Calendar of Events

Popcorn balls and paper chains; Fruits and nuts in their stockings; Carols by the fire; A cedar tree cut in the nearby woods - that's the Christmas most rural Appalachian children knew.

And it's the Christmas we recreate each year throughout the Museum village at our special Christmas in Old Appalachia. Join us as we recreate a meaningful holiday of simpler pleasures and homier joys. Traditional trees and homemade decorations, typical of austere pioneer days, transform the Museum's authentic log buildings; and in the one-room, dirt-floored "Dan'l Boone" cabin, strings of popcorn and cotton bolls circle a dormant tree. Paper chains and other ornaments trim the tree in the Little Tater Valley Schoolhouse.

Sweet gum and sycamore balls are strung throughout the Mark Twain Family Cabin, and a traditional silver star tops a native red cedar Christmas tree in the turn-of-the-century Peters Homestead House. Apples, nuts, homemade toys, and oranges fill stockings hung in the cabins.

Sing Christmas carols along with musicians in the Homestead House, where they'll be singing holiday and traditional songs every day during December. Sit and visit with the kids over some hot chocolate and Christmas cookies from the Museum Restaurant.

Pick up some stocking stuffers in the Museum Gift and Antique Shop, which features everything from hand-crafted ornaments, locally made muscadine and moonshine jellies, and beautiful pottery, along with baskets, quilts, and plenty of Appalachian specialties. Or just come relax in a rocking chair by the cozy, crackling fire in the big stone fireplace.

Museum of Appalachia, 2819 Andersonville Hwy., Clinton, TN 37716 (16 miles north of Knoxville at I-75, exit 122, then one mile east). Open every day except Thanksgiving and Christmas. Information: 865-494-7680, www.museumofappalachia.org

The Market Square Farmers’ Market reprises the popular Holiday Market on the three Saturdays before Christmas and invites shoppers to buy local from area farmers, artisan food vendors, artists and crafters.
Saturdays, December 7, 14, and 21. Farm vendors from 12 – 3 p.m. Food
trucks, artisan food and arts & craft vendors from 12 – 7 p.m.
Where: Market Square, Market Street and Union Avenue

Although the peak growing season is over, regional farmers are offering many root crops, hearty greens, meat, eggs, dairy and other preserved foods —ideal for serving at festive seasonal gatherings or giving to your favorite food lover.

Craft and artisan food vendors will line Market Street, creating a marketplace for handmade items perfect for satisfying recipients on shoppers’ gift lists. Items include jewelry, home décor, bath and body products, hand-blown glass, pottery, turned wood and folk art. And when hunger threatens to distract visitors from the task at hand, Knoxville’s best food trucks will be stationed on Union Avenue to quench cravings.

Visit the Market Square Farmers’ Market information booth to purchase the market’s annual letterpress poster, canvas tote bag and Market Money, which can be used to purchase from any vendor on site. Gift certificates are also available!

The Market Square Holiday Market is presented by Nourish Knoxville, a non-profit organization founded to cultivate and support relationships between farmers, artisanal producers, and the community through outreach, education, and advocacy and to build healthy communities through connections to local food.

For more information, visit http://marketsquarefarmersmarket.org, email
knoxfarmersmarket@gmail.com or call Charlotte Tolley at 865-405-3135.

Farmers' Market season may be over, but that just means that it is time for the Market Square Holiday Market! On Saturdays from December 7 through 21, craft and artisan food vendors will be set up along Market Street to satisfy your shopping needs. Whether you need the perfect wreath or a wonderful holiday gift, the Holiday Market is the place to visit. For more information, visit marketsquarefarmersmarket.org.

This 42nd anniversary production featuring over 80 dancers and the Knoxville Symphony Orchestra will showcase guest artists Kylie Morton as the Sugarplum Fairy and Adam Schiffer as the Cavalier. David Dwyer, television and movie actor, will appear in the story as Herr Drosselmeyer, the toy maker who creates the Nutcracker. This magical production of the Appalachian Ballet Company Nutcracker is filled with lavish sets, scenery, costumes, orchestra, choir and dancers. Come enjoy Knoxville's tradition of 42 years and now also playing in Maryville.

Knoxville Civic Auditorium Saturday, December 7th - 8:00 pm
Sunday December 8th - 2:00 pm AND
Clayton Center for the Arts Saturday, December 14th - 2:00 and 8:00pm

School matinees also available on December 5th and 6th.

Tickets are on sale at the following locations: Appalachian Ballet 865.982.8463
Knoxtickets.com 865.656.4444
The Clayton Center for the Arts 865.981.8590
Advance - $40, $35 & $25 At door - $45, $40 & $30 Student and Senior Discount $5 Off Ask about Group Rates

December 7 & 8, 2013
Old North Knoxville’s 25th Annual Victorian Holiday Home Tour
Historic Old North Knoxville
The Home Tour showcases 10 Victorian and Craftsman style homes open &
decorated for the holidays. Allow a minimum of 2-3 hours to enjoy the event. Parking and continuous bus service is available off Woodland Avenue at the Tennova/St. Mary's Hospital parking lot. Some walking is necessary and some houses have steps.
Dec. 7: 4:00-9:00PM, Dec. 8: 12:30-5:00PM
Admission: Advance $10, at event Adults $15, seniors $10, 12 & under free.
ww.oldnorthknoxville.com, 865 523 4665

Marble Springs State Historic Site will host their annual Candle Making Workshop Saturday, December 7, 2013. This hands on workshop will teach visitors about lighting sources of the 18th and 19th-centuries. Visitors will learn how to make beeswax candles by the open hearth. Reservations are required as space is limited. There will be two sessions available at 10:00am and 12:30pm. Participants are encouraged to bring snacks to share. Hot beverages will be provided. Fee: $10 for cost of materials; Parking is free.

