Cookeville History Museum
Open Tuesday – Saturday
10:00 am till 4:00 pm
Free Admission
About
Cookeville History Museum
The museum houses a self-paced, permanent exhibit on the history of this community, including a timeline around the building that begins with the first people to the area and ends with what is happening today. The front gallery is dedicated to local history exhibits, traveling exhibits and collection displays. We are part of the City of Cookeville’s Department of Leisure Services and Public Facilities, Historical Arts Division. Visit the Cookeville History Museum and let us share our story with you.
Current Exhibit
What Is Happening At The Museum
Discover the stories behind Cookeville's vibrant murals during our June History Hike, Walls of Wonder!
Presented by Cookeville Leisure Services and Cookeville History Museums, and sponsored by The Outdoor Experience, this self-guided adventure will lead you through downtown as you uncover colorful public art, learn about the talented artists behind each mural, and explore the history woven into our city's walls.
-Start at either the Cookeville Depot Museum or Cookeville History Museum
-Saturday, June 13
-Anytime between 10:30 AM and 2:30 PM
Complete the hike and return your guide for a chance to win a prize bag sponsored by The Outdoor Experience! Stop and explore downtown shops, enjoy a local meal, and see Cookeville through a new lens as you discover the stories painted across our city walls.
#CookevilleLeisureServices #CookevilleHistoryMuseums #HistoryHike #WallsOfWonder #DowntownCookeville
Presented by Cookeville Leisure Services and Cookeville History Museums, and sponsored by The Outdoor Experience, this self-guided adventure will lead you through downtown as you uncover colorful public art, learn about the talented artists behind each mural, and explore the history woven into our city's walls.
-Start at either the Cookeville Depot Museum or Cookeville History Museum
-Saturday, June 13
-Anytime between 10:30 AM and 2:30 PM
Complete the hike and return your guide for a chance to win a prize bag sponsored by The Outdoor Experience! Stop and explore downtown shops, enjoy a local meal, and see Cookeville through a new lens as you discover the stories painted across our city walls.
#CookevilleLeisureServices #CookevilleHistoryMuseums #HistoryHike #WallsOfWonder #DowntownCookeville
💡FUN FACT FRIDAY💡
(Controversial Southern Foods Edition)
•Cornbread once divided the South: In different Southern regions, traditional cornbread was made with or without sugar—and many families still fiercely defend their version today. Recipes reveal regional identities that go back generations.
•Chitterlings (Chitlins): No food in the South is as polarizing as chitterlings—the small intestines of pigs, usually boiled and fried to eat with hot sauce or vinegar.
•Boiled Peanuts: If you pull up to a roadside stand in the deep South, you will likely find a massive metal pot full of peanuts boiling in heavily salted, seasoned water. To some, they are a warm, salty, addictive snack with a texture similar to a cooked bean. To others, the concept of a "soggy" peanut can be incredibly off-putting.
•Kool-Aid Pickles ("Koolickles"): A relatively recent but widespread culinary phenomenon, particularly in the Mississippi Delta, involves taking standard dill pickle spears, cutting them and soaking them in a strong mixture of sugary Kool-Aid (usually cherry or tropical punch). A jarring clash of flavor profiles, the result is a bright red pickle that tastes intensely sweet, sour and salty all at once.
Be sure to check out our current exhibit: Recipes Remembered: Preserving History One Dish at a Time, Tuesday - Saturday from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm, free admission.
AND, DON'T WASH YOUR CAST IRON SKILLET!!! 🍳
(Controversial Southern Foods Edition)
•Cornbread once divided the South: In different Southern regions, traditional cornbread was made with or without sugar—and many families still fiercely defend their version today. Recipes reveal regional identities that go back generations.
•Chitterlings (Chitlins): No food in the South is as polarizing as chitterlings—the small intestines of pigs, usually boiled and fried to eat with hot sauce or vinegar.
