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The Logue House ("Logue Haven") on Cottage Lane in Donelson. Credit: MHC staff.
MHC news
National Register: Metro Historical Commission staff toured the c. 1920 Logue House ("Logue Haven") with the Tennessee Historical Commission in late April. The Foursquare home of Gilbert and Laura Stroud Logue, built with solid stone masonry construction, is located on Lebanon Pike at the corner of Cottage Lane. Also on the property is an original two-bay stone garage with exposed rafters and paired six-light doors, and stone boundary markers. The house retains original materials and design elements, including wood windows, fluted porch columns, interior woodwork, and a porte-cochere. Owners are working with MHC staff to pursue National Register listing and potential historic overlay.
Community Plan Survey: Staff also completed a windshield survey along Lebanon Pike including Donelson Hills, the c. 1900 Queen Anne-style Kelley House, and other mid-century neighborhoods, that will inform the Planning Department about the presence of historic resources and assist with the Lebanon Pike Community Planning Study.
Nashville Sites: MHC staff are actively working on the Nashville Sites project, funded through the Metro Historical Commission Foundation, to create self-guided tours that offer a wide range of themes in Nashville's rich history and culture. Tour participants will be able to use the platform to customize their experience through a variety of walking and driving tour options. The program takes cues from other successful counterparts in several cities like Boston, St. Augustine and Austin. The interactive, educational tours will be user-friendly and free, making use of QR code technology to deliver content. For questions about the Nashville Sites program, contact Jessica Reeves.
Commissioner Reappointed: Dr. Don Cusic was recently appointed to another 4-year term on the MHC. In addition to being the author of 28 books and over 500 articles, he is Curb Professor of Music Industry History at Belmont and specializes in country music history and Music Business education.
Budget Hearing: Metro Council will hold a budget hearing with the MHC on Thursday, May 10th at 4:15 p.m. MHC will request an improvement of $2,800 for an ITS bandwidth increase.
Historical Markers: The Metro Historical Commission approved text updates to three historical markers at their April meeting: Heaton's Station (Council District 2); Site of First Store (District 19); and Devon Farm (District 34). The Commission also approved a new marker for Old Hickory Works (District 11). Staff will be presenting the marker program to the Mayor's Office of New Americans in May, to get their input on ideas for places that best tell the stories of Nashville's immigrant communities.
MHZC news
New Guidance Available: Staff member Robin Zeigler recently authored an educational document for the National Alliance of Preservation Commissions. Sponsored by the Center for Historic Preservation at MTSU, Design Review With Limited Resources: How Local Commissions Can Gain the Resources of Professional Preservationists Without Hiring Full-Time Staff offers guidance for design review boards that do not have the luxury of professional preservation staff in communities that are working to preserve their historic resources through design review. Copies are available online here.
2016 Preservation Awards ceremony. Credit: Metropolitan Government of Nashville & Davidson County.
Metro Historical Commission's 43rd Annual Preservation Awards ceremony will be held Monday, May 21st. The event will be held at the Main Branch of the Nashville Public Library (615 Church St.) and will commence at 4:30 p.m. Honorees include Jean Roseman, Lorenzo Washington, Friends of Fort Negley and award winners. A reception will be held after the awards ceremony at Noelle (200 4th Avenue North). For more information on the awards, please visit Preservation Awards or email scarlett.miles@nashville.gov. Thanks to our judges for volunteering their time to help make this a successful event. We hope you'll join us for this celebration and recognition of preservation achievements in Nashville!
Aerial view of the Two Rivers Mansion property in Donelson. Credit: Nashville History.
The Two Rivers Mansion archaeology report is now available online, along with the Master Plan. Many thanks to The Friends of Two Rivers Mansion for their assistance in funding both documents. The archaeology study was completed in early 2018 by Tennessee Valley Archaeological Research (TVAR) as a precursor to the construction of a new event center and amphitheater on the site. Both reports are accessible on the MHC website, and additional details about the site and events can be found on The Friends of Two Rivers Mansion page. As part of the study, TVAR completed a Phase I survey that identified surface- and subsurface-level resources, with additional shovel testing that revealed significant archaeological deposits. The abstract summarizes TVAR's findings that intact subsurface cultural features may significantly contribute to the history of the site and region, and could be considered a contributing component to the National Register eligibility of the site. Accordingly, the report recommends avoidance of construction activities that could disturb these historic features and remains, or additional surveys to mitigate impact to the site.
The Fort Negley Park Cultural Landscape Report (CLR) project has been awarded to Encore Interpretive Design and its team, and work commenced at the end of April. The scope of the CLR includes best practices for site management, especially as it relates to the land areas outside the Fort's walls and the WPA ring road. The report will also review prior and on-going plans/investigations/studies of the site and analyze the site's physical changes from maps, photographs, and its written history. A critical step of the plan is an archaeological study of the site to better understand the site's historic resources, specifically as it relates to the Civil War era, the post-war African American community that developed around the fort, and the WPA reconstruction. Obtaining specific information about these resources will guide plans for the appropriate treatment of the site. The CLR will also include specific treatment recommendations for the areas of the fort's stonework that have been determined to be a priority for restoration and maintenance due to its cultural and visual significance. Many thanks to all the groups who are assisting with the funding for the CLR.
