East Tennesseans celebrate World’s Fair anniversary at World’s Fair Park
Hundreds visited the park to check out vendors, food trucks and the Ferris wheel.
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WVLT) - Hundreds from East Tennessee visited World’s Fair Park Saturday to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the 1982 World’s Fair. It wasn’t 11 million people like 40 years ago, but the event had an international feel with vendors and food at World’s Fair Park.
“It was just an amazing time to be here,” Knoxville candle maker Anjannette Dreier said.
Dreier moved from Arizona to Knoxville during the 1982 World’s Fair.
“I was not a happy person. I was a 14-year-old teenage girl. I wasn’t happy. I wanted to vacation here and leave,” Dreier said.
She wasn’t the only one to move during the fair. Agnes Shrewsbury moved from Michigan to Knoxville after visiting the World’s Fair.
“It was pretty awesome. When I saw all of the mountains, I knew I wanted to live here, and now I do,” Shrewsbury said.
Even though both had different starting experiences living in Knoxville, both are happy to call this place home.
“I love it. I love it. Minus the humidity, but I do love Tennessee,” Dreier said.
To keep with the original World’s Fair theme, many groups brought back different and new forms of energy. KAT showed off some of its electric buses, and Solar Alliance showed a motorized lawnmower getting power from solar panels.
“40 years ago, not a thing. Today, you can have this in your own backyard,” Leeper Hardware worker Brian Williams said.
While many were happy to see the new technological advancements, several won’t forget the memories from years past.
“We walked a lot. We stayed at a college dorm. I remember getting in trouble for being in the water taking a picture of my friends sitting on the steps,” Shrewsbury said.
The celebration also included fireworks later at night.
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