Q: What is a community jam session?

Community jam sessions are a way for musicians of all levels to come together, connect and create music in a casual and supportive environment. Jam sessions bring musicians from all walks of life together. This session is open for anyone who wants to participate, whether they are a seasoned musician or a beginner. It’s an opportunity for people to share their passion for music and engage in a collective musical experience. Unlike more formal performances or rehearsals, community jam sessions have a laid-back atmosphere.

Mulberry Jam, an acoustic old-time string band based in the Memphis area, will lead the community jam session.  Mulberry Jam will perform in The Settlement Pavilion prior to the jam session at 12:30 p.m. Find the full schedule of events for the David Crockett Birthday Celebration here.

Q: How do I know if I am ready for a community jam session?

If you have a basic understanding of your instrument and a desire to collaborate and learn from others, you’re ready.

Q: Are there any specific rules or etiquette I should follow during the jam session?

 Discovery Park’s community jam session will be informal and laid-back, but it is still essential to be respectful and considerate while others are playing. Listen attentively to other musicians and be responsive to their cues and give space for everyone to take turns and share the spotlight.

 Q: What is the purpose of a community jam session?

A jam session provides a collaborative environment for musicians to improvise and play music together.

Q: How do beginners prepare for their first jam session?

Beginners can prepare for their first jam session by choosing a few songs to play and having a good understanding of the songs they will perform.

Q: How do I register to participate in Discovery Park’s community jam session on Saturday, August 12?

 Those participating in Discovery Park’s jam session can register by arriving at Discovery Park by 1:30 p.m. with an acoustic instrument. All participants must enter through the main entrance of the Discovery Center. Each participant with a string instrument receives free admission. The jam session will take place in the Settlement Pavilion on the north side of Heritage park.

This presentation is funded in part by a grant from South Arts in partnership with the National Endowment of the Arts and the Tennessee Arts Commission.

Obion County, Tennessee has been selected to host the 2024 Alabama-Mississippi-Tennessee Rural Tourism Conference to be held October 21-23, 2024. Discovery Park of America will serve as the venue for the conference’s presentations, educational sessions and banquet.

This is the first time the county has been selected to host this annual event and the third time for the conference to be held in Tennessee. The Northwest Tennessee county was selected after a review process that included presentations in Cookeville, Tennessee by several other rural counties with a strong presence of tourism-related businesses and organizations.

In addition to Discovery Park, the Obion County proposal, created and presented by the Obion County Tourism committee, includes opportunities for attendees to experience Reelfoot Lake, White Squirrel Winery, Union City’s downtown, The Pavilion at Houser Creek Crossing and more.

The Alabama-Mississippi-Tennessee Rural Tourism Conference takes place in a different rural community in Alabama, Mississippi or Tennessee each year. Attending will be around 250 individuals who work in tourism or economic development, members of city councils, elected officials or those who want to network with professionals in the tourism industry. Attendees experience educational sessions that allow them to learn ways to grow tourism in rural communities.

“I join our entire tourism community here in Obion County with excitement as we prepare to host this conference and roll out the red carpet,” said Steve Carr, Obion County, Tennessee Mayor. “From eagles to white squirrels and sunken cypress trees to dinosaurs, we have a lot to share, and I know those attending this conference are going to be impressed with their experience here in Obion County.”

Union City, Tenn. (July 13, 2023) – Discovery Park of America has announced details for the return of the popular Antique Tractor Show for the seventh year. The event is sponsored by First Choice Farm and Lawn – Kubota and will be held on Friday, August 4 and Saturday, August 5, 2023 at Discovery Park of America.

New this year will be a live tractor auction on Saturday, August 5 at 1 p.m. Discovery Park will be auctioning off two tractors from its collection: 1940 Allis-Chalmers C and 1956 Farmall 350. The minimum bid on each is $1,000.

“Each year we are amazed at the number of incredible tractors that show up for our tractor show,” said Karl Johnson, a director at the park and one of the organizers of the event. “It’s also one of our more popular events, and attendance has grown each year as people tell their friends and family members about it.”

