in East Tennessee.
Efficiency Costume, by Robért Behar, worn by Dolly Parton, 1998, 2024.29.1-.3
Dolly Parton is a music legend. Along with sharing her abilities as a songwriter and singer, she is a profitable entrepreneur and philanthropist who has made essential contributions to the state’s tradition and economic system.
A DIFFICULT TASK
Selecting which tales to incorporate within the exhibition was a troublesome process. The people featured are only some amongst many within the generations of Tennesseans who’ve constructed our state. When exploring these tales and artifacts, we hope guests will take into consideration the many individuals from the state’s historical past who’ve helped to make Tennessee and the USA higher locations.
The exhibition encourages guests to replicate on how their tales will add to the continuing means of the American Revolution. As Tennesseans method the long run, the experiences of people from the state’s previous and current inform and encourage.
How will you make historical past?
Miranda Fraley Rhodes, Ph.D. is the Assistant Chief Curator of the Tennessee State Museum
