Great Smoky Mountains gets donation of ‘priceless’ artifacts

TOWNSEND, Tenn. – The Great Smoky Mountains National Park has received what it calls a “priceless” donation of Cades Cove artifacts.

The cove was a thriving community before the National Park Service began purchasing the land in 1927. Dan and Sidney Lawson were two of its residents.

According to the park, Dan Lawson led singing at the Methodist Church and Sidney Lawson helped to educate children in the cove. Their cabin is preserved as part of the Cades Cove Historic Landscape.

Now their great-granddaughter Robin Derryberry, of Chattanooga, has donated a handmade dresser, a family Bible, and wedding and other portraits.

Derryberry said in a news release that her family wants the items to be in a place where they can be enjoyed by the public and preserved for future generations.