A Brown Bag Lecture: “Terra Incognita” on March 12

KNOXVILLE — With meticulous research and writing, Anne Bridges, Ken Wise, and Russell Clements have compiled the most comprehensive bibliography of early sources related to the Great Smoky Mountains, Terra Incognita: An Annotated Bibliography of the Great Smoky Mountains, 1544-1934. In a lecture at noon on Wednesday, March 12, Bridges and Wise will share some of the literary gems from their new book, discussing the effect of written accounts in formulating popular images of Smoky Mountain highlanders and their homeland and in fomenting the organized agitation that led to the formation of Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

Terra Incognita begins with the DeSoto map of 1544 and continues through establishment of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in 1934, covering a wide variety of topics from exploration to science in literature. Each topical section includes an introductory essay, placing the material in context.

Anne Bridges and Ken Wise are co-directors of the Great Smoky Mountains Regional Project and associate professors at the John C. Hodges Library at the University of Tennessee. Russell Clement is retired from Northwestern University where he most recently headed the art collection.

The program is sponsored by the Harriet Z. Albers Memorial Fund and is free and open to the public. The lecture will begin at noon at the East Tennessee History Center, 601 S. Gay Street, Knoxville. Guests are invited to bring a “Brown Bag” lunch and enjoy the lecture. Soft drinks will be available for purchase. For more information on the lecture, exhibitions, or museum hours, call 865-215-8824 or visit the website at www.EastTNHistory.org.

Published March 10, 2014