Calendar of Events
The Sullivan County Historical and Genealogical Society holds its regularly scheduled meetings at 7 p.m. on the 3rd Thursday of each month. Meetings are held at the Sullivan County Courthouse, 2nd Floor Commissioners Room, in historic downtown Blountville. This is a sampling of the fun and informative meetings we have held in the past. If you would like to see our events from 2008, please go here.
Previous Events 2010
Candlelight Christmas Dinner
The Sullivan County Historical and Genealogical Society cordially invites you to its annual Christmas celebration, an elegant "Candlelight Christmas Dinner". This special Holiday event will be held on Thurs., Dec. 16 at 6:30 PM at the widely acclaimed Red Rooster Market, 1258 Blountville Hwy., Bristol, TN. Chef Linda Metcalfe will personally host the event.
Menu (home cooked food prepared and served by Chef Linda Metcalfe)
Entrée, Chicken Cordon Bleu
Salad of mixed greens, with cranberries, walnuts, feta cheese
Green beans
Smashed potatoes
Homemade dessert
Coffee, tea or water
Cost
$13.95 per person. Seating is limited, and reservations are on a first-come-first serve basis. To get your name on the Reserve List, please call (423) 323-4660 before December 9. Checks may be mailed to SCHGS, P.O. Box 568, Blountville/TN 37617. Please note: Be sure to call (423) 323-4660 to have your name put on Reserve List before mailing check.
November 18, 2010
The Battle of Kingsport
Our November Meeting will be Thursday, November 18, at 7 PM. This will be a great meeting--with your help! (Same place, the Commissioners Room on the second floor of the Courthouse in Blountville.) Bring your friends, neighbors, family members with you for this occasion.
We are fortunate to have Scott Smith come to present his great understanding of the Civil War battle of Kingsport. He will discuss events and people associated with the 1864 Battle of Kingsport, and its effect on the Union Campaign to destroy Saltville, VA. He will also examine the condition of Confederate Cavalry forces in East Tennessee during this final desperate stage of the war.
Scott is a teacher at Ross Robinson School, and is a member of the Kingsport John S. Mosby SCV Camp, and is a reenactor for the CSA 31st Tennessee Infantry.
At this meeting, we will bring you up to date on our December Christmas Dinner--the when, where, how much, and who (you!) So plan to come to enjoy the program on the 18th, and to have time to visit with your fellow SCHGS members and friends!. If you have any questions, call Sheila Steele Hunt at 423-323-4660, or Bob VanLew, Publicity Chairman at 423-878-3194.
October 21, 2010
Ancestry.com and more: Using online resources to find your ancestors!
Ever wonder where to start researching your ancestors? Let's make it easy! Find out how to get started the right way and see some brand new resources on the Internet! See a live multimedia presentation and demo of how you can make it easy... to climb your family tree!
On Thursday, October 21, 2010, Ancestry.com and More: Using Online Resources to Find Your Ancestors will be presented at 7 PM at the Sullivan County Courthouse in Blountville, Tennessee. Co-sponsored by the the Sullivan County Historical and Genealogical Society and the Sullivan County Department of Archives and Tourism, this event is held in conjunction with Tennessee Archives Month.
Please call 423.323.4660 if you have any questions.
September 16, 2010
Stories of King College
Dr. Bill Wade, retired Professor of History at King College, will bring some of his "Stories of King College" at the September Meeting of the Sullivan County Historical and Genealogical Society. This will be in the Commissioners Room, seco...nd floor of the Sullivan County Courthouse, at 7 PM, Thursday September 16. In addition to his former teaching duties, Dr. Wade is a retired Presbyterian minister, and continues as King College's archivist.
This meeting and program of the Sullivan County Historical and Genealogical Society is free and open to the public. For any other information, please call Shelia Steele Hunt, Director of Archives and Tourism at 423-323-4660.
June 17, 2010
A Call To Arms: Sullivan County Civil War Days
The Sullivan County Historical and Genealogical Society will host a special program entitled “A Call to Arms” to be held at 7 p.m. on Thurs., June 17 at the Sullivan County Courthouse in downtown Blountville. The event is the prelude to the Sullivan County Civil War Days to be held in Blountville on June 19-20. The program will be presented by the Lt. Robert D. Powell Camp, Sons of the Confederate Veterans. The event is free and the general public is cordially invited. For further information, please call (423) 323-4660.
Lawrence Shoemaker (WWII Prisoner of war)
Lawrence Shoemaker, a WWII Prisoner of war, will speak on his experiences after being captured by the German Army December 18, 1944. Shoemaker, who grew up at Speers Ferry, VA, entered the US Army on October 7, 1943. After his training, he was sent to England July 26, 1944. Less than a month later, August 22, he was among those who landed on Omaha Beach. He entered Belgium as part of the Second Indian Head Division to fight in the "Battle of the Bulge". He was captured there when his group was overrun and out of ammunition on December 18, 1944.
Shoemaker will inform us of the three prisons (Muleburg, Chemnitz, and in Czechoslovakia) where he was held. After his release, he and his companions started walking west toward the allied lines; he finally arrived back home on June 15, 1945. After picking up his civilian life, Shoemaker worked for many years at Kingsport Press, and its successors.
The Sullivan County Historical and Genealogical Society thanks Lawrence Shoemaker for his service to his country and to each of us, and is pleased to have him speak to us. The Society is also happy to invite the public, at no cost, to join with us in this program.
"Brother against brother"... How did they survive the Civil War?
Come hear this exciting lecture about survival in the 1860s! Presented by the Eller Brothers, this unique presentation is entitled, "CIVIL WAR MEDICINE". See a wide array of Civil War medical items and learn about the medicines and procedures used to save lives during the bloodiest conflict on American soil.
Sponsored by the Sullivan County Historical and Genealogical Society, this event will be held at 7 p.m. on Thurs., Feb. 18, 2010 at the Sullivan County Courthouse in downtown Blountville. Admission is free and the general public is cordially invited! For further information, contact (423) 323-4660.
January 21, 2009
Dr. Katherine Vande Brake
Author of Through the Back Door : Melungeon Literacies and Twenty-First Century Technologies
Dr. Katherine Vande Brake, King College Dean of the School of Arts and Sciences, will speak on "The Melungeons" at the January 21 Meeting of the Sullivan County Historical and Genealogical Society. This will take place at 7 PM on Thursday, January 21, in the second floor meeting room of the Sullivan County Commissioners in the courthouse in Blountville. Dr. Vande Brake has been professor of English and Communications at King College since 1980. She is the author of a book about the interesting group of people known as Melungeons titled "Through the Back Door". This meeting is open at no charge to all who desire to hear Dr. Vande Brake, sponsored by the Sullivan College Historical and Genealogical Society. For additional information, please call Shelia Steele Hunt, County Archives, at 423-323-4660.
Sullivan County Historical and Genealogical Society
PO Box 568 • Blountville, TN 37617
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