Heritage Alliance and Chester Inn Museum Open

The Heritage Alliance of Northeast Tennessee and Southwest Virginia’s office in Jonesborough has reopened to the public. Our archives located in the Visitor’s Center remain closed. Interested researchers should contact the Heritage Alliance directly at (423) 753-9580 for assistance. The Architectural Salvage Warehouse will resume regular operations on Saturday, June 6. The Warehouse will be open from 8:00 am – 12:00 pm on the first and third Saturdays of the month through the end of September.

We are excited to announce that the Chester Inn State Historic Site and Museum has also reopened to the public. This is the first stage of the Museum’s reopening and some changes have been made. The Chester Inn values the safety of our visitors, staff, and volunteers above all, so we are following an increased cleaning routine and have set up two hand sanitizer stations. We have temporarily removed any interactive and hands-on features. Kids coloring sheets are available on our website, www.heritageall.org. The month of June the Museum will be open on the following schedule: Friday, Saturday, and Monday 11:00 am to 5:00 pm, Sunday 1:00 pm to 5:00 pm, and Tuesday-Thursday closed. If you or a small group would like to visit the Museum during an off day contact the Heritage Alliance directly and we will try to schedule a time that works.

Our staff has worked to compile some tips for our museum visitors. We will try to limit visitors to 10 people in the Chester Inn Museum at a time. We will close the door until the visitor count decreases allowing for new visitors to come in. Anyone entering the museum is suggested to wear a mask. Visitors are asked to follow social distancing guidelines. The upstairs tour is temporarily unavailable, but we have a video tour that visitors can view upon request. This plan is subject to changes. If you have any questions please call us at (423) 753-4580 or (423) 753-9580. You can also email us at chesterinn@heritageall.org or message us here on Facebook.

We will be making decisions regarding History Happy Hour and all other programs on a case by case basis. Follow the Heritage Alliance and Chester Inn Museum on Facebook to receive up to date information.