Kingsport: There’s an App for That!

Here is a little update about the FunFest activity we are preparing. Today, I stepped into a nearby supply closet where Kari–Archivist Intern became Kari–Intrepid Reporter. That is to say, I grabbed my camera, walked the Rediscover Kingsport: A Self-Guided Tour Through Time trail and took photographs of all 25 locations. The photographs will be part of a digital device application being created just for this tour. Yep! There’s an app for that!

One of Brianne’s colleagues from her UT days (did you know she was an archaeologist in her previous life?) volunteered to create an app that will help participants find the right location while they are walking. His name is Chad Caswell, from Atlanta, and this was super generous of him. Thanks, Chad!

The route can be done in about half an hour. But, if you are a careful reader, or if you stop to talk to a friend, or buy a cookie along the way (or a cupcake, or a bagel or a …), it will take you longer. Here are a few samples of the final locations, including No. 6, 117 Shelby St.

What was once Dobyns-Taylor Furniture Department is now the Cottage Bakery.

What was once the Dobyns-Taylor Furniture Department is now the Cottage Bakery.


As I headed to the next location I decided to actually look up for a minute. Sometimes in Kingsport, we forget just how beautiful a sentinel Bays Mountain can be, watching over us wherever we are. Gorgeous in the spring!

Bays Mtn

The next preview is of No. 7, 136 W. Main St.

What started out as the Army Store became Foster's Auto and the Star Lunch. It is now looking for a new proprietor.

What started out as the Army Store became Foster’s Auto and then Star Lunch. It is now looking for a new proprietor.


And lastly, we get a peek at No. 21, 201 Broad St.

The former Carlton, then Western Union, and then the Paper store is also in need of a loving shopkeeper.

The former Carlton, then Western Union, and then the Paper store is also in need of a loving shopkeeper.


If you want to see the whole tour in living color, you know what you need to do. Come July 12, stop by the library or the FunFest office, pick up a map if you are handy with paper, download the App if you aren’t, and start walking through time. And, if you also would like to be a volunteer for the Archives or the Friends of the Archives, well, I think we have an app for that, too!

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