Ripken Baseball today announced David Bounds as the general manager for The Ripken Experience Pigeon Forge youth baseball complex. With nearly a decade of experience as an employee for Ripken Baseball, Bounds has contributed to the brand’s growth at both The Ripken Experience Aberdeen and Myrtle Beach locations. “I have been fortunate to have the opportunity to combine my love ...

Tennessee residents are allowed to hunt without a license on Free Hunting Day, Saturday, Aug. 22, 2015, which coincides with the opening day of squirrel season. Free Hunting Day is an event the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency annually provides in hopes of increasing interest in hunting. Squirrel hunting is one of Tennessee’s oldest and favorite traditions. The day serves as ...

The sounds of some of the biggest hits in country, gospel and bluegrass music will resonate through the streets of Gatlinburg when the Smoky Mountains Songwriters Festival comes to town Aug. 19–23, 2015. The festival will feature over 130 acts of songwriters and musicians who have shaped the top Billboard charts for generations as well as those just getting started ...

ASHEVILLE, N.C. – A North Carolina man has been sentenced to six months in jail for illegally harvesting a significant amount of American ginseng from the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, marking his fifth conviction for ginseng poaching. Jill Westmoreland Rose, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina announced today that U.S. Magistrate Judge Dennis L. Howell ...

The Gatlinburg Farmers Market will hold its Back to School Kids Days Bash on Saturday August 22, 2015 from 9 a.m. to noon at the Covered Bridge in the Great Smoky Arts and Crafts Community. Scheduled activities for the Back to School Kids Days Bash: Little Pete’s Railroad will be giving train rides The Girl Scouts – Smoky Shadows Troop ...

Dollywood plans auditions for young male and female performers to join the park’s award-winning Smoky Mountain Christmas shows. Auditions take place Aug. 22, 2015 from 9 a.m. – 11 a.m. in the Connor-Short Center on the Sevierville campus of Walters State Community College. Performers who are able to play roles between the ages of eight and 12 are encouraged to ...

Pigeon Forge will honor America’s military with its Veterans Homecoming Parade on Saturday, Aug. 29, 2015. Robert Cato and Andrew White, members of Guardian for Heroes Foundation, will serve as this year’s Veterans Homecoming Parade grand marshals. Founded by U.S. Navy SEAL Chris Kyle, the foundation offers free, in-home fitness equipment, training, life coaching and much more to in-need veterans ...

Certain Tennessee Army & Air National Guard personnel will soon be armed with handguns at state and federal facilities in an effort to increase security after the Chattanooga shootings in July. Maj. Gen. Max Haston, Tennessee’s Adjutant General, announced Thursday that the Military Department has taken steps to increase the security of its personnel and facilities to include allowing Tennessee Army ...

The Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security will speak to area businesses on Thursday, August 13, 2015 at the Pigeon Forge Hospitality Association Meeting. Regional Advisor in Charge Dwayne C. Collins, Regional Advisors Jerry Stout and Barry Crotzer, and Pigeon Forge Police Lieutenant Richard Catlett will cover the topics: What is suspicious activity / See Something, Say Something Active ...

Great Smoky Mountains National Park is recruiting volunteers to help staff the visitor contact station at Clingmans Dome on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays from August 28 through December 1, 2015. Volunteers will work at the seasonal information center that includes a bookstore/sales area managed by Great Smoky Mountains Association (GSMA). Volunteers will assist in educating visitors about the park and ...