To travel centuries into the past, just leave your car in the parking lot.
Join us at the Great Smoky Mountains Heritage Center to celebrate the cultural heritage of the Great Smoky Mountains region. Our galleries, educational programs, special events and festivals focus on the history and diversity of culture the Great Smoky Mountains regions around Townsend and Tuckaleechee Cove.
We seek to preserve, interpret and share the history and culture of the diverse people who have inhabited the Southern Appalachians and offer exhibitions and programs for educational and cultural enrichment.
Permanent Exhibits
The Main Gallery is home to our Native American Collection where you learn what archaeologists discovered about prehistoric life here in Townsend. In Tuckaleechee Cove, one of the largest archaeological dig projects in Tennessee history uncovered over 10,000-year-old pottery, stone tools, and other artifacts!
The main gallery also features other Mountain Culture exhibits on Appalachian music and education. Vintage cars, trucks, fire engines, cannons and more have been donated to the Heritage Center and are on display throughout the facility.
The museum also displays items in temporary exhibits, such as handcrafted quilts, wartime cannons and other items from everyday mountain living. Keep an eye out for these ever-changing exhibits.
The Future
In the mountain community of Townsend, Tennessee, the Great Smoky Mountain Heritage Center is the cultural/historical center of the region and intends to expand on its reputation for innovation, relevance, and quality. Situated adjacent to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the Center is a significant destination attraction for visitors from around the globe. The Center is focused on continuing to grow and actively engage its visitors, all the while curating expanding programs, modern physical assets, and overall greater presence and appeal in the in-person and digital spheres.
The Heritage Center offers exhibits and amenities including museum galleries, an Appalachian Village of 18 historic structures, a 375-seat amphitheater, heirloom gardens, outdoor exhibits, education/research spaces and more. Future planning includes sensory-focused experiences for young people that tie in historic significance with hands-on contact with water, soil, crops, trees, and other building blocks of pre-industrial life in the region.
Moreover, future visitors will encounter renewed thrusts in music, civics, and early firearms as exhibits and galleries expand. Heritage Center curators will continue to focus on the richest experience and engagement possible with visitors young and old. A dynamic master-planning process is underway and is guiding development of programs and infrastructure.
The Center is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, governed by a board of directors, and managed by a respected staff and devoted volunteers. As it grows, the Heritage Center will continue to remain true to the spirit of its host city, Townsend, as the “Quiet Side of the Smokies”. At the same time, the organization embraces the ever-changing expectations of families, tourists, scholars, as well as individuals with regional histories, roots, and traditional approaches. Heritage Center patrons can count on a new learning experience with every visit that respects the “Quiet Side” ethos in the community.
