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The next Metropolitan Historical Commission public meeting will be held on Monday, June 15 at 12:00 p.m. at the Howard Office Building, 700 President Ronald Reagan Way. You can find a full list of upcoming and previous MHC meetings on our website.
Tennessee Historical Commission Preservation Grant Awarded for Dendrochronology Research
MHC has been awarded a Tennessee Historical Commission Preservation Grant to support dendrochronology research at several historic log structures in Davidson County. The project will include scientific sampling and analysis of historic timbers at sites including the Morton Cabin at Grassmere, the 1802 House at Two Rivers Mansion, the 1811 House at Warner Parks, and the Buchanan Log House.
Dendrochronology, often referred to as tree-ring dating, allows researchers to determine the approximate year trees were felled for construction. The work will help confirm construction dates, improve understanding of early building practices in Middle Tennessee, and provide valuable information to guide ongoing preservation efforts at these National Register-listed sites.
Historical Marker Update
Congratulations to Meharry Medical College on the unveiling of the Dr. Lloyd C. Elam Historical Marker on May 14! Check out NewsChannel 5's coverage of this event. To learn more about Dr. Elam's legacy as former president at Meharry Medical College and founder of MMC's psychiatry department, please see his biography on The History Makers, including several interviews and images in their digital archive and digital library records.
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Congratulations to MHC Chair Linda T. Wynn on her retirement from the Tennessee Historical Commission after 51 years of service! During the MHC's meeting on Monday, May 18, Davidson County Historian Dr. Lea Williams presented Chair Wynn with an award on behalf of the North Nashville Heritage Project in recognition of her years of support and service to this project and many, many others. |
The Metropolitan Historical Commission celebrated National Preservation Month by presenting Preservation Awards to ten properties and recognizing five properties with honorable mentions at the 50th Annual Preservation Awards program on Tuesday, May 12. The event took place at the Grand Lodge of Tennessee, Free and Accepted Masons; Mayor Freddie O’Connell assisted with the awards presentation. After the awards ceremony, the Nashville Historical Foundation and Preserve Nashville hosted a reception celebrating this milestone event and welcoming new Executive Director, Caroline Eller. May 2026 also marks the 60th anniversary of the creation of the Metropolitan Historical Commission.
Along with celebrating exceptional preservation projects, the Metropolitan Historical Commission presented three honor awards during the ceremony. The Commission recognized the contributions of former Council Member Phil Claiborne with the Fletch Coke Award, honored the outstanding career of archaeologist Zada Law with the Achievement Award, and presented its Commissioners’ Award to the dynamic Jefferson Street Historical Society.
Metro Nashville Network recorded the program, which is available for viewing on Metro Nashville’s YouTube channel. Please visit our website to learn more about the winning properties and honor award recipients. Images of all recognized properties are featured on the 2026 Preservation Awards Photos page.
We appreciate the generous support of Nashville First Baptist Church, Nashville Historical Foundation, Preserve Nashville, and Historic Nashville Easements, as well as the Grand Lodge. Thank you to everyone who attended and celebrated with us!
Artifacts, artifacts, artifacts!
Even with the rain, we have had a successful and exciting month. We finished excavating at Fort Negley and started testing in the front yard of Sunnyside in Sevier Park. All of these excavations have recovered an amazing array of artifacts from the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.
Volunteers have been busy cleaning and sorting these artifacts, trying to determine what some of these artifacts could be. Volunteers are always welcome to come learn how to take care of a collection and tell these stories.
This summer we received a grant for further ground penetrating radar work at Sunnyside and the creation of a website and booklet of twenty important artifacts from Davidson County. In June, we will also begin a two-week excavation at Grassmere at the Nashville Zoo.
We will also continue the Evenings with an Archaeologist series welcoming retired Tennessee State Archaeologist Nick Fielder to the series in July. Stay tuned for the date and time of this exciting talk.
With all of these exciting opportunities, we need your help! Volunteers and students have been essential in helping with excavation and laboratory work. No experience is required to join us in the field or laboratory. Email Dr. Adam Fracchia if you are interested in participating in any of the ongoing excavations or in our archaeology laboratory.
Enslaved Memorial Project
On Saturday, June 6, the Nashville City Cemetery Association (NCCA) is partnering with the Friends of William Edmondson Homesite Park and Gardens to paint memorial stones commemorating the thousands of enslaved individuals at rest in the Nashville City Cemetery. Join the groups on Saturday, June 6 between 10:00 AM - 11:30 AM at the William Edmonson Homesite Park and Gardens, located at 1400 14th Avenue S. All materials provided. In 2026, the NCCA launched the Nashville City Cemetery Enslaved Memorial Project to honor the memory of approximately three thousand enslaved men, women, and children who were buried in the Nashville City Cemetery between its founding on January 1, 1822, and the arrival of emancipation in Tennessee in 1865.