Organizers worked with regional tractor clubs on some of the details of the event.

Children are invited to visit the Simmons Bank Ag Center anytime between the hours of 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. to play on the pedal tractors sponsored by Tennessee Farm Bureau.

Sponsor First Choice Farm and Law will showcase a variety of the latest tractors and mowers in front of the Simmons Bank Ag Center.

The popular tractor parade will take place on Saturday, August 5 at 2 p.m. when the tractors participating in the show parade around Discovery Park. The Antique Tractor Show will end following the parade, but Discovery Park will remain open for guests to continue exploring the museum and heritage park until 5 p.m.

Anyone who has an antique tractor they would like to display should take it to Discovery Park on Thursday, August 3 from 3 to 6 p.m., Friday, August 4 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. or Saturday, August 5 from 8 a.m. until 12 p.m. to have it displayed in the show. Everyone who enters a tractor for display will also receive two free passes to Discovery Park.

(Union City, Tenn.)— Discovery Park of America will mark David Crockett’s birthday on Saturday, Aug. 12, 2023 with interactive activities, live demonstrations and a community jam session led by Mulberry Jam, a five-piece band that plays period songs of the past with traditional instruments and arrangements of the string dance performers of the 19th and early 20th centuries.

All local musicians are invited to participate in the one-hour jam session that will take place in the Settlement Pavilion on the Northside of Discovery Park. Mulberry Jam will perform a concert for all guests to enjoy at 12:30 p.m. and the jam session will follow at 2 p.m. All participants are encouraged to bring their own instruments.

“Discovery Park is the perfect place for local musicians to come together and share their talents and passion for music,” said Dr. Emalee Buttrey, Discovery Park’s director of education. “We welcome anyone to come and join us, whether you are a novice, a seasoned jammer or if you just want to come and listen.”

Crockett was a celebrated folk hero, frontiersman and politician who made his home in Northwest Tennessee from 1822 until he departed for the Alamo in 1835. Crockett, known for his marksmanship, was one of the earliest non-Native American hunters around nearby Reelfoot Lake. A passionate advocate for the earliest settlers of West Tennessee, he served in the state legislature from 1821-24, then as a member of Congress representing West Tennessee counties in the U. S. House of Representatives from 1827-31 and 1833-35.

In addition to the community jam session, other activities during Crockett’s birthday celebration include:

• Native American skills, crafts and cooking education with homemade fry bread available for purchase
•  Operation of the Brewer-Austin Gristmill
•  Birds of Prey program presented by Reelfoot Lake State Park
• The Family Community Education Crystal Club of the UT/TSU Extension Program demonstrating textile arts and sewing
• Presentation on the history of fur trapping by Seavers Beavers
• Outdoor Dutch oven cooking demonstrations
• Woodworking Demonstrations
• Presentations on wildlife of West Tennessee during Crockett’s time in the region
• Living historians demonstrating traditional skills and crafts including candle and soap making and spinning and weaving
• Reelfoot Area Flintknappers to demonstrate flintkapping process
• Operation of the Forge

Find the full schedule of events at DiscoveryParkofAmerica.com/DavidCrocket2023.

This presentation is funded in part by a grant from South Arts in partnership with the National Endowment of the Arts and the Tennessee Arts Commission.

(Union City, Tennessee, June 22, 2023) — Discovery Park of America’s Southern Artist Showcase featuring Kimberly Greene Bugg is open.

The Southern Artist Showcase features southern painters, photographers, sculptors and other fine artists. Rotating frequently to expose guests to the widest variety of art possible, shows feature works produced in a variety of mediums. The current exhibition includes a collection of more than twenty pieces created by Bugg, including beadwork, corn husk dolls and other traditional indigenous artwork she and her husband have loaned the museum.