Parks is also working to restore the historic viewsheds from Fort Negley through selective clearing of vegetation, as recommended in previous master plans and a 2014 Historic Structures Report. Clearing is occurring primarily on the hillside surrounding the fort, which will help return the site to its historic context, slow the deterioration of historic features due to invasive vegetative growth, and provide more visible exposure, promoting safety and better public access.
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The Tennessee State Museum is closing it's location at 505 Deaderick Street in early May in anticipation of their move to new facilities in fall 2018. Voted as the best museum in the state and housed in the Polk Center since 1981, the museum will move to its new location at Bicentennial Mall State Park in October. A "Pack the Wagon" send-off party will be held Saturday, May 5th from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. and will include living history programming, special exhibits, and discounts at the museum shop. The event is free and visitor parking is available next to the Capitol.
 Through donations made by descendants, the Metro Historical Commission Foundation funded some much-needed repairs for several historic stone markers at the Collins-Sirls (Gadsey) cemetery off Mt. View Road in Antioch. A family cemetery that contains 23 burials, the earliest headstone dates to 1885. The stones were in various states of disrepair--some had noticeable chunks missing, while others had been broken into several pieces. Stephen Hutchins, who has worked extensively on headstone and monument restoration at Nashville's City Cemetery, was hired to make repairs at Collins-Sirls. Hutchins probed the surrounding ground to locate some of the missing chunks of headstones at Collins-Sirls, recovering as much as he could. He was able to reassemble the markers and applied a limestone backer to help stabilize those that had broken into several pieces.
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Views of stone markers at Collins-Sirls Cemetery, pre- and post-restoration. Credit: MHZC staff.
 This summer, Old Hickory will host a variety of events in celebration of the centennial of its founding. From June 1-3, the community will host a weekend of tours, music, fireworks, a parade and a Village Bazaar. Old Hickory Country Club will host a dinner and art show that will showcase historic photos and original art that will be sold as part of a fundraiser for a local community assistance organization. Plans for the Community Center renovation will be revealed in a ceremony that will include speeches from local dignitaries. In lieu of a time capsule, the community has opted for a locally-commissioned mixed-media art piece that will incorporate donated historic artifacts. A detailed schedule of events can be accessed here.
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On May 1st, the Tennessee Historical Society launched the newest version of the Tennessee Encyclopedia of History and Culture. The encyclopedia is a free online reference resource that is presented in partnership with the University of Tennessee Press. The Encyclopedia, first distributed in print in 1998 and placed online in 2002, contains about 2,000 entries on Tennessee history. State Historian Dr. Carroll Van West is the Editor-In-Chief. The Frist Foundation's Technology Grant program provided funding for the new site design and content management platform. View the new site at www.tennesseeencyclopedia.net.
Annual THS Membership Address--"Woman suffrage in Tennessee: The Continuting Legacy" with County Historian Dr. Carole Bucy--May 2
TN State Museum Lunch & Learn--The Cumberland River: An historical "Super Highway" through Middle Tennessee--May 3
Bellevue History and Genealogy Group--"Amazing Stories about thoe Interred at Nashville's City Cemetery" talk with Carol Kaplan--Bellevue YMCA--May 4
Two Rivers Mansion--Hip Donelson Farmer's Market at the Mansion--May 4
6th Annual Sevier Park Fest--May 4-5
Historic Nashville Behind-the-Scenes Tour of Tennessee's Executive Residence--May 5
Regional Resilience and Flood Protection workshop--May 5
The Hermitage--Vintage Base Ball--May 6 and 20
TN Agricultural Museum--Historic Rural Life Festival--May 10-11
Bellevue History and Genealogy Group--"Belle Meade Race Horse History" talk with Andy Blair--May 11
Jazz on the Cumberland--May 13
Resilient Nashville Countywide Flood Protection Workshop--Main Library--May 15
Bellevue History and Genealogy Group--"Presidents, Kings, & Convicts" talk with Bob Clement--May 18
Richland Park Marketfest--May 19
Capitol District Street Fair--May 19
TN Central Railway Museum--Train Robbery Excursion to Watertown--May 19
East Nashville Crawfish Bash at East Park--May 26
Fiesta Fin de Curso at Antioch Park--May 26
Dragon Music Sundays at Fannie Mae Dees Park--May 27
Memorial Day Dash 5K 2018--May 28
Musicians Hall of Fame--Exhibitionism: The Rolling Stones Exhibit--thru June 30
Musicians Corner at Centennial Park--Fri/Sat p.m. all weekends in May
Movies in the Park at Elmington Park--May 31
Belcourt Theatre--No Man's Land Film Festival--May 31
Cheekwood--1958-2018: Sixty Years of Collecting at Cheekwood--thru May 27
We Shall Overcome: Civil Right and the Nashville Press, 1957-1968 at Frist Art Museum--thru October 14
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