New exhibit chronicles lives of those impacted by Norris Dam, TVA (2024)
NORRIS, Tenn. — Former U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander recalled traveling with Museum of Appalachia founder John Rice Irwin on his trips through East Tennessee, stopping at people's homes and trying to buy old items from the women of the households for the museum that would chronicle the lives of the Appalachian people. He said several back-and-forth exchanges would result with the women contending that Granny or Momma would be be upset if the items were sold — until Irwin's money offer would increase to a level that they felt certain would be OK with their late Granny or Momma.
Now a new exhibit has opened at the museum chronicling the lives of many of those women and their families whose lives were impacted by the creation of the Tennessee Valley Authority and Norris Dam.
The Museum of Appalachia recently unveiled the newly restored Arnwine Cabin as part of a new exhibit about the construction of TVA’s Norris Dam and the people that were forced to relocate from the area because of the dam's creation. Alexander, former Tennessee governor and University of Tennessee president, was among the speakers at the ribbon-cutting ceremony, that was also attended by Lt. Gov. Randy McNally of Oak Ridge.
The exhibit is titled “The Mountaineers’ Sacrifice & Renewal.” It features historic photographs and an interactive map of the region before and after the construction of Norris Dam, highlighting the locations of homes, farms, churches and schools that now sit at the bottom of Norris Lake. The newly built cabin — next to the Arnwine Cabin — where the map is located includes photos of the people of the area, including one of John Rice Irwin and his brother David on the front row of a one-room school in Morgan County. Both men live near the museum.
This exhibit is the first phase of this telling of the story of TVA and those it impacted through the construction of Norris Dam and the introduction of electricity to people who were a "little late getting into the 20th century," said Stephen W. Dean, vice chair of the museum's board of directors.
"We need to share their story, said Dean, a producer, writer and director for "The Heartland Series" that aired and continues to air in reruns on WBIR-TV Channel 10.
"We have to tell that story over and over again," he said.
"It was not without cost," said Justin Maierhofer, TVA vice president for government relations. He spoke of the relocation of the people, their cemeteries and more. One of those families affected by this was the Arnwine family.
The Arnwine family
In the early 1800s, according to museum information, Wes Arnwine built the log home on the south bank of the Clinch River, a few miles from Liberty Hill in Grainger County. Around 1930, TVA acquired the land for the construction of Norris Lake, and the family moved their cabin a short distance. The family called the cabin home for more than a 100 years. Polly Anne and Eliza Jane Arnwine, who lived in the cabin their entire lives, were its last known inhabitants. After Eliza Jane’s death in 1936, the cabin lay dormant, until it was acquired by Irwin in 1964. The U.S. Department of Interior later chose it for the National Register of Historic Places because of its unique and realistic portrayal of frontier living conditions.
“This exhibit is a testament to the diligent and industrious people that built this incredible dam, and also to the sacrifice of a people who left their lives behind for the promise of progress,” Museum President Elaine Meyer stated in a museum news release. She's the daughter of Irwin and his wife, the late Elizabeth Irwin. “We’re elated to be able to share this story with visitors from around the world.”
In a side note, Meyer called attention during the ceremony to the heavy machinery that had moved dirt in the east field on the museum property. She said Charles Blaylock & Sons of Sevierville are involved in a project with the museum to to provide an area for camping and "glamping" on the property. Glamping is the term used for more comfortable camping with amenities provided.
That company is also the main contractor for the new Clinton bridge project a few miles away.
Donna Smith is The Oak Ridger's news editor. Contact her by email at dsmith@oakridger.com or by phone at (865) 220-5514. Follow her on Twitter @ridgernewsed.
Some communities, however, were displaced by TVA projects. For instance, roughly 3,500 families in eastern Tennessee lost their homes when the Norris Dam was built. The project flooded an area of roughly 239 square acres in the Norris Basin.
Norris brought flood control and electricity to a rural region. But with 800 miles of shoreline, Norris Lake also quickly became a recreational draw. Six hundred privately owned boats were on the lake in 1937. The number doubled a year later.
Read more about what we're doing every day to continuously monitor and improve the 49 dams in the Tennessee River system, as well as what you can do to stay safe near dams.
The most dramatic change in Valley life came from the electricity generated by TVA dams. Electric lights and modern appliances made life easier and farms more productive. Electricity also drew industries to the region, providing desperately needed jobs.
It contains eight pillars for each of the seven clans and one for the whole Cherokee nation. Chota Memorial, Image from www.tennesseerivervalleygeotourism.org. Loyston, Willow Grove, Butler, Chota, and Tanasi are just a few of the many Tennessee towns flooded by the TVA.
Today, the site where Loyston once stood is known as Loyston Sea, a small inlet on Lake Norris. In Middle Tennessee, J.Percy Priest Lake is also hiding an underwater town. There once was a community named Couchville that was relocated in the 1960s as part of a larger TVA project for the lake.
With a maximum width of 1.2 miles and a maximum depth of 210 feet, this 34,200-acre reservoir is the largest lake on a tributary of the Tennessee River.
Wilbur Dam is definitely one of the first, but there is evidence that it may hold claim to being the first major hydro generation facility in Tennessee, according to documents from the time.
TVA is the largest public power company in the United States. It's called “public” because it's owned by the U.S. government, unlike most companies that are owned by individual people or investors. Through its plants that make electricity, TVA supplies power to 10 million people in the southeastern United States.
Hirakud is the longest earthen Dam in the world and stands across the mighty river, Mahanadi, in the Sambalpur region of Odisha. It was the first major multipurpose river valley project after India's Independence in 1947.
It is a straight concrete gravity-type dam, 1860 feet long, 265 feet high, and 208 feet thick at the base, equipped with two 50,000-kilowatt generators located in a powerhouse on the right side of the dam face.
Although Norris was the first dam built by TVA, it is not the oldest dam owned and operated by the agency. TVA subsequently purchased the assets of the former Tennessee Electric Power Company, including some dams which had been built before Norris Dam.
Under the rules of eminent domain, written into the Tennessee Valley Authority Act, the TVA had the power to require families to abandon their homes. For the Norris Dam project to move forward, 3,000 families had to relocate.
The Tennessee Valley Authority provides electricity for 153 local power companies serving 10 million people in Tennessee and parts of six surrounding states, as well as directly to 58 large industrial customers and federal installations.
Following its establishment in 1933, the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) relocated people, cemeteries, and other institutions to make way for dams and hydroelectric plants. This collection includes grave removal records from cemeteries that were in the path of projects.
In order to achieve this goal, the TVA harnessed the regions natural power sources, building dams and coal power plants to perform its goals. However, the construction and operation of these facilities has had a great impact on the land and people of Appalachia, generating controversy.
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