Bugg is an award-winning artist and member of the Oneida Nation on the Six Nations Reserve in Ontario, Canada. She is now a resident of Obion County. Bugg began dancing and competing in Pow Wows in 1994 as a Southern Traditional Buckskin dancer, which is a traditional dance among the southern nations. In 1997, she was selected as the Memphis Powwow Princess.

Bugg and her husband are leading the planning team responsible for the inaugural Northwest Tennessee Native American Educational Powwow to be held at Discovery Park of America on October 27-29, 2023. The event will include competitions and displays of Indigenous storytelling, drumming, singing and competition dancing, as well as more than 15 vendors selling authentic Native American art, jewelry and home goods. The event will also include a concert by popular Native American performer Arvel Bird, an award-winning recording and touring artist, violinist, composer and songwriter.

The exhibit featuring Bugg’s art includes corn husk dolls, two paintings, a gourd with an exterior burn design and many examples of Kim’s handcrafted beadwork. The beadwork collection includes a backpack, a women’s breastplate, a necklace, moccasins, a leather shirt, a stuffed bear wearing dancer regalia, a northern traditional cape, purses, a buffalo fur bag and more.

“At Discovery Park, we strive to share the visual arts with our guests and to encourage public interest in the cultural heritage of Tennessee,” said Jennifer Wildes, senior collections and exhibits director for Discovery Park. “Kim’s work certainly allows us to do that, and I look forward to sharing this special exhibit with our guests as we plan for a Native American Educational Pow Wow at Discovery Park this coming October.”

The exhibit and Powwow are intended to enhance Discovery Park’s permanent Native Americans Gallery that takes guests from the ancient past, through European contact and up to today. There are more than 4,800 artifacts on display in the gallery, including 4,652 arrowheads and spear points mounted to the walls. A Woolly Mammoth on display in the exhibit is about 12,000 years old and was found in 2000 on the Istra riverbank in Russia and took three years to excavate.

Southern Artist Showcase: Kimberly Greene Bugg will be on display at Discovery Park until October 29, 2023.

(Union City, Tennessee, June 12, 2023) — Discovery Park of America will memorialize musician Steve Short of Milan, Tennessee at Rhythm on the Rails on Friday, June 16, 2023 with the dedication of a bench. Short, who died earlier this year, was a favorite of Discovery Park founder Robert Kirkland and a frequent performer at the park.

The bench will be located near the Total Tech Solutions Stage.

“Everyone knows Steve through his dedication and passionate love of music. Over his career, he performed with numerous bands, and hundreds of musicians,” said Keith Brown, one of Short’s frequent bandmates. “He spent hours practicing and planning the music so every event we played together was a success.”

Brown will be performing that evening with Danny Anderson as the opening act for Martin Big Band with Valli Kelly.

Rhythm on the Rails is a free summer music festival that takes place on Friday evenings in May and June at Discovery Park. Doors open at 5:30 p.m. and live music begins at 6:30 p.m. Food and beverage are available for purchase.

Upcoming Meeting at Discovery Park of America will Convene a Task Force of State, Local, and Industry Stakeholders

(Union City, Tennessee, June 8, 2023) — The Tennessee Department of Labor & Workforce Development (TDLWD) is creating a tourism and hospitality task force to help cultivate partnerships that will lead to long-term support for the industry in Northwest Tennessee. State and local representatives with hold a listening session with tourism and hospitality leaders at Discovery Park of America on Thursday, June 22, 2023, from 2:00 until 3:30 p.m.

The session will provide an opportunity to discuss the workplace needs within the sector in Northwest Tennessee and lead to the alignment of relevant partnerships, programs, and resources, The task force will develop long-lasting solutions that will benefit the area’s growing tourism industry, which will help bolster economic growth opportunities in the rural communities in the northwest part of the state.

“Meeting with leaders from the hospitality and tourism industry in Northwest Tennessee is critical to meeting their workforce needs now and, in the future,” said Kristie Bennett, TDLWD Northwest Tennessee Regional Director. “Listening sessions like this will allow us to address the industry’s unique needs with solutions that reflect the true dynamics of regional economies.”

