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MHC News
Marker Project: November was a busy marker month! On November 1st, new historical markers for the Tennessee Hospital for the Insane and Joy Floral Company were installed at 2 Dell Parkway and 1433 Lischey Avenue, respectively. Thank you to Council members Scott Davis (District 5) and Holly Huezo (District 13) for their support and selection of these great topics!
(L to R) Lorenzo and Terry from Metro Public Works with Jessica Reeves (MHC) installing the Tennessee Hospital for the Insane marker. Credit: MHC.
Two new priority list markers for the Nashville Academy of Medicine and Heaton's Station were also installed in November. Founded in 1821, the Nashville Medical Society was the first medical association in Tennessee, chartered by the state in 1906 as the Nashville Academy of Medicine and Davidson County Medical Society. Heaton's Station was the MHC's first historical marker, erected in 1968 at Lock One Park. Several Heaton descendants gathered on November 26th to dedicate the new marker, which was placed at the corner of Lock Rd. and Baptist World Center Dr. just north of its previous location.
New marker for the Nashville Academy of Medicine. Credit: MHC.
Heaton descendants stand with the new marker (L to R): Debbie Crafton Stanfill, Dottie Crafton Clarke, Josie Crafton Jarratt, Elizabeth Hensley, Patti Plumer, and Courtney Clarke Hensley. Credit: MHC.
New marker for Heaton's Station. Credit: MHC.
At the November Metro Historical Commission meeting, six new markers were approved under the Marker Project. Three Council district markers were approved for Dodson School (District 12), May Hosiery Mills (District 17), and Dr. Matthew Walker, Sr. (District 19). Three priority list markers were also approved for Johnson's Station, Captain Alexander "Devil Alex" Ewing, and Hell's Half Acre. Dedication ceremonies will be announced once details are available.
A new privately-funded historical marker for the Old Woman's Home was dedicated by the West End Home Foundation on November 5th. Mayor Briley and MHC Commissioner Jim Forkum spoke to the group about the site's rich history. Vice Mayor Jim Shulman and Davidson County Historian Dr. Carole Bucy also attended the dedication alongside several current and former Foundation board members. A special thank you to West End Home Foundation Executive Director Dianne Oliver and Dr. Mary Ellen Pethel of Belmont University for helping this marker come to fruition!
Mayor Briley stands with several current and past board members of the West End Home Foundation beside the new marker. Credit: MHC.
National Register: Davidson County has two new National Register properties, both listed in November. The Smith-Carter House, home of Carl Smith, June Carter and "Mother Maybelle" Carter, was listed for its significant association with June Carter (Cash) and for its unique Monterey Revival style of architecture. Hank Snow's Rainbow Ranch was also listed, for its significance within the country music industry as an active home studio (1953-1979). It is also the best extant property associated with Snow and served as his home and office. Congratulations to the property owners and thank you to Councilwoman Nancy VanReece for getting these properties recognized with listing!
Survey: MHC staff conducted two days of survey work in the White's Creek and Cockrill Bend areas of northwest Nashville in late November. This area is rich in diverse historical resources from historic cemeteries to large agricultural properties and mid-century subdivisions, including several National Register-listed properties like the Whites Creek Historic District, Stump Tavern, Alexander Ewing House. Other unique historic properties and sites include former motor courts on Clarksville Pike, the former Woodland Hills Youth Detention Center (Stewarts Lane) and the Hicks Farmstead (Ashland City Highway). The survey work is part of an ongoing effort by the MHC to update records and photos of historic properties in Davidson County.
MHZC news
The MHZC’s December public hearing will be on Wednesday, December 19th at 2:00 p.m. at the Sonny West Conference Center. The application deadline is December 3rd at noon.
One of the MHC's newest commissioners, Michelle Hall served most recently as the District 25 Metro Nashville Beautification Commissioner for 3 years. She holds a B.A. in Economics from Miami University of Ohio and an MBA from Loyola University in Baltimore. Her career began in finance with an international public accounting firm but later gravitated to marketing and public relations.
Commissioner Hall relocated from Cincinnati, where she generated additional marketing opportunities for the Heritage Village Museum, a recreated 1800’s community in Southwestern Ohio. The village contains 13 historic buildings from around the Cincinnati area. Her past board experiences include the Mental Health Recovery Services of Warren & Clinton Counties, the Professional Pastoral Institute in Cincinnati, the University Club at Vanderbilt and other civic organizations. Welcome Commissioner Hall!
