This granddaughter of Museum of Appalachia founder John Rice Irwin now leads the 54-year-old East Tennessee museum, keeping the stories alive and showing visitors how people of Southern Appalachia lived in the 1800s.
Photo Above: Lindsey Gallaher. Courtesy of Lindsey Gallaher
What was it like to grow up on the Museum of Appalachia property? You left, but came back and became the museum’s second president.
I grew up on the museum grounds, so I was fully immersed in the museum from a very early age. I grew up playing in the cabins, working with farm animals and in the gardens and collecting treasures for the museum with my grandfather, who founded the museum.
College and career pursuits pulled me away from East Tennessee for most of a decade. Ultimately, being away from Southern Appalachia for so long made me appreciate it so much when I finally returned to the museum some 10 years ago. I focused on strategic planning and development at the museum until 2023 when I stepped into the role of president.
What do you and your family enjoy together at the museum?
I have two young boys who love coming to the museum to play and explore the cabins and grounds. They love working in the gardens and tending to the animals just as I did as a child.
How did the Museum of Appalachia begin with your grandfather John Rice Irwin, and what led to this special relationship with the Smithsonian Institution?
From an early age, my grandfather was fascinated with the people of this region and their stories. Conversations with grandparents and great-grandparents evolved into seeking conversations from other community elders, and eventually bringing home mementos that would help him remember and ultimately share their stories with others. He filled up his garage with these mementos!
After some time, he ran out of room, and the Museum of Appalachia was born. Over time, the museum has grown to around 40 historic log structures, plus two large buildings filled with artifacts. The grounds and surrounding areas encompass around 65 acres. As we grew, we became a nonprofit organization in the early 2000s to preserve the museum in perpetuity and then quickly became a Smithsonian affiliate.
How do you keep the museum fresh as you approach its 60th anniversary?
This is our biggest challenge—appealing to new generations and connecting with them in a meaningful way. We are creating three new exhibits this year, as well as incorporating some interactive elements into existing exhibits. We’ve found new ways to engage with young folks through scavenger hunts, stamp stations, interaction with our animals and more. We have a weekly schedule of events with demonstrations, artists and music or educational events at specific times. You might come one day and hear bluegrass music or come another day and spend time with our blacksmith or meet our Kunekune pigs.
Our special events throughout the year allow us to provide a captivating experience for our guests, with dozens of artisans, demonstrators and tradesfolk. For example, our Sheep Shearing Days event is centered around showing all the steps of turning sheep wool into clothing. We shear sheep and demonstrate washing, carding and pulling the wool, spinning it into yarn and then weaving it. Visitors—including children—get to see wool turned into clothing. Watching kids experience this is like seeing a light bulb come on!
What do you enjoy most about your work as president?
My favorite part of my job is constantly being reminded that we are preserving the lives and stories of folks that aren’t being preserved anywhere else. What makes the museum unique is that the artifacts we have here are really just a way to talk about the people. We celebrate the people of this region and pay tribute to them by giving visitors a glimpse of their lives. We’re keeping these stories alive! So, when someone thanks us for including their great grandparent or tells us they’re from another part of the world and have no idea what life was like in this area a few generations ago—those are the best moments.
The story above first appeared in our March / April 2025 issue.
