In & around Nashville

No live music or SEC playoff games for us, though

Just lots of history, including musical history. We spent our first afternoon (after arriving early, visiting the Hermitage, spent the next day in Murfreesboro, and then 3 days visiting in Nashville, where downtown was CRAZY! LOTS of college basketball fans wandering around!

Visit to 1 new National Park Site:

Stones River National Battlefield (#316) in Murfreesboro, where the Battle of Stones River began on the last day of 1862 and became one of the bloodiest conflicts of the Civil War. The battle produced important military and political gains for the Union, and it changed forever the people who lived and fought here. We visited the museum in the Visitor Center, walked the trails of the main site where the fighting occured the first day, visited the oldest surviving Civil War Monument in the US and the Stones River National Cemetery, and drove over to McFadden’s Farm, site of the fighting on January 2, 1863.

Stones River NB-The Slaughter Pen, so named by the men who had seen slaughter houses in Chicago, given the number of bodies that stacked up here on December 31, 1862
Stones River NB-approaching Hazen Brigade Monument, erected in 1863, the oldest CW Monument in the US
Stones River NB-Hazen Brigade Monument front side, and some gravestones of some of the brigade who died here
Stones River National Cemetery-some of the US Colored Troops

Toured 1 new State Capitol:

Tennessee State Capitol in Nashville (#47), where we got a private tour. A few unique things about the Tennessee Capitol building: It’s build in the Greek Revival style vs. Roman), hence different columns and a column-shaped top vs. a dome; The 19th Amendment was officially ratified here on August 18, 1920, when Tennessee became the 36th state to approve it, by 1 vote in the House of Representatives; and grounds in Nashville are the final resting place of four people: 11th U.S. President James K. Polk and his wife, First Lady Sarah Childress Polk, Additionally, the Capitol’s architect William Strickland and Capitol Commission chairman Samuel Morgan are buried within the building’s walls.

Tennessee State Capitol in Nashville
Tennessee State Capitol in Nashville-House of Representatives, where the 19th Amendment was ratified by 1 vote
Tomb of President James K. Polk and his wife, First Lady Sarah Childress Polk, whose tomb was moved here in 1893

Nashville History Visits

Hermitage, the 1,120-acre historic site and museum preserving the life and legacy of Andrew Jackson, the 7th U.S. President. It features his Greek Revival mansion, a visitor center with exhibits, the first Hermitage home, a garden, and the family burial site. We had to rush, just a tad, with less than 3 hours to explore. But we got a tour of the home and walked all over the grounds, including the garden, where Andrew Jackson and his wife are interred.
Tennessee State Museum, another amazing state historical museum¹. We spent a few hours on 2 diferent days exploring there. Loved it! It’s located at the other end of the Bicentennial Capitol Mall State Park from the Tennessee State Capitol.
Bicentennial Capitol Mall State Park, an urban linear park located on 19 acres north-northwest of the Tennessee State Capitol, considered an extension of the capitol grounds, and preserves the only “distant” clear view of the capitol. We took a “1 hour ranger tour” which lasted for 2.5 hours! It was great. We were the only attendees to that one, and the Historian Ranger had lots to share.

The Hermitage from the front
Tomb of Andrew & Rachel Jackson
Tennessee State Museum
Bicentennial Capitol Mall State Park, Ranger walking us down the history side of the mall
A small (1920) portion of the history wall in the Bicentennial Capitol Mall State Park
Tennessee State Capitol from the Bicentennial Capitol Mall State Park

Nashville Music Visits (all in one day)

Grand Ole Opry House Backstage Tour, a fun 1 hour tour, which showcased stories from the last 100 years of the the Grand Ole Opry, took us to see some dressing rooms, and we got to stand on “the circle”, a bit of stage floor from the Ryman Auditorium, home to the Grand Old Oprey until 1976, when this venue replaced it. (We toured the Ryman and attended 2 concerts there in 2013.)
National Museum of African American Music. which showcases the musical genres inspired, created, or influenced by African-Americans and their evolution, from Gospel, to Blues, to Jazz, to Rhythm & Blues, to Soul, to Hip Hop and Rap. AMAZING! We spent 4 hours and look forward to going again. One of our favorite parts, were stations where you could explore an artist, hear some of their music and then transition to some of their influencers, peers and/or followers.
Johnny Cash Museum..fun to visit, for the history and his music, and…we found out that he was in more movies and TV shows than we had realized, including The Simpsons.

Grand Ole Opry Stage
Grand Ole Opry Stage Circle from the Ryman Auditorium
Johnny Cash Museum-some of his many awards
National Museum of African American Music – a trumpet that belonged to Louis Armstrong