- This time on Tennessee Crossroads, Ken Wilshire takes us to the Great Smoky Mountains Heritage Center, Rob Wiles takes us to a popular dining attraction in Murfreesboro, I'll take you to rural west Tennessee to meet a miniature artist named Simon Jackson, and Gretchen Bates meets a Brentwood collector of everything about beer.

Well, cheers to everyone, and welcome to Tennessee Crossroads.

I'm Joe Elmore.

Welcome to the show again.

(upbeat music) Our first stop takes us to the quiet side of the Smoky Mountains, as some people call it, to Townsend.

Ken Wilshire discovered what started out to be a simple road improvement project, and resulted in an impressive tribute to past civilizations.

- [Ken] It stands on a scenic hill overlooking the Little River just outside the entrance to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

The wings on each side of the building look like outstretched arms, welcoming visitors, and inviting them inside.

It's the Great Smoky Mountains Heritage Center in Townsend, Tennessee, where guests will experience an entire range of amazing artifacts to peak their interest.

And it's elevating education about the history of these hills to new heights.

- [Bob] We opened our doors in February of 2006 in the biggest snow storm of the year.

This is a Cantilever barn.

I don't know if you know this.

This is a little-known fact.

- [Ken] Actually, it all started out as a tiny transportation museum according to the center director, Bob Patterson.

But Bob says an historic archeological find right in their own front yard led to the creation of this 17,000 square foot facility.

- When they came into widen the road 321, they ran into all this Native American material, and then the Cherokee and the Chickasaw and other tribes became involved.

And they had to bring in the University of Tennessee's Archeology department to unearth and do excavations.

And when they did, they found over 100,0001 objects, and they decided they had to showcase these.

The Native Americans wanted it showcased, and that's where we came into being.

(Native American music) - [Ken] So naturally the center has an impressive display of Native American artifacts.

It's a fun way to learn about the diverse tribes who inhabited these mountains thousands of years ago - [Bob] They believe Native Americans have lived here at least part time because those days they were nomads, part time nine to 11,000 years ago.

So you had people living here many, many, just a tremendous long time ago, and nobody realizes that.

They think it's fairly modern, you know, maybe a couple hundred years, but the great stuff is we have artifacts on display that go back 9,000 years that show the people who lived here, and that there were forts here, which meant there was armed conflict here at some point, and the different types of construction that was used for the buildings.

And we have footprints of what that looked like.

And then we have all these objects.

So the Native American side of things.

We have found out so much about the games they played, the culture themselves, and we've probably teach that to the children.

- [Tour guide] Can you imagine going to school in one room?

- [Ken] And when the children come to the center, they can receive guided tours starting with the outdoor amphitheater, where a variety of concerts are held, and ending with a one-room school house used by their ancestors.

- [Bob] So what we try to do here is teach kids experiences beyond a computer, that there's a lot more to go on.

There's a lot more things that are interesting.

And so when the kids walk out of here, they're excited, because we peak their interest by hands-on.

We don't just show them, we let them play a part of it.

- And kids weren't the only ones to get to play a part of it and enjoy a personal tour.

So when you're outside, what are you going to find out here?

- Well, it's, it's kind of interesting.

We put these buildings together because we got them one at a time.

In other words, it was like a jigsaw puzzle.

We get one donated.

"Okay, where are we gonna put that one?

Oh, we got another, oh, where are we gonna put that one?"

So what we did was we decided to break it up into two sections.

Down in this area's our residential.

This is where our houses are.

Our smokehouse for the houses.

We have an outhouse, which by the way, is the most photographed building on our property.

- [Ken] I'm sure it is.

- [Bob] And then we have a church, and then you transition to more into the commercial side of things.

We have a wheelwright shop with a blacksmith shop, a saw mill, and a print shop.

- [Ken] Almost all of the old buildings are original, and were moved here from the Townsend area.

These twelve historic structures outside make exceptional venues for learning about early American life.

I mean, we saw how to shuck corn inside, and outside we're learning how to transform it into some fine squeezes, as they say in these parts.

It's an old still and a family tradition.

- [Bob] So the reason he was in the business, his mother, who was from Ireland.

