See state sights without dropping a dime

Don’t look for the wildest roller-coaster ride in a new book about Tennessee tourist attractions.

“Free Tennessee” won’t have that. This book is more for thrifty people who enjoy vacation more when their money goes for gasoline, food and souvenirs rather than ticket prices. Those folks can turn “Free Tennessee” into a travel guide.

The book by Kentucky resident James Bilodeau lists Tennessee attractions from automobile factories to county historical museums to outdoor nature centers.

Subtitled “Free things to see and do in the Volunteer State,” the 157-page book is divided into six sections. Those section titles vary from “Fun in the Outdoors” to “Civil War Sites and Museums.” Information on each location includes telephone numbers and Web sites, as well some history about the place and what visitors will see and can do there.

The book’s 84 free locations include a lot of city, county or historic museums and historic sites or parks. But there’s also lists of free tours of industries from Mayfield Dairy in Athens to the George Dickel Distillery in Normandy.

Outdoor free spots include, of course, the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. But there’s also Erwin National Fish Hatchery, along with Knoxville’s Ijams Nature Center and the University of Tennessee Gardens, and the UT Arboretum in Oak Ridge.

A number of East Tennessee spots are included in the book, including the Farragut Folklife Museum and other historic museums in Sevier, Jefferson and Cocke counties. UT’s Frank H. McClung Museum, Norris Dam State Park and the Scopes “Monkey Trial” Museum in Dayton are among other East Tennessee free attractions listed in the book.

The book’s most unusual places to visit include Sunday morning services at the Nashville Cowboy Church, a teapot museum in Trenton, Tenn., and the nondenominational Biblical Resources Center and Museum in Collierville.

Amy McRary may be reached at 865-342-6437.

Sunday, July 15, 2007

© 2007, Knoxville News Sentinel Co.