Discover Knoxville's past with a walk through Old Gray Cemetery, where history, art, and nature intertwine. Get a detailed look at local stories and stunning monuments on this guided tour.
Discover Knoxville's past with a walk through Old Gray Cemetery, where history, art, and nature intertwine. Get a detailed look at local stories and stunning monuments on this guided tour.
Book with Knoxville Walking Tours
Verified experiences and guided adventures in the surrounding area.
Operated by Knoxville Walking Tours · Knoxville, Tennessee
easy.
1–2 hours.
Moderate fitness level; comfortable walking shoes recommended
Yes, there is a nominal fee, which helps maintain the grounds and support guided tours.
Yes, scheduled guided tours led by knowledgeable local guides are available, providing rich historical context.
Absolutely, children who enjoy walking and history will appreciate the cultural stories and site exploration.
Yes, self-guided visits are permitted, but guided tours enhance the experience with additional insights.
Pets are welcome on leashes, but please keep them respectful of memorials and other visitors.
Early morning or late afternoon provide the best lighting for photography and a more tranquil experience.
Old Gray Cemetery was established in 1850 and has served as Knoxville’s main cemetery for over a century, reflecting the city’s growth and history.
The site actively maintains its historic landscapes with sustainable practices, preserving its beauty for future generations.
Knoxville Walking Tours offers guided, on-foot experiences that explore the city’s history, culture, and hidden stories. Operating in Knoxville, Tennessee, the company leads themed tours across downtown, the Old City, and other notable neighborhoods. Guides present a mix of historical facts, local lore, literary connections, and ghost stories drawn from documented events and well-known local figures. Tours vary in length and focus: several experiences run approximately 1.5 hours (90 minutes), while select walks extend to two hours for deeper historical context. Popular itineraries include literary-focused walks highlighting authors such as Cormac McCarthy and Nikki Giovanni, ghost tours that cover historic hotels and haunted streets, Civil War–era walks that include vantage points like the Sunsphere observation deck, and neighborhood tours of sites such as the First Presbyterian Graveyard, Blount Mansion Gardens, and the Old Courthouse. Knoxville Walking Tours also offers specialized themes including Black history, music history, suffrage and women’s history, cemetery walks, criminal-history narratives, and botanical explorations. The Literary Heritage Tour can be tailored to emphasize particular writers or works when requested. All descriptions are grounded in the documented history and local records referenced during each walk. Visitors should review individual tour summaries and select the experience that best matches interests in history, literature, the supernatural, or local culture. Tours are conducted on foot and navigate historic streets and public sites throughout Knoxville.
Book with Knoxville Walking Tours