National Museum of Crime & Punishment

The Alcatraz East Crime Museum in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, traces the history of crime, law enforcement and punishment in the United States. It opened in 2008 as the National Museum of Crime and Punishment in Washington D.C., closed there in 2015 and reopened in 2016 in Tennessee on The Island tourist strip near the Smoky Mountains. The permanent exhibition includes O.J. Simpson's actual white Ford Bronco, Ted Bundy's original police sketch, an electric chair, John Dillinger's lockpicks and CSI forensic tools. Four themed levels cover notorious criminals, police work, forensics and the courts and prison system, with interactive elements such as a fingerprint simulation and a high-security cell model. Families with older children typically spend two to three hours here; the museum bills itself as an entertainment-style crime attraction with real objects, not a research institution.