The memorial site will feature an engraved granite bench and a memorial garden. At the heart of the project is the creation of about 1,500 small hand-painted stones, each uniquely decorated with the name of an enslaved person buried in the cemetery. Because interment records from 1822 to 1846 are missing, only those buried between 1846 and 1865 can be identified by name. NCCA hopes to honor each of these individuals with a dedicated painted stone, ensuring their legacy endures.
The Nashville City Cemetery Association thanks the Friends of William Edmonson Homesite Park and Gardens for hosting this event and helping them to create a space of dignity and remembrance.
As part of this endeavor, on Saturday June 13, the NCCA dedicate a new memorial bench for the unmarked enslaved burials in the cemetery. The ceremony will begin at 10:00 AM. The program includes remarks by MHC Commissioner Betsy Phillips as well as a musical selection by Fisk Jubilee alumnus Jordan Holland
Cockrill Tomb Restoration
Thanks to Stephen Hutchins and Hunt Memorial for their work on a new ledger for Ann Cockrill's box tomb. As shown in this photo, the team has carefully installed the ledger, completing the restoration.
On Sunday, June 7, the Fort Nashborough Chapter of the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution (NSDAR) will dedicate the restoration of John and Ann Cockrill's box tombs. The ceremony will begin at 2:00 PM. Commissioner Jim Hoobler will offer remarks on behalf of the MHC and NCCA.
Descendants' Day
Join the NCCA on Sunday, June 28, from 12:00 to 4:00 PM for a day of remembrance, fellowship, and celebration!
First opened in 1822, the Nashville City Cemetery is the city's oldest public burial ground. Within its 27 acres in the heart of Nashville, over 20,000 people have been laid to rest. Descendants' Day recognizes and honors their lives and legacies. Typically celebrated on the last Sunday on June, Descendants’ Days have provided this opportunity across the United States for decades. The event will kick off with a brief presentation at 12:00 PM that celebrates America's 250th anniversary.
The day's activities include a t-shirt bar, lunch and snacks to purchase from the La Revolución Taco truck, and the chance to participate in a tombstone cleaning. Guests may also visit with representatives from Metro Archives to view materials dating back to the city and the cemetery's earliest days and observe a virtual mapping demonstration from Kapala that shows how we leverage today's technology to share some of those same stories.
Whether you're related to someone buried in the Nashville City Cemetery or just curious to learn more, all are welcome. Please reach out to nashcitycemassoc@gmail.com with any questions or concerns. This is a free event, but donations are appreciated. Securing a ticket helps the NCCA understand and prepare appropriately.
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The Nashville City Cemetery is a Metro Nashville Public Park managed in partnership with the Metropolitan Historical Commission with support from the Nashville City Cemetery Association. The cemetery is open every day from dawn to dusk, dog-friendly, handicap accessible, and features free parking.
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Thanks to everyone who attended the Ann Roberts Lecture Series Fundraiser: Celebrating Nashville Women on Screen, In Art, & In Print last month! NHF will post recordings of the lecture series to its YouTube channel once they're available. Watch the NHF's website and our next newsletter for links!
On May 18, community members gathered at Pleasant Green Baptist Church for the Jefferson Street Corridor Study's "Past, Present, and Future" panel discussion. The event explored the history of Jefferson Street, current investments and conditions along the corridor, and community visions for its future.
The Historical Significance panel was facilitated by MHC Executive Director Caroline Eller and featured MHC Chair Linda Wynn, Dr. Learotha Williams, Davidson County Historian, and Lorenzo Washington of the Jefferson Street Sound Museum. Panelists shared their perspectives on the corridor's rich cultural legacy and the importance of preserving and interpreting Jefferson Street's history as planning for its future continues. A recording of the discussion is available on YouTube.
Congratulations to the local organizations and individuals recognized by the Tennessee Historical Commission through its 2026 Certificate of Merit Awards program. Davidson County was well represented among this year's recipients. In the Historic Preservation category, the Commission recognized Friends of Two Rivers for their work restoring Two Rivers Mansion, Belmont Mansion for the preservation of its historic Billiards Room, and Jane-Coleman Cottone and John Sweeney for their efforts in the Capitol Hill Redevelopment District National Register Nomination (listed March 23, 2026). in the Book or Public Programming category, the Commission awarded Dr. Mary Ellen Pethel and Dr. Don Cusic for their book, Howdy! The Minnie Pearl Story, Dr. Don Cusic for his biography, Chet Atkins: Mr. Guitar, and the Historic Germantown Neighborhood Association for its public history program, Preserving Place, Empowering Community: Germantown's Fight for Its Future. The awards, presented annually during National Preservation Month, recognize outstanding achievements in historic preservation, public history, education, and research across Tennessee. The full list of winners is available here.
