Jonesborough, Tennessee

There’s scarcely a better time than the first weekend of October, when the “Once Upon a Times” fall like rain, the “Happily Ever Afters” follow suit, and the yarns, lies, and legends are all rippin’ good.

Jonesborough has long been known as Tennessee’s oldest town, but in the past 30 years it has earned the distinction of the Storytelling Capital of the World. As host of the National Storytelling Festival, it’s the cradle of the recent renaissance in American storytelling. 

Local lore traces the roots of the festival to a felicitous moment more than 35 years ago, when local journalism teacher Jimmy Neil Smith and a carload of his students tuned into a Grand Ole Opry broadcast to hear Jerry Clower spin one of his signature ‘coon hunting tales. Enchanted, Smith hatched the idea of a storytelling festival in Jonesborough, and in October 1973, the town hosted the first National Storytelling Festival. The stages were improvised (farm wagons and hay bales) and the audience small (no more than 60 folks on the courthouse square), but from that humble start grew an internationally acclaimed event that draws more than 10,000 people to a town that normally sleeps about half that. (Yes, hotel rooms are tight around that time; book ahead, and don’t expect a room in town.) 

The 2008 Festival runs Oct. 3-5 and includes 21 featured performers under the festival tents. In addition, there are separate ghost stories and midnight cabaret events, as well as a “Swappin’ Ground” for amateurs to spin a few tales of their own. Tickets run about $150 for a weekend pass, depending on when you buy.

Even if you can’t make it to the Festival, there’s a good chance you can catch a story in Jonesborough. The International Storytelling Center on Main Street hosts a Tellers-in-Residence program from June through October. The 2008 schedule features 22 performers, each in town for a week-long residency. Performances are scheduled twice a day from Tuesday through Saturday. Every Tuesday night, the Cranberry Thistle Café hosts a storyteller as well. Lend an ear, and there’s a good chance you’ll get an earful. 

While most visitors come to hear the performers, Jonesborough has a few stories of its own. Founded in 1779, the town was originally part of North Carolina. It is named for Willie Jones, a North Carolina legislator who favored westward expansion but, as far as anyone can tell, never did set foot in town. In 1784, Jonesborough was selected as the first capital for the new state of Franklin (it was later superseded by Greeneville). Five years and a few dust-ups later, the folks in Franklin still had not received recognition from Congress, but the territory reverted to North Carolina before finally becoming part of the new state of Tennessee in 1796.

Jonesborough has had its share of presidential patronage. Andrew Jackson spent five months in town in 1788, awaiting a western caravan and practicing as an attorney in town. Andrew Johnson called nearby Greeneville home and was a frequent visitor to Jonesborough. Legend has it that Jackson, Johnson and James K. Polk all took rooms at the Chester Inn on Main Street at one time or another. Both the Chester Inn and the Christopher Taylor home, where Jackson lived, have been restored and are part of Historic Main Street. The Chester Inn is now part of the International Storytelling Center.

Jonesborough was also home to The Emancipator, the nation’s first periodical devoted exclusively to abolishing slavery. Funded and published by local Quaker Elihu Embree, The Emancipator published for seven months before Embree’s death in 1820. At its peak, it boasted a paid circulation of 2,000, with subscribers as far away as Philadelphia and Boston. Embree sent copies to all of the Southern governors as well. History tells us they were not well-received. Embree’s home outside Jonesborough is believed to have been a stop on the Underground Railroad.

While the Embree house and printing presses did not survive, much of Jonesborough’s cultural and architectural heritage has been remarkably well preserved. Most visitors start with a stroll through downtown. A self-guided tour will take you past 40 historical landmarks. Brochures are available at the Historic Jonesborough Visitor’s Center, and will set you back one big buck. There are also guided tours, including carriage tours, storytelling tours, and ghost walks. Local boo-mongers claim Jonesborough is one of the “ten most haunted small towns in America.” 

Those with a nose for history can visit the Jonesborough/Washington County History Museum in the Visitor’s Center. The museum plans to open a Main Street exhibition space in the Chester Inn in October 2008.

Downtown features a number of shops and restaurants. The shops run towards crafts, gifts and antiques, and the restaurants tend toward café and bistro fare. Lodgers can choose from among nine B&Bs in the historic district, all of them built between 1793 and 1910. Rooms are available at the Eureka Inn, a Main Street hotel that dates back to 1797 and underwent extensive restoration work in the late 1990s. 

You might catch the summer concert series, Music on the Square, and the Jonesborough Repertory Theatre performs a couple of weekends each month. You can often find storytellers and musicians in the cafés on the weekends, but if you’re looking for a late-night dance party or active singles scene, you’ll do better taking the 15-minute drive to Johnson City. Jonesborough will leave the light on for you.

The Historic Jonesborough Visitors Center

Hours: Mon.-Fri. 8 a.m.-5 p.m. • Sat. & Sun. 10 a.m.-5 p.m.

Location: 117 Boone St. Jonesborough, TN 37659

More Information: 866.401.4223

Useful websites

• Official site — www.jonesboroughtn.org

• Heritage Alliance/History Museum — www.heritageall.com

• International Storytelling Center — www.storytellingcenter.com

• Jonesborough Repertory Theatre — www.jonesboroughtheatre.com

• Appalachian Ghost Walks — www.appalachianghostwalks.com

• Music on the Square — www.musiconthesquare.com

• Northeast Tennessee Tourism Association (NETTA) — www.netta.com

• Positive Solutions through Stories & Tours — 

  www.positivesolutionstours.com