When he was young, his father died, and the mother, being traditional American, did not have any income income.

So she knew how to make moonshine, so she started making moonshine, and she taught him as a young boy to make shine.

- [Ken] And no, the still's not operational, but it's certainly authentic, and it produced a lot of shine and it's time.

(harmonica and guitar music) But back inside, another entire area is devoted to pioneer history.

There are thousands of tools, farm implements, and other items that give folks a look at life when this part of the state was being settled.

- [Bob] Then on the other side, we've worked with a partnership with the national park again, where we showcase objects that came from the people of the mountains.

And so we have an entire space just devoted to the people who came from Cades Cove, but also from all the other areas.

- [Ken] And visitors come here from all other areas of the country to enjoy the experience.

The Cherokees have a name for this hallowed hollow.

It's called Tuckaleechee Cove, meaning peaceful valley, and it certainly is.

There are lots of commercial portals to the Smoky Mountains.

They call this the peaceful side of the Smokies.

- [Bob] That's what makes this place, I think what it is.

People walk out of here and they say they feel good here.

They feel what they like to feel.

Well, the feeling's because of the people that have been here and been a part of it.

They just, everybody gives so much to it, and it's such a warm space.

- [Ken] And this is just what you'll find at the Great Smoky Mountains Heritage Center.

It's their mission to preserve the unique history and rich culture of the Native Americans and early settlers to the mountains of East Tennessee.

And as you can see, they welcome this opportunity, just like their guests, with open arms.

- Impressive place, and definitely worth a stop.

When you were a kid, what did you want to do when you grew up?

Whatever it was, chances are you ended up doing something different.

Well, such was the case for the Murfreesboro brothers you're about to meet.

As Rob Wilds discovered, their career correction turned out to be a change for the better for their customers.

(bluegrass music) - [Rob] They're lining up at Jeff's Family Restaurant in Murfreesboro.

Why?

- Sweet potatoes.

- [Jimi] We do a real mean fried chicken.

- How you doing?

- [Rob] Yeah, when you come to Jeff's Family Restaurant, it might remind you of a childhood memory.

That's what Jeff and his brother Jimi hope, because it's modeled after their own experiences.

- Any day of the week, you go to any one of our grandmother's houses, something on the stove is cooking.

I mean, you can smell it coming in the front door, and it'll be some good food, you know?

So that's what we try to do here.

- [Rob] In fact, the guys learned how to cook from their grandmothers, whether they were with them or not.

- I was too little to drive, so I would call on the phone, and they would tell me how to cook over the phone.

And when I was at the house, I'd be in the kitchen with 'em.

And my father's mother taught me how to cook what she called the Hershey bar pound cake, and she taught me over the phone how to make the icing.

And back then they didn't have a microwave, you know?

You just used a stove.

And now using a microwave is so much simpler, but how she taught me over the phone, it was hard.

You know, just try to learn how to cook over the phone, but I mastered it.

- Neither Jeff, nor Jimmy ever dreamed they'd end up running a restaurant.

I mean, first there was music.

Then there was medicine, and all the time they were running around making money, their father's words of wisdom were echoing in their minds.

- You do what you want to do that you're going to like, and I say, you do something you like, you never work a day in your life.

- So, voila!

Jeff's family-friendly restaurant was born.

(bluegrass music) - Get some of this good fried chicken up.

- [Rob] Whatever the recipe, the kitchen is one big laboratory for a man who trained to be a doctor.

- I have a minor in chemistry, and this all is, is this is like a big laboratory for me and Jeff.

We both had a lot of chemistry classes.

Like when I was in the microbiotics, I was in the research and development, and I was doing a lot with sweeping this milk.

And basically we're putting things together trying to get a different end product.

So that's basically what we do here.

- [Rob] And like any good scientists, Jeff and Jimi have their own formulas.

- It maybe holds 3,500 pounds of meat.

- [Interviewer] How long will that take to cook?

- As it is now, probably about four hours.

- [Rob] Whether it's for the barbecue everybody loves.

- To keep it tender, a good, slow cook.

I don't use a rub.

A lot of people that barbecue use a rub.

A rub is kind of overbearing.

