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Or maybe you want to know Nashville. Either way, you’ve come to a very unique place in your search for some pretty darn cool things about Nashville! ‘Cuz this book is all about the “places” – the exact spots and locations where history took place and songs were written as Music City evolved. What you are holding is the 2^nd Edition of a labor of love in my world – the result of now many years of researching, traveling, photographing, and discovering one of the greatest and culturally rich cities in the world, Nashville, Tennessee. As a touring musician, my absolute favorite part of traveling is finding out “What happened here?” in any given city…what are the sites, the movie locations, the infamy, the food, the history. I’ve tracked down hundreds of sites from the Top Gun barbeque in San Diego to Stephen King’s “IT” standpipe in Bangor, ME…the cabin from “Evil Dead” in Tennessee to the actual rock in Blue John Canyon in Utah where Aron Ralston was trapped before cutting off his own arm. So, to pay tribute to all the cool spots in Nashville, I started digging up all the dirt I could and asking songwriters about the stories behind their songs, as well as where they wrote them. That led to being driven up and down Music Row by the great Jerry Kennedy, “checking crops” with Jerry Bradley, exploring “ground zero” at the Quonset Hut, standing in Garth’s vocal booth at Jack’s Tracks, hanging with the ghosts in Marty Robbins’ attic office, bushwhacking like Timothy Demonbreun through Shelby Bottoms Park, and simply getting introduced to some of the greatest songwriters and producers that have ever worked in this town. It was a truly humbling and surreal experience that I am grateful for.

BICENTENNIAL CAPITOL MALL STATE PARK

600 James Robertson Pkwy

This 19-acre state park was created to commemorate Tennessee’s 200-years of statehood, with its impressive design highlighting the State Capitol building on the south side. Littered with time capsules, walking paths, and historical surprises around every corner, it’s worth a visit and a look at some of the highlights of the park.

COURT OF 3 STARS AND BELL CARILLON

– North end of the park

Like the color scheme of the Tennessee flag, this portion of the park is made of red, white, and blue granite representing the 3 grand divisions of the state: East, Middle, and West Tennessee. More uniquely, a 95-bell Carillion (pillars with bells at the tops of the towers) rings every hour, answered by a 96^th bell on the State Capitol, representing the 95 counties of Tennessee and its musical heritage.

GRANITE MAP OF TENNESSEE

– South entrance of park

This 200-foot map of Tennessee is the largest in the state, if not the world. Features include counties, rivers, and roads.

McNAIRY SPRING

– West side of park at year 1796 on the Pathway Of History

This water monument is in the approximate spot of the original McNairy Spring (along with Sulphur Spring), both of which still flow under the bike trail that extends eastward toward the Cumberland River.

PATHWAY OF HISTORY

– West side of park

This 1,400 foot wall has notable events of history, from prehistoric to modern times, that have shaped the region. A break in the wall at the time of the Civil War represents the divisive nature of the state at the time.

WORLD WAR 2 MEMORIAL

– Northwest area of park

A moving tribute to the military and the lost soldiers of the war. A highlight of Bicentennial’s World War 2 Memorial is an 18,000 pound granite globe that floats on 1/8 inch of water.

ZERO MILE MARKER

– Granite Map Plaza (south end)

The Nashville Automobile Club established this spot as the “zero point” for all state roads and guide books.

CIVIL WAR

BATTLE OF NASHVILLE

The Battle of Nashville was one of the most decisive of what some Nashvillians call the “War of Northern Aggression”: the Civil War. It was the last stand of the Confederacy and their final chance to retake the strategically imperative city from Union occupiers. Confederate General John Bell Hood had moved his army north from Atlanta, where he had recently suffered a devastating loss to Sherman, and hoped to control Nashville, restock his supplies and move northward to further split the Union. Things did not go quite as planned for General Hood and he was driven back by Union General George Thomas and defeated over the two days of December 15 and 16, 1864.

You can follow the fascinating Civil War Trail throughout nearby middle Tennessee and see incredible history in the Battlefields: the Stones River National Battlefield, the Spring Hill Battlefield, the Franklin Battlefield. All are a short drive from downtown Nashville and offer a rich insight into Middle Tennessee’s importance in the Civil War.

Very near downtown, though, are several key points of the Battle Of Nashville that are worth taking a look at.