Commissioner Michelle Hall. Credit: Michelle Hall.
The Metro Historical Commission Foundation continues to work with the Metro Historical Commission, the Friends of Fort Negley and Metro Parks to raise funds to complete archaeology at Fort Negley Park. Archaeology is needed for better understanding of the site including the role of African Americans in building the fort, by analyzing the areas outside the fort's walls where the African American community that constructed and maintained the fort were camped and potentially buried during the Civil War. It will also assist us in learning more about the African American neighborhood that grew up around the fort after the war, which was displaced by the construction of the I-40/I-65 interchange in the 1960s.
A legion of experts have underscored the significance of Fort Negley and called for protection of the surrounding hallowed ground. Fort Negley has been recognized as one of Nashville's most important and fragile historic resources by many preservation partners, including Historic Nashville, Inc., the Battle of Nashville Preservation Society and The Cultural Landscape Foundation. The fort, which is Nashville's only intact Civil War-era fort, was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1975 and designated a local Historic Landmark District in 2005. A 1996 master plan, updated in 2007, called for the Greer Stadium site to be restored to a public park, land which includes archaeological resources requiring further study. In 2013, a Historic Structures Report commissioned by Metro Historical Commission and Metro Parks documented the fort's condition and made recommendations for restoration priorities. Metro Historical Commission is currently working on a Cultural Landscape Report to inform the Metro Parks Board's decisions about the site, including development and interpretation of this rich history.
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View of Fort Negley with Nashville in background. Credit: Tennessee State Library and Archives.
Since these master plans were published, initial archaeological studies (including a 2018 report by TVAR) have concluded that cultural and natural landscape features exist that connect to virtually every era of Nashville's past. TVAR's research determined that, among other historic features, there is a high likelihood that the site contains human remains of the African American community that constructed Fort Negley. Now, intensive archaeological study is needed to document these resources so we can plan how to protect them and share these stories.
Our goal is to raise $50,000 for this archaeology work. Please help by donating to this extremely worthy cause and sharing with anyone else who you think can help. Thank you to all who have given their support!
CLICK HERE TO DONATE NOW!
A new ordinance to amend current Metro legislation would offer protection of public space interiors as a type of Historic Landmark. The proposed bill defines a Historic Landmark Interior as "the public interior space of a building or structure of high historical, cultural, and architectural value; where alteration, demolition or destruction would constitute an irreplaceable loss to the quality and character of Nashville and Davidson County; and that meets one or more of the following criteria:
1. The historic landmark interior is associated with an event that has made a significant contribution to local, state or national history;
2. It is associated with the lives of persons significant in local, state or national history;
3. It embodies the distinctive characteristics of a type, period, or method of construction;
4.It is a Historic Landmark; or,
5.It is listed or is eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places."
The bill, sponsored by Council members Freddie O'Connell, Burkley Allen, and Bob Mendes passed its first reading at the November 20th Council meeting. A second public hearing is scheduled for January 3rd, 2019.
The Tennessee Historical Commission will begin accepting grant applications for federal preservation grants on December 1, 2018. These grants can be accessed for a wide variety of projects, including repair and restoration of historic buildings and structures, preservation planning initiatives, educational activities, and nominations to the National Register of Historic Places. Grantees must provide a 40% match to the 60% federal share. Grant applications must be completed by January 31, 2019.
The SHPO is also currently accepting nominations for its Certificate of Merit Awards, a program that recognizes individuals or groups that work to preserve Tennessee's heritage through publications, commemoration and education. To be eligible for the award, significant contributions to the study and preservation of the state's unique heritage must have occurred within the past twelve months. The SHPO will hold an awards ceremony in May 2019. Contact Angela Miller for an application or call (615) 532-1550. Nominations must be submitted by December 31, 2018.
Do you live, work, or play on Music Row or in Bells Bend? Are you willing to complete a brief online survey about how you know the place and what you think makes it unique? The survey supports doctoral research in urban planning about sense of place and its relationship to heritage. If so, email Blythe Semmer for more information and the survey link. Please share with anyone else who is familiar with these places.
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