'Making the invisible visible'

Learn about the African American experience in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park from Atalaya Dorfield, a research assistant at Great Smoky Mountains National Park who is working to reveal missing pieces of the puzzle of Smokies history.

In 2018, Great Smoky Mountains National Park realized that there was a missing piece to its rich puzzle of history, which led to the park’s new project, the African American Experience Project. "This project is a collaborative effort with park partners and the community to document and share the untold stories of African Americans in and outside the Smokies. These stories have been shared by many African Americans around crackling campfires, sun-beaten front porches, and the lamp-lit bedrooms, but they have yet to be shared with the world." 

The African American Experience in the Smokies: Making the Invisible Visible is a virtual free program this Friday, July 15, at 1 p.m. It is part of the Science at Sugarlands speaker series.

This virtual program is free. Register here.

Discover Life in America hosts talks once a month from May to October, bringing regional scientists to talk about their Smokies-related research. Talks are 30-45 minutes followed by a Q&A and they’re free, open to the public, and geared for a general audience. All talks will be hosted on Zoom. Register to receive a Zoom link via email.