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Ms. Cheap: Monteagle Cottage Tour and Bazaar is back




The Balcony Place cottage is one of the cottages available to tour Friday, July 22, at the annual Cottage Tour and Bazaar at the Monteagle Sunday School Assembly.Courtesy / Assembly/mainstreet-nashville

The Balcony Place cottage is one of the cottages available to tour Friday, July 22, at the annual Cottage Tour and Bazaar at the Monteagle Sunday School Assembly.Courtesy / Assembly/mainstreet-nashville

For years, I have wanted to go to the annual Cottage Tour and Bazaar at the Monteagle Sunday School Assembly and this is finally my year to make it happen.

The unique tour of homes in this step-back-in-time mountaintop compound is back in full form this year after having to cancel in 2020 and after offering a scaled back version last year because of COVID concerns.

But this year – its 58th annual tour – the event is returning on Friday, July 22, featuring tours of five cottages, as well as self-guided tours of the Assembly’s historic buildings, the ever-popular bazaar, several lunch options from Corner Market, a bake sale and a lecture by cooking guru Elizabeth Heiskell.

And I can’t wait to go!

“The annual event is designed to share with the public the Assembly’s unique history and mission, to showcase its representative turn-of-the-century structures, and to highlight the Chautauqua movement and the Assembly’s association with the Chautauqua Network,” said spokeswoman Ann Ewing.

The Comfy Place cottage is one of the cottages available to tour Friday, July 22, at the annual Cottage Tour and Bazaar at the Monteagle Sunday School Assembly.Courtesy / Assembly/mainstreet-nashville

The Comfy Place cottage is one of the cottages available to tour Friday, July 22, at the annual Cottage Tour and Bazaar at the Monteagle Sunday School Assembly.Courtesy / Assembly/mainstreet-nashville

She said this year’s tours, which run between 11 a.m. and 4 p.m., will feature five “distinctive” cottages with endearing names like: Mint Julep, Comfy Cozy, Wayside, Balcony Place and Leaning Oak. Visitors will be able to explore the cottages, all of which will have docents (usually the owners) stationed inside and ready to talk about their dwellings.

Ewing says some years the annual tour has drawn 600-800 people. “Some of them have never been to the Assembly and enjoy learning about the Chautauqua movement. Just walking around the Assembly is eye-opening,” she said. “People come from all over to this. Some of them just love old houses and like to see inside. Others like to see the old (structures) and how they have been updated.”

Ewing said the five featured cottages in this tour are all historic, but some of them have been renovated with modern amenities, giving visitors a look at ideas for their own updating projects.

The Leaning Oak cottage is one of the cottages available to tour Friday, July 22, at the annual Cottage Tour and Bazaar at the Monteagle Sunday School Assembly.Courtesy / Assembly/mainstreet-nashville

The Leaning Oak cottage is one of the cottages available to tour Friday, July 22, at the annual Cottage Tour and Bazaar at the Monteagle Sunday School Assembly.Courtesy / Assembly/mainstreet-nashville

In addition to touring the five cottages, visitors can also explore the Assembly’s historic public structures including the Winfield House (1904), the Auditorium (1927), the Gymnasium (1884) and Warren Chapel (1951).

The popular bazaar, open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., will feature local arts and crafts and fine art and jewelry from more than 40 local and regional artisans. Shopping inclined visitors can also stop in Cottage 116, The Gallery, which carries McCarty’s Pottery and other items.

And for bargain hunters like me, the Butterfly Boutique Sale (formerly known as the White Elephant Sale) will offer donated items from members and friends. That sale takes place outdoors in the Writers’ Grove located near the Woman’s Association Winfield House.

Another draw for Assembly visitors is the 10:45 a.m. presentation by Elizabeth Heiskell, who is an instructor at the Viking Cooking School, “Today Show” contributor, special guest on Food Network’s “The Kitchen and Chopped,” CMT’s “Pickler and Ben” and The Hallmark Channel. She is also a cookbook author and creator of Debutante Farmer, a bloody Mary mix that won acclaim as Southern Living’s food award for one of “the best new products in the South.”

The Mint Julep cottage is one of the cottages available to tour Friday, July 22, at the annual Cottage Tour and Bazaar at the Monteagle Sunday School Assembly.Courtesy / Assembly/mainstreet-nashville

The Mint Julep cottage is one of the cottages available to tour Friday, July 22, at the annual Cottage Tour and Bazaar at the Monteagle Sunday School Assembly.Courtesy / Assembly/mainstreet-nashville

Details

The 58th annual Tour and Bazaar, hosted by the Monteagle Sunday School Assembly Woman’s Association is 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Friday, July 22 at the Monteagle Assembly in Monteagle. It is located on Assembly Street in Monteagle, about 80 miles from Nashville.

Advance tickets ($15, or $20 day of) and box lunches ($18) must be reserved and paid for in advance at MSSA1882.org using Paypal or by calling 931-924-2286. There is also a lunch buffet and grill in Harton Hall where you can pay for on the spot. Parking passes are $5 per car and can be purchased on day of the tour at the North Gate.

The Cottage Tour is a rain or shine event and organizers suggest wearing good walking shoes since the tour is on foot. “People should be prepared to walk, but there will be golf carts” for people with mobility issues, Ewing said.

About the Assembly

The interdenominational Monteagle Assembly, which dates back to 1882, was one of hundreds of assemblies patterned after the Chautauqua Sunday School Assembly of Lake Chautauqua New York, which began in 1874.

The 400-acre Monteagle Assembly, which includes 161 homes, is among just a few surviving assemblies across the United States. It was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982 by the U.S. Department of the Interior.

Mary Hance, who has four decades of journalism experience in the Nashville area, writes a weekly Ms. Cheap column. She also appears on Thursdays on Talk of the Town on NewsChannel5. Reach her at mscheap@mainstreetmediatn.com and follow her on Facebook at Facebook.com/mscheap

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