It's overbearing in the flavor, so I'll use a sprinkle method.

Then I use heat to (indistinct) the cells in the meat, where it'll adhere to the meat, and then I will smoke it.

- [Interviewer] So patience is the key, I guess, huh?

- You can say patience.

- What y'all have for dessert today?

- [Rob] Or the homemade desserts.

- I have orders all the time.

Like lemon merengue, chocolate merengue, you know?

Snickers pie, anything they ask me I can make, because I look at it like this.

If I took a laboratory book, and had to make all different types of chemicals, I know that I can do this with some flour, sugar, and eggs.

So, you know, yeah.

- [Rob] All this talk of chemistry makes the place sound pretty scientific, maybe a little dry, but it's far from stuffy.

The name is Jeff's Family Restaurant, and the family is a big part.

Much of the Sowell family works here.

In fact, Jimi was making a lot of money in real estate when the family called.

- I said, I'll help you all out for six months.

I've been here five years.

So that's how I got here now.

Because people come through the line, and the people that know that I have a pre-med degree, they wonder, "Why are you doing this?"

And I say, "It's family."

- [Rob] Mom, Maddie and Dad, John helped the boys get started, and still help out whenever they're needed.

- No dessert?

- [Rob] Much of the guys' work ethic comes from Maddie and John, as does their faith, which is a big part of this restaurant too.

- I'm 70 years old, and I can just see God working in our lives from the day that we got married up until the present time.

So I always put God first in every situation.

It's my foundation.

- We just recently started the crew on a morning prayer every morning.

- [Interviewer] Oh, is that right?

- Yeah.

- [Interviewer] Why, why do you do that?

- These days and times, you need all the help you can get, you know?

(laughing) But I've always been a religious person.

I mean, I've never had any doubt.

- [Rob] No doubts about their faith or their food.

- It is delicious.

(laughing) Would I say anything else?

(laughing) - I love the food because it's really down to earth.

It's good home-cooking.

It's just like my grandmother would make me.

- Good soul food, country cooking.

- Hey, man, I got this place to go with.

My grandma had a lot to do with it.

(laughing) - I believe it's best food in the state of Tennessee.

And if they don't come, they're missing something, and everything is fixed fresh daily from scratch.

I mean, we don't do anything out of boxes.

About the only thing that come out of cans would be the green beans.

You know, we cook those so long you can't tell, you know?

(laughing) But they'll definitely be missing something if they don't come back.

- [Rob] If you don't come by Jeff's Family Restaurant in Murfreesboro, it's not just the wonderful food you'll miss, but the chance to meet the family, and to say hello to Jeff and Jimi who gave up the laboratory for the sweet and savory science we can all appreciate.

- Thanks a lot, Rob.

You know, it's always cool to catch up with someone we've met on Tennessee Crossroads many years ago.

Even better to discover that well, they got a new version of their story to tell.

Next we go to Eads in west Tennessee to catch up with a uniquely talented miniature artist, Simon Jackson.

We drove deep into rural Fayette County for our first visit with Simon Jackson back in 1992.

The modest, unassuming artist was fixated on recreating miniature versions of barns, homes, and other old buildings in his homeland.

The more worn and blemished by time, the more aesthetically interesting.

- [Simon] It's a real rewarding feeling to finish one, and just sit back and just look at it.

- [Joe] The details of his work were remarkable, but his initial goals were not fame and fortune.

In fact, one of his first creations was a gift for his mother.

- She was so pleased with it, and when I finally finished it, I gave it to her and she loved it.

She kept it until she passed.

- [Joe] Simon's talent was equaled by his creative use of simple materials.

Wire from an extension cord could be transformed into trees.

A piece of stereo cable converted into a garden hose.

Corrugated pieces of an old tin can were perfect for making an old metal roof.

He painstakingly built chimneys brick by tiny brick with concrete, and constructed buildings with real tiny nails.

Since our initial visit, Simon's works have found many new homes, even in prominent museums.

He's won awards and invitations to art shows far away from Fayette County.

- It's just amazing.

I've had people to come up and said that they've been all over the world and they've never seen work as good as this.

And it just, you know, it makes me feel good.

It motivates me to do better.

