By D.C. Thomas On October 30, Austin Peay State University (APSU) welcomed Dr. Temple Grandin, renowned author, scientist, and advocate for autism awareness and humane animal treatment, on an evening…
Tag: Clarksville
National Cat Day with the Customs House Museum
By Shana Thornton In honor of National Cat Day, October 29, we’re sharing cats from the Customs House Museum’s Collection. And, surprise, we’ve rounded up some stories and pictures of…
Archives Celebrations & Open House
By Shana Thornton The Montgomery County Archives is celebrating Archives Month this October! There are three remaining events that the Archives invites patrons to attend. An Open House takes place…
Clarksville Hispanic Heritage Month Festival 2025
By Shana Thornton September 15 marks the beginning of Hispanic Heritage Month in the United States. For twenty years, Hispanic Heritage was observed as a week-long celebration, after being first…
Open Windows of Tom Malone’s Artistry
By Shana Thornton Second & Commerce serves as a voice of arts, history, and culture representative of Clarksville-Montgomery County, and those who have called it home over its 200-year history….
Top Dog Day 2025
By Shana Thornton Today, August 26, is National Dog Day, and we here at the Customs House Museum & Cultural Center have some dogs to tell you about. Some are…
That Painting Saved My Life, and I Saved It
By Shana Thornton Art often changes someone’s life – motivating them to switch careers, become inspired to complete a creative endeavor, and pique curiosities to learn a new topic. During…
We Are IN the Clarksville Community: Summer 2025
By Shana Thornton The Customs House Museum & Cultural Center extends beyond the walls of the museum, located at the corner of South Second Street and Commerce Street in downtown…
Embracing Blackness: Diasporic Unions
By Shana Thornton Embracing Blackness: Diasporic Unions exhibition is a celebration of Black joy and culture. The exhibition at the Customs House Museum & Cultural Center kicked off with a…
Nature Meets Art at Wade Bourne Nature Center and Rotary Park
By Meghan E. Gattignolo Since 2020, the Wade Bourne Nature Center at Rotary Park has added a little something extra to Clarksville and Montgomery County’s educational offerings. Not only does…
Lorenzo Swinton and His Gallery
By Meghan E. Gattignolo Since 2023, the Lorenzo Swinton Gallery at 106 N. 2nd Street has become an important piece of the local community and Clarksville’s downtown art scene. His…
A Place for Lovers, Hikers, Artists, & Explorers
By Meghan E. Gattignolo Dunbar Cave State Park is one of the most historically relevant places to visit in Clarksville. From long-standing traditions to the remnants of prehistory people, the park…
Public History Tours: A Fresh Focus on Clarksville’s History
By Meghan E. Gattignolo Stroll around Clarksville and learn about prominent women, entrepreneurs who started businesses in downtown, Black history, the tobacco trade, pioneer and indigenous histories, different disasters in…
Clarksville’s Trees: Precious Pillars of History
By Meghan E. Gattignolo Trees do a lot for us: they provide oxygen and shade, they absorb heat and prevent urban landscapes from getting too hot, they support native wildlife…
Historic Clarksville Women Writers: Evelyn Scott and Caroline Gordon
By Meghan E. Gattignolo Clarksville is not as well-known as some other cities, but the area actually produced a few great writers of the 1920s and 30s. Elsewhere in the…
Five Women Artists Who Deserve a Second Look
By Meghan E. Gattignolo In March, we celebrate the achievements of women, and few institutions do a better job at showcasing the work of women artists than the Customs House…
Khari Turner: Touching History with Water
By Meghan E. Gattignolo Believe it or not, all the water on Earth today is the same water that was present on the planet’s surface more than 4 billion years…
Meet Curator of Education: Stephanie Stafford
By Meghan E. Gattignolo During The Customs House Museum & Cultural Center’s 40 years of service to the Clarksville and Montgomery County community, a significant part of the museum’s presence…
She Paints Landscapes: Why the Art of Jackie Langford Matters
By Meghan E. Gattignolo When you think of your favorite painting, is it a portrait of a pensive face? Or, do you see flowers floating on water, maybe a bridge,…
Clarksville’s Road to 250: Celebrating an American Milestone
By Meghan E. Gattignolo After a long year of celebrating The Customs House Museum & Cultural Center’s 40th birthday, now it’s time to look ahead and get ready to celebrate…
5 Ways Indigenous Peoples Have Used Dunbar Cave Throughout History
By Meghan E. Gattignolo Dunbar Cave State Park and the Friends of Dunbar Cave will be hosting a First Day Hike and Membership Drive on January 1, 2025. Indigeous peoples…
Lisa Gleim: Exploring Cherokee Traditions with Native Wildlife
By Meghan E. Gattignolo Accomplished artist Lisa Gleim earned space for her current exhibit at The Customs House Museum & Cultural Center three years ago. Gleim’s work won the vote for…
Vintage Fashion: Purses From the Collection
By Meghan E. Gattignolo The Customs House Museum & Cultural Center’s mission is to collect, preserve, and interpret items from Clarksville and Montgomery County for future generations. Visitors can be…
Thomas Dabney Mabry Creative Writing Contest Winner: Chrissy Hicks, Rising Local Author
By Meghan E. Gattignolo Clarksville, Tennessee, has its own prestigious award for creative writing. Thomas Dabney Mabry, Jr. was a published short story author from Clarksville who won the O….
Ghosts of Austin Peay State University
By Meghan E. Gattignolo The city of Clarksville is 240 years old. A place with such deep history hides few corners where no one has ever tread. Particularly in downtown, you’ll be…
From the Collection: Greenwood Cemetery Receiving Vault Door
By Meghan E. Gattignolo Spooky season has fallen heavily upon us once more, and what’s spookier than spending a little time in a cemetery on a chilly fall day? I…
Meet Kim Raines: Lead Visitor Services Associate and Tour Guide Extraordinaire
By Meghan E. Gattignolo When asked what her favorite story is from the Customs House Museum & Cultural Center’s cemetery tours, Kim Raines doesn’t have to think about it too hard: “My…
Mason Rudolph: The Man and the Golf Course
By Meghan E. Gattignolo A new exhibit in the Museum’s Challenges and Champions Sports Gallery remembers legendary golf professional Mason Rudolph. Local golfers know the name well, both for the man…
Life is Art: Transforming Clutter into Creativity
By Meghan E. Gattignolo The Customs House Museum & Cultural Center is happy to represent many artistic identities in Clarksville, as well as being a bastion for history and fantastic…
Don’t Let the Skies Go Silent: See the AFC’s Silent Skies Mural in Clarksville Today
By Meghan E. Gattignolo Here in Tennessee, we love our birds. Our state bird – the mockingbird – requires effort to love and often gets a bad reputation. Watching them, though,…