MHC News
The next Historical Commission public meeting will be held on Monday, August 19 at 12:00 p.m. at the Sonny West Conference Room, Howard Office Building, 700 President Ronald Reagan Way. You can find a full list of upcoming and previous MHC meetings on our website.
Work continues on the Nashville City Cemetery, with broken markers being repaired in sections 1 through 12. Work should be completed by the end of August. Sections 13, 15, 16, and 19 through 32 still need additional repairs. Section 28 is the largest section and has the greatest number of repairs needed. Stones from all those sections are being stored until repairs can be made. The Nashville City Cemetery Association has also committed funds that they raised from their Memorial Day Dash 5K toward gravestone repairs.
We have completed survey activities for Phase III of the Davidson County Cemetery Survey Grant, and will spend the remaining time on this phase conducting historical research, creating a priority list of endangered sites, and reviewing the final report. New South Associates will present the Phase III findings at the September 16 MHC meeting. Staff members Caroline Eller, Scarlett Miles, and Dr. Adam Fracchia have been working to draft cemetery guidelines for developers and property owners that we can post on our website. The Tennessee Historical Commission has detailed information available about state laws on their website, and we hope to develop something similar that is specific to Davidson County that can help us proactively communicate with developers to avoid delays to projects and damage to cemeteries.
Our partnership with the Urban Green Lab's Environmental Justice Initiative continues to grow, with staff member Jessica Reeves working with UGL's Stephanie Roach and Lyndell Edmondson and Elois Freeman at John Early Museum Magnet Middle School to develop an art/oral history exhibit about perspectives on climate change.
MHZC News
The MHZC’s next public hearing will be held on Wednesday, August 21 at 2:00 p.m. at the Sonny West Conference Center, Howard Office Building, 700 President Ronald Regan Way. View the MHZC meeting schedule and application deadlines on our website. Access archived videos of the MHZC meetings on the Metro YouTube channel anytime!
The Citizen Historic Preservation Academy application process is now open for the 2024 course. Sessions begin on September 23 and will end on November 13, with a social event hosted by the Preservation Society of Nashville. The Citizen’s Historic Preservation Academy is an opportunity for Nashville residents to learn how they can participate in local preservation and the related benefits and resources. The Academy will meet at historic Metro sites and the last session will be a social hosted by the Preservation Society of Nashville. Class size is limited to 12, and the selection process is competitive. Participants must submit a letter of recommendation from their Council Member or neighborhood/merchant association. Students submitting an application can provide a letter of recommendation from a teacher.
Work at the site is winding down, with only final punch list items remaining. The offices at Sunnyside will re-open to the public on Monday, August 19, and the full project should be completed by late August. Six interpretive panels have been installed around the circular drive, as have the cabin view windows by the main entrance. Additional interpretation is planned for the log outbuilding (formerly thought to be a smokehouse), and should be in place this fall. James Dunn of Vintage Millworks is finalizing architectural drawings of the Summer House/ Architectural Folly over the well. Mr. Dunn is heading up the reconstruction of the building with financial assistance from Preservation Society of Nashville, Friends of Sevier Park, 12 South Neighborhood Association, and the MHC Foundation. The goal is to have the building reconstructed in September. As part of this work, staff will create a new interpretive panel to highlight the building, and MHC archaeologist Dr. Adam Fracchia will conduct an archaeological investigation of the well and surrounding area. Stop in the office to pick up a brochure with a map of all the interpretive pieces on site, and scan any of the panel QR codes to begin taking a self-guided tour of the site.
We are excited to have Stephanie Gittins starting her internship with us this month. Stephanie has a bachelor’s degree in history from Utah State University and a master's degree in historic preservation from Boston Architectural College. Her master’s thesis focused on the life and work of Tennessee master builder Braxton Dixon. In 2023, Stephanie was selected as an Advocacy Scholar by the Preservation Advocacy Foundation and spent three days in Washington, DC, advocating for preservation policy and funding. She also attended the 2023 conference of the Association for Preservation Technology (APT) as a Student Scholar and presented her research on LGBTQ+ preservationist Mary Wingfield Scott. She currently serves on the board of the Preservation Advocacy Foundation. Stephanie lives in Hendersonville with her family and three rescue cats. Stephanie will be working with the MHC staff on cemetery grant research, as well as research and writing on Nashville Sites tours funded by the 2024 Participatory Budget.