- [Joe] I reunited with Simon Jackson on a piece of land he just bought for his future home and workshop.

He's taken a break from his miniature layouts in favor of a new little challenge, one inspired by memories of his father.

- Well, he served in World War II, and I have a lot of respect for any military people that, you know, served in the military, including right now.

And you know, I said one day I want to see what I could do with, you know guns and stuff like that.

I just wanted to try something different, just to challenge myself, to see how far could I go in this?

And I had no idea that, you know, a lot of time you have talents that you don't realize you have until you get involved.

- [Joe] Simon's new series of classic rifles will no doubt appeal to collectors of military arms history.

This framed trio features a 1908 American Springfield, along with two German sniper rifles.

Like the buildings he's made, he creates each historic firearm, like this Thompson machine gun, without any special tools.

Each piece begins with a gunstock made from one of several hardwoods he gets from all over the world.

- It must have character, and it must be tough enough.

Every time I cut a stock out, I would test it to see if I can break it, and if I can break it, I won't use that wood any more, but if I can't break it, that's what I go with for my stocks, because I want my stocks to be strong.

Then once it's cut out, you check your pocket knife, and you cut your edges down, and then you take some 150 or 100-grit sandpaper, and start sanding on and get it smooth.

And you go down to another size and sand it, and then use a steel wool.

And after you put your everything on it, and then I go with a zero, triple zero steel wool, and just polish it up, let it dry.

Then I go over it again to get that slick finish.

- [Joe] He uses brass tubing for the barrel of each rifle, sanded to the right size and shape, before real gun bluing is applied.

Details even include a functional scope with crosshairs.

- [Interviewer] I guess the obvious question is, are there real bullets in those things?

- Oh no, sir.

I made a promise to myself not make anything that shoot.

Because I don't want anybody to get hurt with anything that I make.

- [Joe] Simon has about 50 more classic firearms on his to-do list, along with many other miniature challenges.

- But everything I do really is a challenge.

I'm constantly challenging myself, constantly seeing just how far I can go and how far I can take this.

- [Joe] Before leaving, Simon wanted to show me yet another tiny, more amusing collection, these smoking pipes he made.

And although he's a non-smoker, Simon offered a little demonstration.

(chuckles) It works.

- That's the way Dad used to do it.

I watched him many mornings.

- [Joe] It was nice to visit with Simon Jackson after all these years, and great to discover his creative miniature mission is still unrelenting.

- I think when they put me in the grave, I'll have a pair of pliers in this hand, and a pencil in this one.

(laughing) Put that back in.

There we go.

- Have you noticed all the microbreweries that have popped up around the state?

Well, I guess that's proof of the popularity of beer, but what about a guy who's more obsessed with the container then the beer inside?

Well, Gretchen Base takes us to Brentwood to meet an accountant whose collection obsession is one for the books.

(ball game playing) - Oh, I can't believe he dropped that ball!

- I know it.

- I'm thirsty.

Mind if I grab a beer?

- No, please do.

Grab one for myself too.

They're in the garage.

- Okay, great.

(game continues playing) (church choir singing) What kind do you want?

- Said I was collecting beer cans my entire life.

Started when I was about six years old.

- [Gretchen] Meet Scott Mertie, accountant, author, beer can collector.

Did it bother you that he started at six?

- No, not really, no.

I knew he wasn't drinking them.

He started bringing the beer cans home, and then I helped him, and I took him to some beer cans shows when he was little.

And then when I was traveling, I'd bring him back beer cans all the time.

- Before I knew it, I have over 3000 cans now.

I started out stacking them in pyramids in my bedroom, and then we ran out of space, and we moved to the rec room, and built shelves, and now I keep them all in my garage.

- [Gretchen] And what does your wife think about your garage?

- [Scott] Oh, she's fine with them in the garage.

She don't like them inside, though.

- [Gretchen] Scott, tell us about these cans.

- Well, these can show a little bit of history of the beer can, which started in 1935.

Initially they were flat-top cans, as the pull tab was not invented.

This Budweiser can actually has instructions on the side, telling users how to open the can from the top.

They were given a church key with every six pack, which was a can opener to open the top.

