Stroll along Bruce Street and Court Avenue to experience the most dramatic changes. “It’s a complete downtown renovation,” says Bryon Fortner, public works director for Sevierville. “The overall look is early 1900s style.” Sidewalks were widened, benches added, electrical lines moved underground, fiber internet installed, utility lines replaced, and new trees, flowers, streetlights, and bike racks added.

Physical changes have made historic downtown Sevierville more pedestrian friendly. Come walk around discovering the eclectic mix of established and new businesses. “There are neat places that you can’t experience anywhere else,” says Austin Williams, who chairs the board of the Sevierville Commons Association and is a developer who owns several buildings downtown. “It’s quaint, local, and historic with a different style and pace than anywhere else in Sevier County. More restaurants, retailers, and different businesses that are unique and authentic to downtown Sevierville will continue to open.”

As ever, the iconic standout of the Sevierville skyline is the Sevier County Courthouse, which was designed in the Beaux Arts style and built in 1896, the same year that the state of Tennessee celebrated its centennial. In 1976 it became the first courthouse in the state to be listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Since 1987, a statue of Dolly Parton has adorned its front lawn, a tribute to the superstar by her hometown community.

The city’s $7.5 million streetscape project, which concluded in 2021, also includes several new murals that bring fresh color to downtown. Painted on one side of an old brick alley is a mural by Seth Bishop and Ben Harrison of Smoky Mountain Mural Company. The nostalgic piece depicts a young blonde child enjoying a burger at Red’s Café, a former Sevierville eatery that was a favorite of young Dolly Parton. Across the street is the Wings of Wander mural by Sevierville artist Pinkie Mistry. Featuring a monarch butterfly, it brightens downtown, nods to Dolly Parton’s hit song “Love is Like a Butterfly,” and serves as a colorful backdrop for an Instagram photo. A large-scale mural on the side of The Pines Downtown, a historic theater recently turned family entertainment venue, showcases five of the famous singers who performed at The Pines Theater during its heyday. Seth Bishop also created this mural which includes Roy Acuff, Archie Campbell, Dolly Parton, June Carter Cash, and Chet Atkins.

Several new sculptures can also be found in downtown, including The Tracks of Time, a sculpture made using railroad tracks unearthed from downtown Sevierville’s streets during construction and commemorating the train that ran through Sevierville from 1910 to 1961. Bertie the Bird Dog has also found a furever home on Court Avenue and helps share the early twentieth century story of Dr. Massey and his bird dog, Bertie, who delivered his bank deposits to Sevier County bank and returned with the deposit slip every day for nearly a decade.

Learn more about the people and stories behind these works of art.

“Five businesses will soon have new signage and renovated façades,” says Williams. “One particular brick building had been covered up with stucco in the 1970s. The goal is to go back to the original look of a historic downtown building.”

“There’s a lot of interest in the new restaurants,” says Fortner. Among them, Graze Burgers is best-known for its grass-fed beef burgers, though its hot dogs, soups, salads, milkshakes, and other options are equally hard to resist. The casual place occupies a building that served as Sevierville’s post office in the 1920s and 1930s. “Horse-drawn buggies used to pull down the alleyway,” says Williams. Now with a patio out back, “instead of pulling mail in and out of the windows, it’s burgers and hot dogs. It’s a way to commemorate the past.” Live musical performances are staged on Fridays and Saturdays, adding to downtown’s lively vibe.