It’s warming up in Tennessee’s Oldest Town, and that means summer events are starting back up! Check out all the Jonesborough hotspots below.
Jonesborough Farmers Market
If you have a hankering for some local food then you can’t miss the Jonesborough Farmers Market on Saturday mornings! Here you’ll find the freshest produce, meats and more along with some homegrown socializing.
This is the perfect way to support your favorite farmers! The Jonesborough Farmers Market is now open every Saturday from 9 a.m. – 12 p.m. Check out their new location, just behind the courthouse.
Be sure to also visit the Boone Street Market which has grown from the success of the Jonesborough Farmers Market and only sells items grown or produced within 100 miles from Jonesborough. Support local!
Where to Catch Some Hot Live Music!
Brews & Tunes
If you are lucky enough to be in town on a Sunday, spend your afternoon enjoying local craft beer and delicious food while hearing some great bands at Main Street Brews and Tunes! This concert series kicks off in June and continues through September. To see what drink is on tap and what artist will have your toes tapping, check out their schedule.
Music on the Square
While in the heart of the Appalachian Mountains, your visit to Historic Jonesborough wouldn’t be complete without attending our Music on the Square weekly concert series. Grab a lawn chair or a blanket and enjoy live music with the townscape of downtown Jonesborough as the setting. Music on the Square features a variety of music that ranges from Americana, Bluegrass, Celtic, Irish, Old-Time, Blues and Jazz. Music on the Square kicks off on July 9 this year and will continue through September.
Jonesborough Days
Jonesborough Days Celebration is back!
Tennessee’s Oldest Town will celebrate the 50th Annual Jonesborough Days Festival on July 2 through July 4 with family activities, an exciting music line-up, handmade arts and crafts, patriotic parade, fireworks, storytelling and much more!
The 2021 Jonesborough Days Festival will begin Friday, July 2 with the Annual Kick Off Dinner starting at 5:30 p.m. with music and more until 10 p.m. A low country shrimp boil is on the menu with entertainment by the Jonesborough Novelty Band and lots of family fun for $15 per person.
The festival will continue on Saturday, July 3 at 10 a.m. with the parade marching through downtown and festivities continuing until 10 p.m. Doc’s Front Porch will feature a variety of storytellers and musicians on the plaza at the International Storytelling Center during the day. The Main Stage will also feature entertainment including headliner, Rumors, a Fleetwood Mac cover band. Shop over 70 vendors, showcasing local handmade crafters with a variety of wares. And of course, there will be great festival foods with everything from BBQ and tacos and of course funnel cakes!
Discovery Park, located behind the Storytelling Center, will offer even more activities for children and their families this year. There you will find lots of hands-on ways to experience activities only found in Jonesborough. Visit Discovery Park each day and see what all Jonesborough has to discover!
On Sunday, July 4 activities start at noon and the event wraps up with the annual fireworks display at 10 p.m. Admission to the festival is free and open to the public.
The festival has been voted as one of the top events in the southeast and is known for its community patriotism and nostalgic atmosphere. Various entertainment and activities will take place throughout the historic district on all three days.
Yoga in the Park
Get some fresh air and exercise at Jonesborough’s Yoga in the Park every Sunday and Wednesday through the end of September. Yoga will be offered on the following dates, times and locations:
– Wednesdays from 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. in Mill Spring Park near the Gazebo
– Sundays from 4:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. in Jimmy Neil Smith Park behind the International Storytelling Center
All levels are welcome from beginners to advanced and there is no fee and no registration required. Bring your own yoga mat, towel or blanket along with friend and enjoy the many health benefits of yoga while getting some fresh air!
This series will be taught by certified area instructors. Check back weekly for updates on classes and teachers. Class is free but teacher donations will be gladly accepted. No class on July 4th and this event series is weather permitting.
Heritage Alliance
Uncover History and Heritage
History comes to life in this 18th-century town. Its well-preserved Main Street will take you on a beautiful journey through the past. One of the best ways to experience Jonesborough is by taking a town tour with our preservation society, the Heritage Alliance. Your tour guide, dressed in period clothing, will escort you through the streets of Jonesborough sharing little-known facts and the story of the town from past to present. Also, be sure to pay a visit to the Chester Inn Museum, located in the heart of downtown Jonesborough. The museum chronicles the history of Jonesborough from its inception in 1779 to the present.
Salvage Warehouse
Supported by the Heritage Alliance, the Salvage Warehouse offers a wide selection of materials including doors, windows, mantles, flooring, and sinks.
They are only open the first and third Saturday of each month, April to September, but you can also schedule an appointment.
Summer Suppers – Sold Out!
The Heritage Alliance is excited to kick-off a new dining experience in Jonesborough with its Summer Supper series. Summer Suppers is an exclusive series and seating is limited. Tickets for Summer Suppers can be purchased through the Town of Jonesborough’s ticketing website at jonesborough.com/tickets.
Tickets for the event are $45 per person. This includes a lovely, three course meal, as well as beverages, live music, and a chance to explore the grounds and sections of the home. Other dates and locations include June 12 on Spring Street, July 24 at the Warner Institute, August 14 at the Historic Embree Farm in Telford, and September 18 at a home on East Main Street. All suppers will start at 6 p.m., and tickets for each supper are limited to 26 guests.
The Chuckey Depot
Per its mission, the Chuckey Depot focuses on regional railroads in its exhibits, like the Southern, Clinchfield, and East Tennessee and Western North Carolina Rail Road. This exhibit gives the Museum a chance to showcase items that come from all over the country, including a map of railroads in Ohio and a stock certificate for the Pittsburgh and Lake Erie Railroad Company.
You can now experience the railroad special exhibit “As Fast as Birds Can Fly” now through August. As explained by Executive Director of the Heritage Alliance Anne G’Fellers-Mason the narrow gauge (three-foot-wide) line was in operation in North Carolina and Tennessee from 1882 until 1950. “Tweetsie” approximated the mellow toot of the company’s engines while fulfilling Oliver Evans’ quote in 1800 that: “The time will come when people will travel in stages moved by steam engines from one city to another as fast as birds can fly.”
The Chuckey Depot’s original home was just down the road in Chuckey, TN, and now sits within WC Rowe Park in Jonesborough. In an effort to preserve the building, it was dismantled and re-erected in Jonesborough, where it opened as a museum in October 2017.
The Chuckey Depot is also on The Lost State Scenic Walkway.
This trail spans approximately 3 miles of trail that begins in downtown Jonesborough at Mill Spring Park and ends at Golden Oak Park within the Meadows and Mill Creek subdivisions. The multi-use trail, perfect for walking, biking or running, is moderately hilly in some areas and provides a scenic view of the many facets of Jonesborough!
Click here for more information.
Explore the Oldest Commercial Building in Jonesborough!
The Chester Inn is officially open six days a week (every day except Tuesday), from May to October!
The Chester Inn Museum chronicles the history of Jonesborough from its inception in 1779 to the present. Exhibits include information on the State of Franklin, a diorama of Jonesborough in the 1850s, the history of the Chester Inn, the 1873 cholera epidemic, and much more. Many of the exhibits feature Jonesborough’s extensive collection of photographs. The upstairs parlor and dining room of the Chester Inn, restored to the Victorian era style of the late 1800s, are also open for viewing.
Town tour tickets can be purchased at the Chester Inn!
