July 18, 1889: The Comet reported several interesting pieces of information about Johnson City area residents.
âMr. Ed Lynn is the new Secretary and Treasurer at the Johnson City Foundry and Machine Works.â
âMrs. Sam Simons and daughter, Lottie May, have returned from Cranberry. The child is improved in health.â
âGen. Wilder yesterday deeded the lot on which the new Baptist Church is built at Roan Mountain, and then gave ten dollars in cash.â
âMayor Ike T. Jobe calls the board together every few nights now and is settling down to work nicely. He presides with dignity and keeps both eyes open for Johnson City interests.â
An announcement last month perked up ears and got tails wagging all over Johnson City.
The city won a $100,000 grant â the largest of 15 awarded in this round of funding â from the Boyd Foundation to help build a dog park downtown.
The foundation is the namesake of Randy and Jenny Boyd, he a former state official, gubernatorial candidate, owner of a handful of the Appalachian Leagueâs teams and current president of the University of Tennessee.
Other communities in the area have received dog park funding from the foundation, including Erwin, which opened its park along the Linear Trail in March 2020, and Jonesborough, which is still searching for the right location for its park.
Whatâs a Little Free Library?
A Little Free Library is a free book-sharing box where anyone may take a book or share a book. It functions on the honor system. You do not need to share a book in order to take one, but of course, all books placed in the box are appreciated.
Who can use it?
The little library is open for both children and adults to enjoy. Carol Dubay, chairman of the Johnson City Monday Clubâs Arts and Culture Committee, said, âMy hope is that children and adults will take advantage of this library by not only taking books for their reading pleasure but also by bringing books to lend to the library. I love to read and feel like everyone should have access to books, especially children. Iâve heard Rebecca Henderson, a fellow club member, say many times that a child that loves to read will be a successful adult.â
Image courtesy International City Theatre.
International City Theatre will begin showing its newest production, Slow Food by playwright Wendy MacLeod, virtually Thursday-Sunday April 29th through May 16.
The play follows a husband and wife celebrating their 23rd wedding anniversary until things go awry during their anniversary dinner. The comedy is led by actor and producer Stu James and Lifetime star Meredith Thomas. James’s acting work has earned him multiple awards, including a Broadway World Award, Los Angeles for “Best Lead Actor” in a musical for his portrayal of John Dolphin in the musical, Recorded in Hollywood.
Thomas has acted in multiple Lifetime television movies including “The Wrong Crush” and “The Wrong Boy Next Door” alongside Vivica A. Fox.
Avid walkers and hikers have a number of scenic trails to choose from in Northeast Tennessee.
The granddaddy of them all is the Appalachian Trail, which travels through 14 states and over 2,100 miles from Springer Mountain, Georgia, to Katahdin, Maine.
The hiking trail crosses into Tennessee near the Nolichucky River, just outside of Erwin. The world-famous trail has multiple access points in the Johnson City area.
Another one of the most enjoyed trails in the region is the Tweetsie Trail, which is a multi-purpose path that stretches 10 miles between Johnson City and Elizabethton. It is Tennesseeâs longest rails-to-trails project and runs along the the track of the former East Tennessee & Western North Carolina Railroad through Washington and Carter counties.