From a theme park to moss: The things named after Dolly Parton

(NEXSTAR) – Dolly Parton, the beloved country music icon and philanthropist with humble beginnings in East Tennessee, died Tuesday at the age of 80 . Her name will undoubtedly live on, fueled by her extensive music catalogue , her foundation that sends free books to children , her charitable work , and a few other things you may not know bear her name.

For those who live in or around Tennessee, several sites may immediately come to mind.

There is, of course, Dollywood , the theme park Parton co-owned in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. The park originally opened in 1961 as Rebel Railroad, and in 1977, it became Silver Dollar City Tennessee. Then, in 1986, Parton became a co-owner, and the park was renamed Dollywood.

The site attracts millions of visitors annually and generates more than 19,000 regional jobs, according to The Greater Pigeon Forge Chamber of Commerce .

Travelers may also be familiar with a new venture sporting Parton’s name: Dolly’s Tennessean Travel Stop . Themed around the Tennessee native, the travel stop is located in Cornersville, Tennessee, just off Interstate 65, and opened in June, Nexstar’s WATE reported . Additional travel stops could open in the future.

That travel stop also sells Parton’s coffee brand, “Cup of Ambition,” which she unveiled earlier this year. WATE reported in June that the coffee, inspired by her hit song “9 to 5,” was expected to be available nationwide soon.

Should you ever travel to Parton’s hometown of Sevierville, Tennessee, you may drive on part of Dolly Parton Parkway along US 411. Sevierville has several Parton landmarks to visit, including a statue on the county courthouse’s lawn and multiple murals inspired by the local legend.

Scheduled to open later this year in Nashville is Dolly Parton’s Songteller Hotel , which, on the third floor, will also house Dolly’s Life of Many Colors Museum . The site’s general manager told Nexstar’s WKRN last year that the “project is truly Dolly’s love letter to her fans and a love letter to Nashville in particular.” The museum is expected to open in October while the hotel is set to start taking reservations in September.

There’s also Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library . When it opened in 1995, the goal was to send free books to children in Sevier County, where Parton grew up. It grew immensely, now serving 1 in 6 children in the U.S. who are under the age of 5. A spokesperson for the Dollywood Company confirmed to Nexstar on Tuesday that the free books will still be sent to eligible children.

While a theme park and a travel stop and a statue are easy to spot, there are a few other natural features named after Parton.

In 2015, scientists named a species of lichen discovered in the Appalachian region after Parton. Japewiella dollypartoniana is found from Maine to Georgia, commonly on branches of trees and shrubs at middle to high elevations. The researchers said the name honors Parton and her rise “from humble roots to stardom.”

A study published in 2019 named a 460 million-year-old moss species found in Tennessee after Dolly Parton. Dollyphyton boucotii was found in rock deposits near Dollywood, hence the name.

There is also, of course, Dolly the sheep , the first cloned mammal created from an adult cell. More specifically, Dolly the sheep was grown from a single cell collected from the mammary glands, located in a female’s chest. Parton later told The Guardian that she was “flattered” that the sheep, who died in 2003, was named after her.

“I was sorry when she died,” Parton told the outlet, “though I don’t want to be cloned myself.”

Nexstar’s Alix Martichoux contributed to this report.