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Frank H. McClung Museum General Information

Welcome from the Director

The McClung Museum is a general museum with collections in anthropology, archaeology, decorative arts, local history, and natural history. The exhibits document ways of life, cultural trends, and technologies from prehistoric times to the present day, and showcase much of Tennessee's past -- its geology, history, art, and culture. The McClung Museum is a special place -- a place of discovery, a place to learn about the world around us.

As a part of the University of Tennessee, the Museum supports and participates in the University's mission to serve the state, region, and nation through scholarship, teaching, artistic creation, professional practice, and public service.

The professionalism and high caliber of the Museum are reflected in its accreditation by the American Association of Museums. In fact, the McClung Museum is one of only 12 museums in Tennessee to be so recognized.

I invite you to visit the Museum and to enjoy the many experiences we offer. As Lewis, a 4th grader, wrote to us: "It is the best museum in the world."

Jeff Chapman
Director


ACCESSIBILITY

The Museum is accessible to persons using wheelchairs.

Accommodations for persons with other disabilities may be requested in advance. Please see the Museum floorplans to familiarize yourself with the location of exhibits, elevators, and restrooms.

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ACCREDITATION

The McClung Museum is accredited by the American Association of Museums.

[AAM Logo]

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MUSEUM ADDRESS and CONTACT INFORMATION

The McClung Museum's address, telephone number, and other means of contact are:

ADDRESS: Frank H. McClung Museum
The University of Tennessee
1327 Circle Park Drive
Knoxville, TN 37996-3200
TELEPHONE: (865) 974-2144
FAX: (865) 974-3827
E-MAIL: museum@utk.edu
THIS WEBSITE: We welcome your comments and suggestions.
Please send them to:
museum@utk.edu

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ADMISSION

Admission to the McClung Museum is always FREE.

MUSEUM HOURS

The Museum is OPEN:

  • Monday through Saturday: 9:00 am to 5:00 pm
  • Sunday: 1:00 to 5:00 pm

The Museum is CLOSED:

  • New Year's Day
  • Easter Sunday
  • Memorial Day
  • Fourth of July
  • Labor Day
  • Thanksgiving Day
  • Christmas Eve and Christmas Day

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ARCHAEOLOGICAL INSTITUTE OF AMERICA - EAST TENNESSEE SOCIETY

[AIA-ETS Logo]   The McClung Museum is closely affiliated with the Archaeological Institute of America - East Tennessee Society. The Museum provides a venue for the Society's monthly meetings and lectures, hosts the Society's Website, and provides other cooperation and support.


EDUCATION PROGRAMS

Various education programs, outreach programs, and guided tours, as well as special events, are scheduled throughout the year for adult and student groups. For program reservations or additional information, please contact the Museum Educator, either by telephone (865) 974-2144 or via e-mail addressed to: woodield@utk.edu.

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MUSEUM LOCATION, MAPS, AND DIRECTIONS

The McClung Museum is located at Circle Park, in the heart of the Knoxville campus of the University of Tennessee.

[UTK Campus Map]
UTK CAMPUS MAP
[larger image]

The McClung Museum is the first building just beyond the University of Tennessee's Knoxville Campus Information Center on Circle Park Drive.

Additional maps and specific directions to the Campus Information Center are provided on the University Website.

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MISSION AND VISION

MISSION:

The Frank H. McClung Museum is an important component of The University of Tennessee, and participates in the implementation of the University's mission. The University of Tennessee is committed to the development of individuals and society as a whole through the cultivation and enrichment of the human mind and spirit. This is to be accomplished through teaching, scholarship, artistic creation, public service, and professional practice.

The complementary mission of the Frank H. McClung Museum is to advance understanding and appreciation of the earth and its peoples through the collection, preservation, study, interpretation, and exhibition of objects and data. The Museum is dedicated to the support of the academic programs of The University and to the attraction and education of the broadest spectrum of participants.

VISION:

The vision of the Frank H. McClung Museum is to be one of the premier museums in the Southeast, and to expand the Museum's presence in the University, the community, the state, and the nation. This expanded role is founded on public service, education, and inclusion, grounded in stewardship and scholarship.

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THE MUSEUM BUILDING

McClung Museum The Frank H. McClung Museum was built with money bequeathed to the University of Tennessee by Judge and Mrs. John Green of Knoxville as a memorial to Mrs. Green's father, Frank H. McClung. The Museum building was officially dedicated on 1 June 1963.

The Museum is an outstanding facility. Approximately one-quarter of the 38,500 square-foot brick building is devoted to exhibits. Remaining space is dedicated to a 267-seat auditorium, laboratories, library, photographic resources, storage, workshop, and offices.

Visitors begin their museum experience in a spacious lobby with walls of handmade brick, and floors of Tennessee quartzite.

The Vine A fountain of marble and travertine is centered under the domed ceiling and is crowned by The Vine, a bronze statue of a woman dancing, sculpted by American artist Harriet Whitney Frishmuth, circa 1923.


MUSEUM FLOORPLANS

 

Main Floor
Ground Floor

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MUSEUM COLLECTIONS

The McClung Museum is a general museum with large and diverse collections.

  • RESEARCH COLLECTIONS. Scientific excavations and collecting over the past 65+ years have generated the following major research collections:


    • Archaeology Research Collections
    • Ethnobotanical Research Collection
    • Mollusk Research Collection

  • EGYPTIAN COLLECTION. The Museum has on permanent exhibition (Ancient Egypt: The Eternal Voice) a collection of some 200 ancient Egyptian artifacts dating from the Predynastic to the Ptolemaic periods; this is supported by a modest collection of 19th and early 20th century photographs, postcards, and stereoviews of Egyptian scenes and sites.


  • GENERAL COLLECTION. The General Collection is comprised of a wide variety of objects acquired by gift and bequest to The University of Tennessee. These include:


    • An extensive collection of hand-colored bird lithographs by John Gould, John James Audubon, and others
    • Ceramic pitchers
    • Tribal art
    • Furniture
    • Clothing
    • Fine arts
    • Decorative arts
    • Toys
    • Photographs
    • Tools
    • Vertebrate fossils
    • Other categories of objects

Examples of all these collections are on long and short term exhibition. Online examples can be seen on the pages noted above and in our Exhibition Archive.

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PARKING

  • During the week, parking passes for Circle Park are available at the Campus Information Center, located just north of the Museum at the entrance to Circle Park (see the above UTK campus map). Visitors should tell the attendant that they are visiting the McClung Museum, and request a 2-hour permit.
  • On weekends, parking is available on Circle Park and adjacent parking lots.

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