Marble Springs: 1220 West Gov. John Sevier Highway, Knoxville, TN 37920. Information: 865-573-5508, www.marblesprings.net

For the fifth year in a row, Dogwood Arts is asking East Tennessee to dig in and plant dogwood trees as part of a community-wide tree-planting on Saturday, December 7.

Since the Bazillion Blooms tree-planting program was initiated in 2009, Dogwood Arts along with local nursery partners have sold and planted more than 5,000 April-blooming, disease-resistant dogwood trees! This program was established with the goal of restoring the former vitality and beauty of the dogwood tree population in our East Tennessee communities.

Over the years, local dogwood tree populations have dwindled due to age, disease, construction and development, and neglect. The Dogwood Arts' Bazillion Blooms aims to reverse that trend through a multifaceted effort that will involve raising community awareness of care and protection of dogwoods, supporting neighborhoods and individuals who plant trees and spearheading large-scale tree plantings. We want the entire community to participate and get excited about Bazillion Blooms.

Bare-root, disease-resistant Appalachian Snow and Cherokee Brave dogwood trees will be available for purchase from now until mid-November on dogwoodarts.com. Dogwood Arts is offering a special price of $25 each or buy-four-get-one-free at $100 for five (5) dogwood trees through the end of October – exclusive to Dogwood Arts for bare-root dogwood trees. To purchase your trees, visit dogwoodarts.com and click on “Bazillion Blooms.” Trees ordered from Dogwood Arts must be picked up on Saturday, December 7 from 9:00am to Noon at UT Gardens parking lot off of Neyland Drive. If you are unable to pick-up your tree at this time, make arrangements for someone to pick-up for you. Trees will not be distributed at a later date.

Dogwood Arts Festival: 865-637-4561 www.dogwoodarts.com

Make your reservations now for this popular event as this class fills up quickly. Julia has gotten extra help this year so that we can expand our class to include pomanders and swags along with our traditional fresh green wreaths! There will be hot mulled cider and holiday treats to welcome you between 12:30 and 1:00. The class will start promptly at one. As in the past you will be asked to provide your own garden gloves to protect your hands and your own garden shears (household scissors are not usually able to cut the heavy stems). If you have any favorite evergreens or berries from your yard that you want to add to your arrangement you are welcome to bring them. All other supplies are included in the $35 charge for the workshop.

2614 Thorngrove Pike, Knoxville, TN 37914. Information: 865-546-0745, www.ramseyhouse.org

Christmas Internet Festival
Details TBA

East Tennessee Historical Society, 601 S. Gay Street, Knoxville, TN 37902. Museum hours: Monday-Friday: 9AM-4PM; Saturday: 10AM-4PM; Sunday: 1-5PM. Information: 865-215-8824, www.easttnhistory.org

Experience Christmas in the 1800’s with James White’s Fort and enjoy the Treats of the Season. Free Admission, but Donations gladly accepted.

James White's Fort, 205 E. Hill Ave, Knoxville, TN 37915. Information: 865-525-6514, www.jameswhitefort.org

Klezmer
Originating mainly in Eastern Europe, klezmer music is documented in early recordings of Jewish immigrants to America as far back as 1895. After a period of decline, an energetic revival of this music beginning in the 1970s spread from New York, Boston and San Francisco to many other parts of the country, including the Knoxville area. Tennessee Schmaltz develops the tradition of Jewish klezmer in America, adding country and bluegrass sounds to the mix of East European wedding tunes, Yiddish theater and music hall, cantorial singing, and popular traditions of the old and new worlds. Their claim to be the only klezmer group in the entire world with a washtub bass remains unchallenged.

Tickets, if available, will be for sale at the door for $12.

The Laurel Theater is located on the corner of 16th and Laurel Avenue in the historic Fort Sanders neighborhood of Knoxville near the UT campus. For additional information, call (865) 522-5851, e-mail concerts@jubileearts.org, or visit www.jubileearts.org.

Celebrate the Holiday Spirit at the Candoro Marble Building
Share your passion for Candoro's marble heritage while enjoying music, wine, punch, appetizers, holiday cookies, and other seasonal festivities. The marble halls will be decked, and the air will be filled with the joyful sounds of Freddie Brabson who joins us as a special musical guest from the Tennessee Theatre. Meet Bill Snyder, a very special friend and supporter of Candoro Arts & Heritage Center. This is a FREE event, but as always, any donation is very much appreciated. Candoro Marble Arts & Heritage Center, 681 Maryville Pike, Knoxville, TN. Information: 865-577-0078, www.candoromarble.org