In May 2023, preliminary data from U.S. Travel and Tourism Economics revealed a record $27.5 billion in travel spending across the nation in 2022. Among the top 25 states, Tennessee has been the fastest-growing state in travel spending since 2018 and has risen from 14th to 11th in the nation for travel spending.

For more information about the event and how to register, contact Scott Williams at swilliams@discoveryparkofamerica.flywheelstaging.com or 731-599-9749.

(Union City, Tennessee, June 7, 2023) — Discovery Park of America announced today that Origis Energy has contributed $50,000 toward a campaign that will raise money to update the museum and park’s Energy Gallery.

In April, Origis Energy, the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), Google and Excelsior Energy Capital celebrated the completion of Skyhawk Solar, a 100 MW (MWac) project in Obion County located just minutes from Discovery Park.

Skyhawk Solar was developed under the TVA Green Invest program and contributes to TVA’s continued push to grow clean energy in its seven-state service territory.

“Since Discovery Park’s Energy Gallery was first designed more than a decade ago, much progress has been made in the energy sector, including creating low-cost, clean, reliable, renewable energy,” said Scott Williams, the museum’s president and CEO. “While there are many advancements, there seems to be a gap in helping the public understand the science behind and the importance of new initiatives like solar farms. We plan to create an exhibit that changes that for our 250,000 plus annual visitors.”

Natacha Standaert, Origis Energy Foundation Manager, said “Origis is very pleased to support the educational work at Discovery Park. Helping young people and their families understand how clean energy projects are shaping environmental and economic gains in the communities in which they are located is important. This knowledge will spark curiosity, contribute to a better understanding of the changing energy industry and helps students identify new career paths. The platform Discovery Park has created reaches thousands of families from a wide area around Skyhawk Solar. We invite others to join us in supporting the updated Energy Gallery initiative.”

This new initiative is just one of several ways Discovery Park is helping visitors explore the world around them. In March 2022, four electric vehicle (EV) charging stations were unveiled, allowing visitors to charge their vehicles while visiting the museum. The most recently opened permanent exhibit was “AgriCulture: Innovating for Our Survival.” It tells the story of farming innovation in the past, present—and especially—future. Another new permanent exhibit opening November 10, 2023, “Duck, Duck, Goose: Waterfowl of the Mississippi Flyway,” will include much about the importance of conserving, restoring and managing wetlands and habitats for North America’s waterfowl.

Fundraising and research for the updated Energy Gallery has begun now, and the new exhibit will open at Discovery Park in early 2025.

To partner with Discovery Park on this exhibit or for more information, email Mary Nita Bondurant at mbondurant@discoveryparkofamerica.flywheelstaging.com or call 731-676-3556.

About Discovery Park of America

The mission of Discovery Park of America, a premier world-class museum and 50-acre heritage park located in Union City, Tennessee, is to inspire children and adults to see beyond. Included is a 100,000-square-foot museum featuring nine interactive exhibit galleries with additional space for temporary exhibits from around the world and a 50-acre heritage park. Discovery Park of America is a 501(c)(3) public charity funded by generous individuals, corporations and foundations including its principal funder, the Robert E. and Jenny D. Kirkland Foundation. For more information, visit DiscoveryParkofAmerica.com, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

About Origis Energy
Origis Energy is bringing clean and cost effective solar, energy storage and clean hydrogen solutions within reach for utility, commercial and industrial as well as public sector clients. The Origis team has worked to ensure the interests of all stakeholders are upheld in 170 projects worldwide totaling more than 5 GW to date of developed solar, energy storage and clean hydrogen capacity. Headquartered in Miami, FL, Origis Energy delivers excellence in solar, energy storage and clean hydrogen development, financing, engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) and operations, maintenance and asset management for investors and clean energy consumers in the U.S. For more information visit: www.OrigisEnergy.com

(Union City, Tennessee, June 7, 2023) — The Weakley County Reconciliation Project (WCRP) and Discovery Park of America in Union City, Tennessee are co-hosting a free Juneteenth celebration at Discovery Park on Saturday, June 17, 2023, from 3-7 p.m. Entrance for the free event will be through the Train Depot gate in the lower south parking lot.