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Thanks to our newest archaeologist, Jack (on the left, pointing to his discovery), we are learning more about the Indigenous history of Sunnyside. The Lawrence family (on the right with archaeologist Dr. Adam Fracchia) recently found this arrowhead or projectile point in Sevier Park and contacted MHC Commissioner Dr. Clay Bailey. Based on the shape of the projectile point, we believe that the point dates to the Middle-to-Late Archaic Period about 6,000 to 3,500 BP (before present). Other data we have collected through archaeology confirms that Indigenous people were living in the area and making stone tools during that time period. The projectile point is now on public display at Sunnyside thanks to the Lawrence Family. |
The removal of the gravel roadbed around Sunnyside has exposed more history of the park. Artifacts from the Civil War were recovered just below the gravel, including cannon ball fragments, a bullet, tent hardware, and a gun tool. These artifacts were uncovered directly in front of the mansion along with charcoal stains in the soil which indicate the location of a Federal or Confederate encampment likely associated with the Battle of Nashville. These artifacts will be conserved by the University of Delaware and displayed at Sunnyside in the future. Image on the left: recovered musket tool from the roadbed in front of Sunnyside. To the right: a representative image of a similar musket tool.
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To be able to document this archaeological heritage, preservation is essential. Careful and scientific excavation allows use to preserve not just the artifact, but also additional information on context. Metal detection and prospection for artifacts is illegal on Metro property. If you find something you believed to be archaeological on Metro Property, please contact the Metro archaeologist at adam.fracchia@nasvhille.gov.
MHC Archaeology Day in Archaeology Awareness Month
To celebrate Archaeology Awareness month in Tennessee, the Metro Historical Commission will host an Archaeology Day at Sunnyside on September 7 from 9:00 am to 1:00 pm.
- Learn about Archaeology in Nashville
- Participate in an Excavation at Sunnyside
- Learn about Ground Penetrating Radar
- Try your hand at several different activities like Throwing an Atlatl or Mending Ceramics
- Take a tour of the newly renovated Historic Sunnyside Mansion
Look for a schedule and more information coming soon.
 Mystery Object: In the archaeology lab, not every artifact is easily identifiable. We often spend a great deal of time cleaning them off and piecing them together before we try to look for examples of what they could be. This month we are trying to determine what this iron object could be. If you know, please send an email to adam.fracchia@nashville.gov.
In mid-July, the Metro Planning Department released the Nashville Independent Venues Study, a project funded by Metro Council through a 2021 resolution (RS2021-927). The resolution requested the Metropolitan Planning Department, Metro Arts Commission, Metropolitan Historical Commission, the Nashville Convention and Visitors Corporation, and the Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce to partner together to take an inventory of every music venue in Nashville to better inform the Metropolitan Government as to how best to preserve, sustain, and support these venues for the decades to come.
MHC staff took part in the project scope development, stakeholder listening sessions, and provided reviews and comments for the draft study. The report includes an abbreviated historical timeline of Nashville music history and profiles on several historic local music venues as well as newer venues housed in historic buildings, including Exit/In, Bluebird Cafe, Rudy’s Jazz Room, Layla’s Honky Tonk, and Lipstick Lounge. Read the report to learn what specific challenges these venues face and what steps can be considered for their continued vitality and preservation, and thank you to our partner organizations for making this study possible.
The Hubbard House, located at 1116 1st Ave S, received a double-dose of good news recently. On July 16, the Metro Council approved on third reading the proposal to protect the Hubbard House as a local Historic Landmark. This is a zoning designation by the Metro Historic Zoning Commission that allows MHZC to review and approve exterior alterations, additions, or demolition. Then, on July 18, the Friends of Hubbard House were awarded funding by the the African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund, a program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation. MHC staff member Caroline Eller assisted Friends of Hubbard House on the grant application, which will assist with phase one exterior stabilization of the property. Listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1973, the Hubbard House is the last remnant of the original Meharry Medical College campus. Friends of Hubbard House plans to renovate the building and continue the mission of Dr. George Hubbard and Meharry Medical College by offering medical and mental health services to the community.