CIVIL WAR

Battle of Nashville—Confederate Line

1808 Woodmont Boulevard

Inscribed: Trenches about 20 feet north of this point held by Loring’s Division, were the center of the Confederate main line before the Battle of Nashville. On December 15, 1864, Redoubt No. 1, a key artillery salient 200 yards NW, fired on Federal forces until overrun by General Wood’s troops late in the day, when Confederates retreated toward Granny White Pike. ~ 1992 by The Historical Commission of Metropolitan Nashville and Davidson County. Marker No. 89.

CIVIL WAR

Battle of Nashville—Shy's Hill

4619 Benton Smith Road

Inscribed: On this hill was fought the decisive encounter of the Battle of Nashville December 16, 1864. At 4:15 p.m. a Federal assault at the angle on top of the hill broke the Confederate line. Col. W M. Shy, 20th Term. Inf., was killed and Gen. T B. Smith was captured. The Confederates retreated over the Overton Hills to the Franklin Pike. ~1967 by The Historical Commission of Metropolitan Nashville and Davidson County. Marker No. 5

CIVIL WAR

Battle of Nashville—Peach Orchard Hill

approx 792 Harding Place, at intersection of Peach Orchard Dr.

Inscribed: On Dec. 16, 1864, Gen. S.D. Lee's Corps, Army Of Tennessee, held this right flank of Hood's defense line which ran south along the crest of this ridge. Violent artillery fire and infantry attacks by the corps of Wood and Steedman failed to dislodge the defenders who withdrew only after the collapse of the Confederate left and center in late afternoon. ~1970 The Historical Commission of Metropolitan Nashville and Davidson County No. 37

CIVIL WAR

Battle of Nashville—Confederate Final Stand

approx 823 Tyne Blvd.

Inscribed: After the withdrawal from the main Confederate line at Peach Orchard Hill, Lt. Gen. Stephen D. Lee formed a battle line across Franklin Pike 400 yards east of here with 200 men from the remnants of Brig. Gen. Henry Clayton's division and two cannons from the Eufaula Light Artillery. This last line of defense halted the Federal pursuit for the night as the Confederate army retreated through the hills to the southwest. ~2008 by The Historical Commission of Metropolitan Nashville and Davidson County. Marker No. 134

CIVIL WAR

BATTLE OF NASHVILLE – STEWART’S LINE

E side of Lealand Ln S of Battery Ln @ old Kirkman Lane.

Inscribed: Loring’s division of Stewart’s Corps, Hood’s confederate Army of Tennessee, fought behind this stone wall Dec. 16, 1864. All Federal attacks were beaten back until the Confederate line was broken a mile to the west. The division retreated south through the hills toward Brentwood. Erected: 1968

CIVIL WAR

BATTLE OF NASHVILLE – REDOUBT 1

Benham Ave, just north of Woodmont on west side.

This Confederate redoubt was one of 5 redoubts built by Hood’s Confederate Army in its attempted siege of Nashville and was the last one to fall in the battle. It has been carefully preserved by the Battle of Nashville Preservation Society and is definitely worth a few minutes to walk through to experience the history. The trenches can still be seen and there are interpretive signs explaining the scenario that surrounded the area during the battle.

CIVIL WAR

BATTLE OF NASHVILLE MONUMENT

Granny White Pike and Battlefield Dr.

Located in the heart of the land where the Battle of Nashville took place, this statue was designed by Giuseppe Moretti, erected in 1926, and pays tribute to both Union and Confederate soldiers.

CIVIL WAR

MCGAVOCK CONFEDERATE CEMETERY

1345 Carnton Ln.

Franklin, TN

McGavock Confederate Cemetery is the largest private cemetery dedicated to 1,481 Confederate soldiers that died in the Battle Of Franklin.

CIVIL WAR

MOUNT OLIVET CEMETERY

1101 Lebanon Pike

One of the oldest cemeteries in middle Tennessee, Mount Olivet Cemetery is a visual spectacle as well as the final resting place for many who have made their mark on Nashville history. The centralized Confederate Circle holds the remains of nearly 1500 Confederate soldiers from the Civil War, while the rest of the memorial garden is the burial site for names like:

Thomas Ryman

Vern Gosdin

Fred Rose

David Lipscomb

Benjamin Franklin Cheatham

(Civil War Confederate Major General)

Cornelia Clark Fort (aviation pioneer)

Randall McGavock (Confederate Army Officer)

John Overton

Hattie “Tootsie” Ross (of “Tootsie’s Orchid Lounge” fame)

The cemetery is open daily and admission is free.