Families from throughout the region will gather for an afternoon of food, fellowship and fun with a focus on the celebration of Black American freedom. More than 15 Black-owned, small-business vendors and local food trucks will be on hand, and a variety of activities are planned for all ages.

Entertainment on Discovery Park’s new Total Tech Solutions stage will be provided by artists such as saxophonist J-Wes Walker Crossfire Music of Covington, Moe Hayslett, also of Covington, and Jalen Ware of TRuSTORY Worship. Ripley native and Memphis resident, Katrina Anderson, will be the headline performer. Jessica Currie of J Poetry will bring some powerful prose to the event, while Craig Clay of Lake County will provide the keynote address.

In addition to the afternoon’s Juneteenth program, Discovery Park has put together a slate of speakers and activities for visitors to the museum earlier in the day with the theme “Looking Back, Moving Forward: The History of Juneteenth and Why We Celebrate Today.”

At 11 a.m. in the Tennessee Room, Lane College’s vice president for academic affairs, Rev. Daryll Coleman, will provide a keynote address. Following Rev. Coleman will be vocalist Brenda Davis accompanied by Kaye Hillsman with an educational performance highlighting the origins of spirituals, religious songs associated with Black Christians primarily in the South. A traditional “Jubilee Feast,” an array of foods with cultural significance dating back hundreds of years, will also be on display for visitors. Guest readers from Discovery Park will gather at 1:30 p.m. in the Tennessee Room for a children’s story time where they will read four books about Juneteenth aloud.

Discovery Park’s activities in the museum are included with park admission or membership, while the afternoon’s Juneteenth program is provided for free.

Discovery Park of America is located at 830 Everett Blvd. in Union City. For more information, visit the Weakley County Reconciliation Project on Facebook or the calendar at discoveryparkofamerica.flywheelstaging.com.

About Weakley County Reconciliation Project

The Weakley County Reconciliation Project is a diverse, nonpartisan group of Weakley County community members seeking to engage other members and organizations in an open dialogue on matters of race, racism and social injustice in Weakley County, Tennessee. For more information, visit WeakleyReconciliation.com.

About Discovery Park of America

The mission of Discovery Park of America, a premier world-class museum and 50-acre heritage park located in Union City, Tennessee, is to inspire children and adults to see beyond. Included is a 100,000-square-foot museum featuring nine interactive exhibit galleries with additional space for temporary exhibits from around the world and a 50-acre heritage park. Discovery Park of America is a 501(c)(3) public charity funded by generous individuals, corporations and foundations including its principal funder, the Robert E. and Jenny D. Kirkland Foundation. For more information, visit DiscoveryParkofAmerica.com, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

May 4, 2023

(Union City, Tennessee, May 4, 2023) — Discovery Park of America is now a Blue Star Museum. This collaboration among the National Endowment for the Arts, Blue Star Families, the Department of Defense and museums like Discovery Park, provides free admission to the nation’s active-duty military personnel and their families each summer.

“We thank the 2023 Blue Star Museums like Discovery Park who invite military personnel and their families to experience the many wonders they have to offer, whether it’s a glimpse into the past, an encounter with awe-inspiring innovation or a moment of hands-on learning,” said Maria Rosario Jackson, Ph.D., chair of the National Endowment for the Arts.

The free admission program is available from Armed Forces Day, May 20, through Labor Day, Sept. 4, for those currently serving in the United States Military–Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, Coast Guard–including Reservists, National Guardsmen (regardless of status), U.S. Public Health Commissioned Corps, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Corps, and up to five family members. Qualified members must show a Geneva Convention common access card, DD Form 1173 ID card (dependent ID) or a DD Form 1173-1 ID card for free admission.

