Alcatraz East, Outlaws

I'll share more pictures than commentary about the Alcatraz East Crime Museum in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee.  Let's just say that I highly recommend it for three or four hours of your trip to that area.

Entering, the first items on display in a very dark area are those describing piracy and pirate life.  Some of the things there are replicas, but look closely for some of the more torturous artifacts, and you'll find the real things.  I recommend clicking on the pictures below to read the labeling and appreciate what you are looking at.

Moving a little further, you'll find moonshining paraphernalia, as well as items belonging to Jesse James and his gang - including floorboards (right) stained with Jesse's blood when he nearly bled to death in Kentucky.

Weapons, books, holsters, bullets, and much more grace this area of the museum.  Visitors can be overwhelmed with the number of artifacts and material culture that tell the tales of these notorious outlaws of the frontier.  They are real and gritty stories that do not try to glamorize the outlaws at all, but tell of the bloody, fugitive lifestyles of bandits, thieves, murderers, and terrorists.

Things get pretty detailed throughout Alcatraz East, and interested parties could easily spend an entire day reading and admiring the actual tools of the "trade". It is my kind of museum - with few replicas and an abundant collection of primary sources.  We'll climb deeper into the museum in the next few days, landing on organized crime, serial killers, and terrorists as we go.