Last updated: April 18, 2026
Marion County's culture combines indigenous traditions, Appalachian heritage, industrial-era history, and contemporary developments. It is expressed through food, craft, community events, and local stories.
The Paper Clips Project
In 1998, eighth-grade students at Whitwell Middle School began a project to collect six million paper clips, one for every Jewish victim of the Holocaust, as a way to grasp the scale of the loss. The project expanded beyond the classroom: students received paper clips from all 50 states and more than 100 countries. A German railcar, of the type used to transport prisoners to concentration camps, was brought to Whitwell's campus to house the collection. The project was the subject of the 2004 documentary film Paper Clips, which drew international attention to the school.
National Cornbread Festival
South Pittsburg has hosted the National Cornbread Festival annually since 1997. The festival features cornbread cooking competitions (including the National Cornbread Cook-Off), tastings, music, and crafts, and is co-sponsored by Lodge Cast Iron and Martha White. Cornbread is a staple of Southern and Appalachian cuisine with a long history in the region.
Cast Iron Heritage
Lodge Cast Iron has operated continuously in South Pittsburg since 1896. The company produces cast-iron cookware, which is known for heat retention and the patina that builds with repeated use. Lodge remains family-owned and is one of the longest continuously operating cast-iron cookware manufacturers in the United States.
Appalachian Folk Culture
Marion County sits in Appalachia, a region with documented musical, narrative, and craft traditions. Ballad singing, dulcimer and fiddle music, quilting, basket-weaving, and storytelling have been recorded in the surrounding area. Folk practices associated with the region include food preservation, home crafts, and traditional medicine using native plants.
Local Lore & Legends
A handful of stories, some historical, some folklore, are commonly associated with Marion County.
Johnny Cash at Nickajack Cave
In 1967, Johnny Cash drove to Nickajack Cave intending to die there. He emerged with what he described as a religious experience that led him toward recovery.
Sweetens Cove Golf Club
A 9-hole public course opened in 2014, designed by Rob Collins and Tad King, with an ownership group that has included Peyton Manning and Andy Roddick.
“The Suck” Rapids
A historic stretch of Tennessee River rapids in Marion County, largely submerged by Hales Bar Dam in 1913 but still part of local memory.
Continuity and Change
Longstanding traditions associated with Marion County (cornbread, cast iron, Appalachian folk music) coexist with more recent developments (Sweetens Cove, the Paper Clips Project).