And this is a series of Rolling Rock cans from a flat top, to a cone top, which can companies initially tried to sell these to breweries, because they didn't have to replace their bottling line.

So the cans would go straight through on the same bottling line that bottles would, but the users did not like these, because they would not stack in ice boxes.

- [Gretchen] Although Scott was an avid collector before coming to Nashville, a visit to a music city restaurant took his hobby to another level.

- [Scott] I moved to Nashville in 1992, straight out of college, and at that time I was always looking for good German food and beer.

And someone told me about the Gerst Haus, which was in its second location, so I went there for dinner and saw the Oompah band.

And that's actually when I first found out that there was a brewery in Nashville, and that's really what started my collection.

I've got beer cans from the 1940s.

I've got in embossed beer bottles from the late 1800s and early 1900s.

Crocks, a lot of the crocks apparently are being found in the Cumberland River.

They were used as bobbers back by fishermen in the early 1900s.

The brewery was started in 1890 by Christian Moerlein and William Gerst, both from Cincinnati.

By 1893, William Gerst bought out Christian Moerlein's interest and operated the brewery solely.

Once prohibition came about in the 1920s and early thirties the beer production actually stopped.

They did non-alcoholic beers and soda.

They actually did Orange Crush and some other colas as well.

Then in 1933 after prohibition, they started brewing beer again, and it was the only brewery in Nashville until the modern day microbrewery started in the 1980s.

The brewery did close in 1954 due to national competition.

At that time, the grandson of William Gerst, William J Gerst opened the Gerst Haus Restaurant in 1955.

- [Gretchen] As you can tell, Scott is quite an authority on all things Gerst.

He learned so much about the brewery and restaurant that he felt the need to share his discoveries with fellow beer aficionados.

- I just started getting more and more knowledge about the brewery, and before I knew it, I knew more about it than it seemed like anyone else.

And through encouragement of friends and folks from the Gerst Haus, I just decided to put all my materials together and publish a book.

- [Gretchen] That book, Nashville Brewing contains the pictorial history of the Gerst Brewery and Restaurant.

Many of the images in the book are photos of the beautiful lithographs created to promote Gerst beer.

Guess what?

Scott collects them too.

- In my living room I have about eight or nine framed lithographs that were issued in the late 1890s and early 1900s.

One of my favorites is the lithograph of the actual brewery, which shows the entire brewery complex, where it took up several blocks on Sixth Avenue South here in Nashville.

Well, an interesting piece I just recently acquired are these six trading cards, which on the front, they just look like little cartoons that you'd give out to any child.

And on the back, the six cards get put together and it says compliments William Gerst Brewing Company, Nashville, Tennessee, manufacturers of bottled malt liquid food for family use.

You don't see that advertising nowadays.

Several of my favorite pieces are the World War II girls that I have.

There are two self-framed cardboard paintings that were issued in the early 1940s during World War II, and they advertised to support their troops and buy war bonds, and of course advertise the brewery as well.

- [Gretchen] Gerst may be the focus of Scott's collection, but he also pays homage to Music City's microbreweries.

- I do have a few things from the modern day microbreweries just here in Nashville.

I don't want to get into collecting microbreweries from all over the country, just because that'd be too much.

I don't have enough space - [Gretchen] While Scott space may be limited, his drive and determination are not.

Still true to that six year old boy picking up cans, he scours the globe via his website for the Gerst brewing grail that's out there somewhere.

- There are several lithographs out there that I'm still trying to obtain that I know exist, but I do not have them in my collection yet.

I'm still always looking.

(applause and cheering) - Well, I sincerely hope you enjoyed this edition of Tennessee Crossroads.

Don't forget to go to our website any time, tennesseecrossroads.orgm and review some of your past favorite stories.

We're also on Facebook, of course.

Now, next time here, we're going to go to Knoxville, where Ken Wilshire meets a musician who changed his tune to making great barbecue.

Then to Pigeon Forge where a museum captures the experience of the Titanic.

Tressa Bush goes to Gallatin to meet a talented leather artist, and Rob Wilds goes to Old Hickory to meet a material artist.

It will be a good one, our next Tennessee Crossroads, and as always you'll be welcome.

(upbeat music)