thedailytimes.com : Your 24/7 news source

NORRIS -- In crisp dress uniforms and white gloves, the Tennessee Army National Guard Honor Guard will open the Museum of Appalachia's July 4th celebration bright and early at 10 a.m. with the presentation of our nation's flag.

Then the spectacle everyone comes to see: the ever-dramatic anvil shoot. Three times during the day, gunpowder is packed under the anvil and ignited. The anvil bursts from a cloud of smoke, sometimes catapulted as high as the treetops. The earth literally shakes, and the deafening boom, it is said, can be heard as far as 15 miles away.

This early form of fireworks has been re-enacted each July 4 for some 17 years at the Museum. Historical accounts indicate that anvil shooting was used to celebrate the nation's independence, Christmas, and Davy Crockett's election to the U.S. Congress. Some even say it can be traced to Biblical times. A few years ago, two men, each more than 100 years old, watched the Museum's anvil shoot and recalled this tradition from their early childhood.

At the Museum on July 4, the anvil shoot will take place at 10 a.m., noon, and 3 p.m. Festivities run from 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., with special music, demonstrations of pioneer skills, patriotic ceremonies, and summertime fare.

True to the day's independence theme, patriotic ceremonies will include a bell-ringing ceremony at 2 p.m. in conjunction with the National bell ringing ceremony, and the symbolic raising of the Liberty Pole -- the colonists' way of showing dissatisfaction with British rule.

Bands playing for the event include Dixie Gray, Early Bird Special, the Stewart Family Band, Museum of Appalachia Band, and Mountain Jam. The Knoxville Area Dulcimer Club will perform in the Hall of Fame, and old-time musicians will play informally for visitors at the Peters Homestead House.

An old-time "brush arbor" will host church services at 10:30 a.m. and 1 p.m., with hymn singing during the day.

The old-time circular sawmill will be in operation, and Ruby Patterson will play the role of Betsy Ross sewing our nation's first flag. Carmen Bonnell will be spinning wool into yarn, and Bill Alexander will make his bark berry baskets. Museum staff will split cedar rails for fences, and blacksmith Jack Bligh will forge iron in the Museum's Blacksmith Shop.

Tasty summertime treats will be available, including Tennessee barbecue, roasted corn, fried green tomatoes, sweet potato chips, home-made ice cream, sassafras tea, freshly squeezed lemonade, and more.

Special July 4th activities are included with regular admission; plenty of free parking is available. Museum members are admitted free with membership card.

The Museum is open from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. July 4th visitors may tour the extensive village-farm complex with dozens of historic log structures, display buildings containing tens of thousands of authentic Appalachian artifacts, gardens surrounded by split rail fences, and a variety of farm animals in a traditional farm setting. The Hall of Fame offers a portrait of the Appalachian people, both famous and not-so-famous--and in air-conditioned comfort.

The museum is a non-profit corporation and an affiliate of the Smithsonian Institution. Its mission is to preserve the artifacts and culture of an earlier time for the benefit of future generations; and to instill in the community--regionally, nationally, and internationally--a greater knowledge of and appreciation for the Appalachian heritage.

The museum is located 16 miles north of Knoxville, at I-75, exit 122, then one mile east. For admission prices or information on special events, call 865-494-7680 or visit the Museum's web site at www.museumofappalachia.org.