Nolan R. Turner photographs, 1994 - 1995, 2014

The dates of the Smithville Jamboree Collection range from 1952 to 2021. There are multiple records creators to this collection, including Berry C. Williams, Mickey Driver, Neil Dudney, Nolan Turner, Maureen Jameson, and Roger Estes. The bulk of the collection, however, is composed of materials preserved by the Smithville Jamboree Board. The collection contains event programs, photographs, ephemera, correspondence, and documents pertaining to the Smithville Fiddlers Jamboree and Crafts Festival event and establishment. The collection provides a general overview of the festival, such as past competitions, contestants, craft booths, and notable events, such as guest speakers and celebrity and political appearances.

The Smithville Jamboree Collection began as a project to amass research materials on the Smithville Jamboree and Crafts Festival in preparation for a semicentennial celebratory book detailing the history of the event. As digitization continued and the collection grew, representatives of the Smithville Jamboree officially donated the materials to Tennessee Technological University's Archives and Special Collections. The collection is formed from the donations of a multitude of parties and individuals. Members of the Smithville Jamboree Board have personally donated artifacts, photographs, negatives, and programs from previous Jamborees. The board also invited the Smithville community to share materials, which resulted in the inclusion of individual donations.