“Discovery Park is excited to support the men and women who are serving our country,” said Scott Williams, president and CEO of Discovery Park. “Our military exhibits and related events make us a natural fit for the Blue Star Museum program. In fact, we just wrapped up our annual Military History and Armed Forces Symposium, which was the best attended in our organization’s history.”

Discovery Park’s Military Gallery can be found on two levels of the museum. The lower level contains a collection of military vehicles and weapons along with displays about the Korean War, the Vietnam War, the Cold War and current military conflicts. Displays about the Civil War, World War I and World War II can be found on the entry-level with an oral history theater showcasing veterans’ stories.

To plan a visit to Discovery Park or for more information, visit DiscoveryParkofAmerica.com/visit.

Photo Caption: Staff Sgt. Dillon Ezernack, Air Force enlisted accessions recruiter and Staff Sgt. Anthony Daniels on a recent visit to Discovery Park. The museum and heritage park will be offering free admission to active-duty military personnel and families this summer.

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About Discovery Park of America

The mission of Discovery Park of America, a premier world-class museum and heritage park located in Union City, Tennessee, is to inspire children and adults to see beyond. Included is a 100,000-square-foot museum featuring 9 interactive exhibit galleries with additional space for temporary exhibits from around the world and a 50-acre heritage park. Discovery Park of America is a 501(c)(3) public charity funded by generous individuals, corporations and foundations including its principal funder, the Robert E. and Jenny D. Kirkland Foundation. For more information, visit DiscoveryParkofAmerica.com, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and TikTok.

Discovery Park of America’s 2023 Military History and Armed Forces Symposium Was Unforgettable This Year

May 3, 2023

This past weekend, thousands gathered at Discovery Park of America for the 2023 Military History and Armed Forces Symposium. The annual event featured a variety of programs and interactive activities that explore the American military’s past, present and future.  

On Friday, students from all over the region had the opportunity to participate in various educational activities and hear a keynote by Cpl. John Henley. Henley entered the United States Marine Corps in 1969 and trained as a field artilleryman stationed at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina with the 2nd Marine Division. In June 1970, Henley was attached to Battalion Landing Team 2/9 3rd Marine Division and served in Vietnam, Okinawa and the Philippines before he was honorably discharged in 1971. Henley shared his story and how his time in the Marine Corps affected the rest of his career.  

A VIP reception was also held to honor veterans, active military and reservists who have sacrificed on behalf of all U.S. citizens to fight for and protect our freedom. 

Guests had the opportunity to hear from Lt. Col. Bernard House on Saturday. House is a professor of military science at the University of Tennessee at Martin. He is also the overall leader of the Reserve Officers’ Training Corps battalion at both Murray State University and the University of Tennessee at Martin.  

Another guest favorite on Saturday was a panel discussion led by Stefan Maupin and special guest Cindy Kent, author of “Better Men: Alpha Upsilon in Vietnam.” The panel included some of the men who are highlighted in Kent’s compilation of stories from 14 Vietnam veterans. Before they became brothers of war, they were brothers at the University of Tennessee at Martin’s Alpha Upsilon chapter of Alpha Gamma Rho, the national agriculture fraternity. 

Other highlights from the weekend included performances from Operation Song, an organization of songwriters who work with veterans and active-duty military to tell their stories through song. 

A variety of military-related vendors were set up in Dinosaur Hall such as Veteran’s Museum of Halls, Tennessee, Irreverent Warriors, Special Ops Xcursions, TN State Guard, TN Army National Guard, UTM ROTC, TN Department of Veterans Services, Wreaths Across America, United States Space Force, Operation Song, Civil Air Patrol, Airforce Special Warfare, Tennessee Suicide Prevention Network, United States Marine Corps, Overmountain Victory Trail Association, Tennessee Society Daughters of the American Revolution, Agricenter International, The Veteran’s Museum, Northwest Tennessee SHIP and more. 

This event was sponsored by Union City Coca-Cola and Dixie Gun Works. 

Photos from the weekend can be found on our Flickr Page.