If you’re taking a stroll down Gay Street, you might notice something new and different across the street from the Tennessee Theatre. The exterior of the East Tennessee History Center has a new look.
Spunky new banners help explain the happenings inside the building. They’ll encourage you to “take a ride in the past lane.” I won’t spoil the other good-hearted, history-themed puns. Just don’t be caught off-guard by the book-reading silhouettes loitering on the Market Street steps.
Julie Webb
On the south side of the building in the walkway between the History Center and One Center Square, the newly installed Julia Dossett Webb Outdoor Gallery features 16 panels of images from the McClung Historical Collection, flanked by new cafe lights. Much like Julie herself, the addition is bright and cheerful, creating a new, alley-style gallery to downtown Knoxville’s ever-growing labyrinth of charming nooks and crannies.
It is dedicated to the beloved Julie Webb who was a major advocate for literacy and history. She and husband Bob Webb made good work of raising money and awareness for the Knox County Public Library and the History Center. The Julia Dossett Webb Outdoor Gallery memorializes her dedication and contributions to our community on so many levels. We are thrilled to honor Julie in this way.
The current exhibition features images of the Smoky Mountains from the Roger H. Howell Collection dating back to 1935. Howell (1897-1962) was a native of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He came to Knoxville in 1936 to work as an engineering draftsman for the new Tennessee Valley Authority. He and his future wife, Alice Lynn, met hiking with the Smoky Mountains Hiking Club.
Roger Howell was a keen and meticulous photographer, who carefully labeled all of his photographs made on hikes in the Great Smoky Mountains. Alice Lynn Howell donated this collection of black-and-white negatives and Kodachrome slides to the Calvin M. McClung Historical Collection in 1984. The Roger H. Howell Collection contains 1,733 negatives taken from 1935 to 1940 and 400 color slides.
Drop by and take a look. It’s a fun hint at all the good things inside the building!
This project was made possible through the collaborative funding from the Friends of the Knox County Public Library and the state of Tennessee with support from the East Tennessee Historical Society and Avison Young.
Mary Pom Claiborne is assistant director for marketing, communications and development for Knox County Public Library.