The Tennessee State Museum is digging into its extensive collection of artworks and artifacts to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. Tennessee Voices, American Stories braids individual narratives into a larger story about the American experience, from the American Revolution through today. The exhibition is organized around three phrases from the preamble to the U.S. Constitution — “We the People,” “A More Perfect Union” and “The Blessings of Liberty” — and showcases some of the museum’s most important items, from stage costumes worn by Dolly Parton to renderings of Sequoyah, the inventor of the Cherokee syllabary. Given the breadth of the museum’s archive, many of the exhibition’s most compelling moments are likely to come from the stories of lesser-known Tennesseans. This is a place to encounter histories you may not find elsewhere. The exhibition essay asks visitors to consider the significance of individual contributions to society and frames the American Revolution as an ongoing process rather than a closed chapter. It concludes by posing a direct question to the audience: “How will your story add to the ongoing process of the American Revolution?”
Ongoing at the Tennessee State Museum
1000 Rosa Parks Blvd.