•Boiled Peanuts: If you pull up to a roadside stand in the deep South, you will likely find a massive metal pot full of peanuts boiling in heavily salted, seasoned water. To some, they are a warm, salty, addictive snack with a texture similar to a cooked bean. To others, the concept of a "soggy" peanut can be incredibly off-putting.
•Kool-Aid Pickles ("Koolickles"): A relatively recent but widespread culinary phenomenon, particularly in the Mississippi Delta, involves taking standard dill pickle spears, cutting them and soaking them in a strong mixture of sugary Kool-Aid (usually cherry or tropical punch). A jarring clash of flavor profiles, the result is a bright red pickle that tastes intensely sweet, sour and salty all at once.
Be sure to check out our current exhibit: Recipes Remembered: Preserving History One Dish at a Time, Tuesday - Saturday from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm, free admission.
AND, DON'T WASH YOUR CAST IRON SKILLET!!! 🍳
Local Pride Alert!
Employees in the Leisure Services Department at the Cookeville History Museum are earning statewide recognition after receiving an Award of Excellence from the Tennessee Association of Museums for their standout temporary exhibit, “Appalachian Oddities.” Thank you Beth Thompson and Ashley Mckee for representing the Cookeville History Museum so well! (pictured).
This imaginative exhibit brought the Upper Cumberland’s quirky, mysterious, and lesser-known stories to life through a creative blend of folklore, artifacts, and community storytelling—captivating visitors and celebrating the region’s rich cultural heritage in a whole new way.
If you missed it, don’t worry—the museum continues to rotate fresh, engaging exhibits that highlight local history in unexpected ways.
- Visit the Cookeville History Museum
40 E. Broad Street | Tuesday–Saturday | 10 AM–4 PM | Free Admission
Employees in the Leisure Services Department at the Cookeville History Museum are earning statewide recognition after receiving an Award of Excellence from the Tennessee Association of Museums for their standout temporary exhibit, “Appalachian Oddities.” Thank you Beth Thompson and Ashley Mckee for representing the Cookeville History Museum so well! (pictured).
This imaginative exhibit brought the Upper Cumberland’s quirky, mysterious, and lesser-known stories to life through a creative blend of folklore, artifacts, and community storytelling—captivating visitors and celebrating the region’s rich cultural heritage in a whole new way.
If you missed it, don’t worry—the museum continues to rotate fresh, engaging exhibits that highlight local history in unexpected ways.
- Visit the Cookeville History Museum
40 E. Broad Street | Tuesday–Saturday | 10 AM–4 PM | Free Admission
Kicking off ‘Patriotic Season’ for this very special year! If your Memorial Day weekend can’t be filled with sunshine, may it be full of love. 🇺🇸
💡FUN FACT FRIDAY💡
(Herald-Citizen, June 26, 1930) Winners were announced this week in the contest to name the new swimming pool that is nearing completion west of town on the Nashville Highway. Sue Ray Carlen won the first prize - a season pass to the pool
- for "Echo Valley Plunge," the name that will be given to the new pool, says owner C. M. Harris. It's fitting because the pool is located in a sort of a valley, he says, and he's certain it will "echo" the sounds of people having a good time. The second place winner, J. P. Hamilton, an agent for the Tennessee Central Railroad here, went for a more poetic name, "Swymmoor." Winners received an all-wool swimsuit. 👙
(Herald-Citizen, June 26, 1930) Winners were announced this week in the contest to name the new swimming pool that is nearing completion west of town on the Nashville Highway. Sue Ray Carlen won the first prize - a season pass to the pool
- for "Echo Valley Plunge," the name that will be given to the new pool, says owner C. M. Harris. It's fitting because the pool is located in a sort of a valley, he says, and he's certain it will "echo" the sounds of people having a good time. The second place winner, J. P. Hamilton, an agent for the Tennessee Central Railroad here, went for a more poetic name, "Swymmoor." Winners received an all-wool swimsuit. 👙
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Cookeville Depot Museum
116 W. Broad Street
Cookeville, TN 38501
Tuesday – Saturday
10:00 am – 4:00 pm
