Nashville Travel Guide

According to archaeologists, the first residents of what is now known as Nashville were the Mississippi Indians. This agricultural society left behind significant evidence of their existence, including some exquisitely painted pottery. However, after 400 yrs they disappeared, leaving historians and archaeologists divided on the reasons for this. Some believe the culture evolved into a nomadic society and simply moved to another region. Others believe they fell victim to a plague of some type, or were massacred by another Indian tribe, such as the Cherokee or Chickasaw, who would later make this area their home.

The first European visitors to the area were French fur traders, who arrived around 1720. These traders prospered along the banks of the Cumberland River. The first English settlers ventured here in 1779. Led by resourceful pioneer James Robertson, they built a primitive fort and named it Nashborough after General Francis Nash, a hero in the United States Revolutionary War. (A reproduction of that first settlement can be seen at Fort Nashborough.) The new town was part of the state of North Carolina and soon became a hotbed of activity. Some 60 families, led by John Donelson, moved southwest from the colonies and began farming the fertile soil of the Cumberland Plateau. In 1784, the town changed its name to Nashville, and in 1796 Nashville and the surrounding area broke away from North Carolina and declared statehood. Tennessee became the 16th state of the union, and Nashville was its capital.

In 1860, there were rumors that the southern states were planning to secede from the United States. Southern plantation owners depended heavily on the slave labor. The northern states condemned slavery and demanded that the government abolish the practice. Tennessee, a border state, was reluctant to join the secessionist movement and voted to remain loyal to the Union. However, pressure from neighboring states, along with a strong desire to determine their own destiny, caused the citizens to reconsider. When the first shots of the war were fired in Charleston, South Carolina, the decision was made to join the Confederacy. In 1861, the Confederate States of America, or CSA, was formed. Jefferson Davis would become its president. The divisive war lasted four years and left an indelible mark on Nashville's history.

Fort Donelson was constructed on the banks of the Cumberland River in order to protect the city of Nashville from northern aggression. Fort Henry was erected further west on the Tennessee River in order to defend Middle Tennessee. The Union armies struck with surprising force, and the small band of Confederate soldiers was no match for the better-equipped, more experienced northern troops. Both forts fell in only three days. Confederate forces retreated, and the mayor of Nashville surrendered the city on February 25, 1862. The Union wasted no time in reclaiming the city and set about the task of building forts of its own. Fort Negley, the largest, was the center of military operations in the Western theatre. President Lincoln appointed Andrew Johnson as governor of Tennessee and charged him with reestablishing its citizens' loyalty to the Union. Most Tennesseans were reluctant to pledge loyalty, but were convinced by threats from Johnson that failure to pledge loyalty would result in losses of property and freedom.

The Union occupation wasn't a quiet one. Confederate troops routinely raided the city and attempted to regain control. On December 15, 1864, a final campaign was staged to recapture the city. The Battle of Nashville was fought for two days and resulted in victory for the Union army and the near devastation of the proud city. General Hood and his Confederate soldiers were forced to retreat, and the city of Nashville was decidedly in the hands of the Union army.

Governor Johnson was elected vice president in 1865 and left Tennessee for Washington, DC. After the assassination of President Lincoln, Johnson assumed the presidency and saw the war end on April 9, 1865. The business of reconstruction kept the citizens of Nashville busy for many years. As the Union armies returned to their homes, Nashville turned its attention towards reclaiming its Southern heritage and found support from its neighboring states. The United States was one nation again, but the wounds would take decades to heal, and the scars would last even longer.

As the city of Nashville was rebuilt, the population grew once again. Riverboats and barges chugged up and down the Cumberland, opening up the city to trade. Industry developed, and the farming communities died away. The new source of commerce was manufacturing goods, not growing crops. By the beginning of World War II, the manufacturing industry was booming, and when the United States entered the war, the city retooled its plants to build military equipment and artillery. After the war, heavy industry saw a decline. Financial institutions such as banks and insurance companies took the lead in building the city's wealth. Today, Nashville depends on its service and tourism economies rather than on manufacturing.

In the 1930s, Nashville began playing a new song. Country music was a hybrid of European-rooted folk music and African American spirituals. Fiddler and songwriter Roy Acuff was the first real country music star and hosted the wildly popular live radio broadcast, Grand Ole Opry. Country music gained popularity throughout the country, and people everywhere tuned in to NBC radio to hear the latest tunes.

The 1950s were the real heyday of country music, though. Artists such as Hank Williams wrote songs about life, love and loss, and the message connected with listeners. The recording studios on famed Music Row were filled with aspiring singers and songwriters hoping to make their mark. By 1960 the city was earning a reputation as the center of the country, pop, and blues recording industries and became known as the Music City. Today, the early pioneers are remembered in the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, which also features exhibits on new country megastars such as Garth Brooks and Shania Twain, who found their success right here in Nashville.

Nashville is a vibrant city. It is the home of Fortune 500 companies such as First Tennessee Bank and telecommunications giant BellSouth. It is also home to professional sports franchises like the National Football League's Tennessee Titans and the National Hockey League's Nashville Predators. Nashville's growing arts community has gained national recognition with the works of Norris Hall, and the city will always be the home of country music.

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