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MHC staff and commissioners were featured in two recent episodes of the WPLN radio program This Is Nashville. On July 23, staff member Jessica Reeves and Commissioner John Bridges were featured on the episode "Nashville's Historical Markers." Reeves administers the markers program and gave an overview of the program and its history, and highlighted some of the upcoming marker unveilings planned for the near future. Commissioner Bridges talked about the recently unveiled Warehouse 28 marker, as well as his experience with the marker process as both a Commissioner and as a private citizen as he has helped research and fund two historical markers in Nashville. On July 24, Commissioner Jim Hoobler kicked off the episode "Second Avenue Post-Bombing Update" by giving an overview of the history of Second Ave. (also known as Market Street) and other disasters that have befallen the area over the past two centuries. You can follow This Is Nashville on Instagram to get updates on upcoming shows, and tune in daily to WPLN 90.3 at 12:00 pm to hear new episodes. Previous episodes can also be found on the WPLN website.
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Discuss the book The Art of the Con: the Most Notorious Fakes, Frauds, and Forgeries in the Art World by Anthony M. Amore with the AIA-Nashville Society Book Club at the Parthenon on August 5.
On August 10, the Nashville City Cemetery Association, Friends of Fort Negley, and Fort Negley Park will jointly present a two-part Brunch and Lunch on the Battle of Nashville. Speakers include Battle of Nashville Trust board member Jim Kay.
Fort Negley will host the Afro-American Historical and Genealogical Society monthly meeting on August 3, Fossil Finders on August 10, the Nashville Civil War Roundtable on August 20, and a Guided Walking Tour on August 22.
The fall Musicians Corner series kicks off at Centennial Park on August 30. Concerts will be held weekly through the end of September.
Metro Archives (3rd floor Main Library) opened a new exhibit on April 1, "Nashville’s Magellan of the Air: 100th Anniversary of the First Flight to Circumnavigate the World." This exhibit tells the story of the groundbreaking first flight to circumnavigate the Earth, and the Nashville connection to this journey.
Parnassus Books, in partnership with Nashville Public Library Foundation, is pleased to present an evening with Rainbow Rowell, in conversation with Jeff Zenter, as they discuss Rainbow’s new book, Slow Dance. This is a ticketed event and will take place in the auditorium of Nashville Public Library’s main branch (615 Church Street, Nashville, TN 37219). Auditorium doors will open at 5:45 and the event will begin at 6:30.
Join the Nashville Public Library Foundation for an exclusive behind-the-scenes Library 101 tour of the downtown Main Library. Register online for the free tour on August 7 from 9:15-10:30 am.
Did you know you can check out art from the Nashville Public Library? Stop by the Main Library second floor gallery through August 16 to preview the collection. Purchased by Metro Arts, 53 works of art will be available for lending from the Donelson, Green Hills, Old Hickory, Hermitage, and East branch locations.
Frist Art Museum--The Sweetness of Life Culinary Experience--August 3
Frist Art Museum--Tennessee Emancipation Day Celebration--August 8
Andrew Jackson's The Hermitage--Vintage Baseball--August 11
Bellevue Harpeth Historic Association--Dr. Daniel Sharfstein presents "The Cherokees and Chickasaw at Vanderbilt: The True Story of the Native Americans Attending Vanderbilt Law School in the late 1890s"--August 12
Travellers Rest--Your Legacy Tour with The Greenwood Seneca Foundation--August 15-17
Cheekwood Estate & Gardens--Black Arts Bash--August 17
Frist Art Museum--Persian Afternoon Tea--August 18
Andrew Jackson's The Hermitage--History Uncorked: The Infamous Coffin Handbill--August 22
Cheekwood Estate & Gardens--Songwriters Under the Stars--August 23-25
Tennessee State Museum--TN Writers | TN Stories: Sara Koffi, "While We Were Burning" in conversation with Jeremy Finley--August 10
Andrew Jackson's The Hermitage--POEtry: An Edgar Allan Poe Living History Event--August 31
Belmont Mansion--Blue Star Museum free admission through September 2
National Museum of African American Music--Nissan Free Wednesday--free admission on the first Wednesday of each month courtesy of Nissan
Cheekwood Estate & Gardens--Dog Nights of Summer--Thursdays in August
Tennessee State Museum--Museum Highlight Tours--each Friday and Saturday at 2:00 pm
Frist Art Museum--Architecture Tours--each Saturday from 3:30-4:30 pm
Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum--From Where I Stand: The Black Experience in Country Music-online exhibit
Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum--Music Row: Nashville's Creative Crossroads--online exhibit
Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum--Night Train to Nashville: Music City Rhythm & Blues--online exhibit
upcoming--The Nashville Fair--September 6-15
Check out our online newsletter archives!
Have a preservation-related event that you want us to include? Send a message to Jessica.Reeves@nashville.gov
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