Blog | Tennessee State Museum

Thousands of Stories

Illustrating 'The Voice that Won the Vote'

(Editor's Note: The Voice That Won the Vote is one of the books featured in the Museum's Storytime videos. Watch the video on our our Storytime page by clicking this link, or by scrolling to the bottom of this story. The story of Febb and Harry Burn, told in Elisa Boxer's book, is highlighted in the Museum's upcoming exhibition, Ratified! Tennessee Women and the Right to Vote.) by Julie Danielson for Chapter16.org In 1920, Harry Burn was the youngest member of th... Read More

Posted by Joseph Pagetta at 5-17-20

books Suffrage Women's History

Small Artifacts | Big Stories: Women Against the Vote

By Grace Allen They say that dynamite comes in small packages, or so my aunt frequently tells me. But when it comes to museum collections, I think this expression rings especially true. Sometimes the smallest objects tell the loudest stories. In our Change and Challenge exhibition at the Tennessee State Museum, we have the perfect example of this kind of artifact. Beyond the bootleg whiskey still in the prohibition display, and beneath the women’s suffrage banner, there is a very small... Read More

Posted by Joseph Pagetta at 5-12-20

Suffrage Women's History

Mothers, Suffragists, and Gold Stars

by Lisa M. Budreau, Ph. D. “I didn’t raise my boy to be a soldier, I brought him up to be my pride and joy!” went the highly popular anti-war song in 1915.[i] Time would soon prove this to be quite untrue. With Europe already at war and America’s involvement likely, such pacifist sentiments would come to be seen as weak and a potential threat to the nation. World War I was a total war and if victory was to be gained, full support and compliance from all was crit... Read More

Posted by Joseph Pagetta at 5-9-20

Suffrage Women's History World War I WWI

Art in the Time of Coronavirus: The Idyllic Works of William Gilbert Gaul

By Jim Hoobler Borrowing from the title of one of Gabriel García Márquez’s most popular works (Love in the Time of Cholera) I think of art in the time of coronavirus as a great way to destress. With museums closed to visitors, the internet has become our platform to view great works from iconic institutions around the world. The Tennessee State Museum has, in my opinion, the finest collection of art from Tennessee, and perhaps one of the largest art collections in the sta... Read More

Posted by Joseph Pagetta at 5-5-20

Art Paintings

Thousands of Stories Archives