Haley Heritage Square & Alex Haley Statue, Knoxville

The Haley Heritage Square, located on the slopes of Morningside Park in East Knoxville, is named after Alex Haley, a Pulitzer Prize-winning author famous for his book "Roots," which traces his ancestry back to Africa. Haley spent his formative years in Henning, Tennessee before returning to his birthplace of Ithaca, New York.

The square features a 13-foot bronze statue of Haley, sculpted by Tina Allen, who depicts the author sitting beside a stream and gazing at the Smoky Mountains he loved. Visitors can observe Haley's warm and friendly face forever lost in thought while holding a copy of his book "Roots" in his left hand and gesturing with his right hand as if punctuating a story he is telling.

In addition to the statue, Haley Heritage Square envisions a visitor center located high on a hill where visitors can learn more about the author and the history and culture of the region. The center also provides programs, such as literacy classes, writing workshops, documentaries, and scholarships, as a living memorial to the great humanitarian.

The square's programs could attract visitors from around the world, interested in Haley's monumental work translated into over 38 languages. These programs will be the final chapter in Alex Haley's life, written by people he never met, living the lesson they learned from him, that "you can never enslave somebody who knows who he is."

The Haley Heritage Square also boasts various amenities, including play structures, a water fountain, green space, and nearby Morningside Park and Morningside Greenway. The statue is the main attraction of the square, and it was unveiled during the state's Bicentennial Celebration in June 1996.