CIVIL WAR

NATIONAL CEMETERY

1420 Gallatin Pike South, Madison TN

This site was chosen by General George H. Thomas, a Union General who stated “no one could come to Nashville from the north and not be reminded of the sacrifices that had been made for the preservation of the Union” in regards to its location on the main railroad line between Louisville and Nashville.

Today, over 33,000 veterans, their spouses, and dependents are laid to rest here, 4,000 of whose identities are unknown. The cemetery is open daily from dawn until dusk and has an Administration office with information available from 8:00 to 4:30, Monday through Friday.

CIVIL WAR

SPRING HILL BATTLEFIELD

Kedron Road, Spring Hill, TN

One of the most controversial “battles” in the Civil War took place at what is today known as the Spring Hill Battlefield…although there was hardly any battling at all and primarily served as the precursor to the Battle of Franklin.

Lt. Gen. John Bell Hood’s Confederate “Army of Tennessee” was chasing Major Gen. John M. Schofield’s Union armies retreat from Columbia in hopes of denying their return back to Nashville. Despite Hood’s advantageous position ahead of Schofield, the Union army was able to slip past Hood in the night while he and his men…slept.

CIVIL WAR

STONES RIVER NATIONAL BATTLEFIELD

3501 Old Nashville Hwy. Murfreesboro, TN

www.nps.gov/stri

The Battle of Stones River claims the highest percentage of casualties of any Civil War battle. Developed at the urging of President Lincoln who badly needed a victory to bolster support for his Emancipation Proclamation, it was a ferocious fight of which the Union ultimately claimed victory due to the Confederates retreat. Any clear victor was technically inconclusive as the battle claimed 24,645 casualties (killed and wounded) over a 3-day campaign, the highest percentage of any Civil War battle.

Today, the battlefield is a National Park, centered around the land at the heart of the battle but still a fragment of the actual site. Numerous monuments mark the sites of the battle, such as Hazen Brigade Monument, the oldest intact Civil War memorial, which commemorates the Union men that did not retreat during attacks on Hell’s Half Acre. The National Cemetery is the final resting place of 6,100 Union soldiers, 2,500 of them unknown. A driving tour takes visitors near a few of these sites while an interactive walking trail guides them further into the field of battle. Nearby Murfreesboro offers further history as well.

While this author would enjoy nothing more than to describe the moment of inception of the great city of Nashville in his own words, none speak it better than the plaque that marks the spot of this great meeting.

Inscription: On Monday, April 24, 1780, two pioneers, James Robertson and John Donelson, shook hands upon the completion of a reunion at the site on which you now stand. Each man, one by land, the other by water, played out in a two-fold plan for a new settlement that grew into present-day Nashville. Robertson, at the head of his mounted band of 226 frontiersmen, traversed the long, circuitous overland route through Kentucky and Tennessee down to the Great Salt Lick. His group arrived on Christmas Day, 1779, about the time that Donelson’s flotilla left Fort Patrick Henry, and at once set about preparing a place for the boatmen, women, and children who were to join them later.

Robertson, as one of the earliest and most resourceful frontiersmen of early Tennessee history, had long realized that the rolling country and rich bottomland of middle Tennessee would be an ideal location for a settlement. Although much warfare and violence were inevitable, it was his ability to deal with the Indians and their mutual respect and admiration for him that made this venture possible. He said, “we are the advance guard; our way is westward across the continent.” But civilization could only begin with the river-borne families that were to come in the spring. In four months these families floated the entire extent of the Tennessee River, then turned north to the Ohio and came up the Cumberland to the Great Salt Lick - a 1000-mile trip unequalled in the annals of American history. This flotilla was headed by the courageous Colonel John Donelson on his flagship Adventure. He triumphed over freezing weather, the treacheries of a river at the highest in its history, pestilence, and savage Indians to reach his April rendezvous. This achievement has immortalized his name, for he managed it so well that no man could have done it better. His responsibilities were great because he had in his charge a large percentage of non-combatants.

In this memorial group each man stands as a representative of the hardy souls he led to fulfill a magnificent destiny. In this historic handshake each brave pioneer finds his place in history. No city should be indifferent to its founding, no people to its history, especially when so full of heroic action and noble deeds as is the history of Nashville. If space were available the name of every signer of the Cumberland Compact should be here; these two men stand witness to their toil and devotion.

This statue, commissioned by Mayor Ben West in 1962, was erected here in the fort where they met the flowering spring day of long ago. This statue is intended to keep their memory green and our love for them tender and profound. These men are the trees; we are their fruit. Erected 1962 by Mayor Ben West and the Metro Historical Commission.