Join the Bellevue Harpeth Historic Association on June 8 at 6:30 PM for "Bellevue Under the Stars" featuring Dr. Billy Teets, STEAM Outreach and Education Program Director and Resident Astronomer at the Dyer Observatory. The talk is free and open to the public at the Bellevue Church of Christ, 7401 Hwy 70 S, 37221.
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Please save the date for the Annual Rep. John Lewis Way March on Saturday, July 18. The march will begin at 1001 Rep. John Lewis Way North and continue through downtown Nashville. This community event brings together local elected officials, civic organizations, and residents to celebrate the life and legacy of Congressman John Lewis and other Civil Rights leaders from Nashville and beyond.
This year's theme, "Protect Our Vote. Protect Our Future." highlights the ongoing importance of civic engagement and voting rights. The event offers an opportunity to reflect on Nashville's important role in the Civil Rights Movement while honoring those who helped shape a more just and equitable society. The march will take place rain or shine.
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September 17, 2026 6:00-8:00 PM
Mark your calendars for the Nashville Historical Foundation’s annual fundraiser, Sip Thru History — Echoes of the Ben West Library, on September 17 from 6:00–8:00 pm at Hastings Architecture, the beautifully preserved former Ben West Library. Join us for an evening celebrating Nashville’s history in the very space where generations once gathered to read and learn. Special guests from The Wishing Chair—the beloved puppets created by Tom Tichenor that once performed in this very library and still delight audiences at Nashville’s Main Library—will make a special appearance. Guests will also have the opportunity to bid on a framed Michael McBride print in our silent auction. More details to come—we hope you’ll save the date and join us for this special night celebrating Nashville’s past.
Looking for a way to celebrate America 250 this year? In Dialogue with America is a year-long public humanities project created for the 250th anniversary of the United States in 2026. The project invites adults to engage the American story through sustained reading, reflection, and dialogue rather than debate or commentary. Curated by educator and cultural facilitator Michelle René Hill, the project brings together literature, historical scholarship, and visual art to explore how American identity has been shaped through story, memory, power, and cultural imagination. Rather than advancing a single argument or viewpoint, In Dialogue with America creates structure and space for inquiry, interpretation, and shared meaning making-over time.
Over twelve months, participants explore a series of thematic inquiries into the American story. Each month centers on a single theme and approaches it through three complementary lenses (participants choose to either read the fiction or nonfiction selection):
• Fiction, to explore lived experience and narrative
• Nonfiction, to provide historical and cultural context
• Visual art, to engage imagination and symbolic meaning
Themes include national origin stories, American exceptionalism, race and representation, capitalism and culture, land and belonging, and the ongoing question of who gets to tell the American story. Participants may engage independently or in groups, and the project is designed to work equally well for individuals, book clubs, libraries, and community organizations.
Visit www.indialoguewithamerica.com to learn more about the program and how to join!
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Juneteenth615--June 19, 5:00-9:00 pm, Centennial Park
Frist Art Museum--Architecture Tours--each Saturday and Sunday at 3:30 pm
Two Rivers Mansion--Movies at the Mansion, David, June 5, 5:30 pm, $10; Music at the Mansion, Nashville Symphony, June 6, 6:00 pm, free
National Museum of African American Music--Nissan Free Wednesday--free admission on the first Wednesday of each month courtesy of Nissan
Nashville Public Library, Main--Music City Before The Opry 1851- 1925 --through June 8; 25 Years on Church Street--through July 31
Andrew Jackson's Hermitage--Path of Glory--Flags on display through July 15
TN State Museum--Statehood Day Celebration--May 30/June 1; TN Writers | TN Stories: Lamar Alexander, "The Education of a Senator: From JFK to Trump" in conversation with John Seigenthaler--June 13, 10:30 am; Juneteenth Celebration 2026--June 19, 10:30 am; Storytime in the Children's Gallery--Tuesday-Friday at 10:30 am; Museum Highlight Tours--Friday and Saturday at 2:00 pm.
Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum--From Where I Stand: The Black Experience in Country Music-online exhibit; Music Row: Nashville's Creative Crossroads--online exhibit; Night Train to Nashville: Music City Rhythm & Blues--online exhibit
Check out our online newsletter archives!
Have a preservation-related event that you want us to include? Send a message to historicalcommission@nashville.gov
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