Nashville Attractions

The Belle Meade Plantation (southwest of the city center), built in 1853, is a handsome old Southern mansion, set in one of the finest plantations in Tennessee.
During the Battle of Nashville, Union and rebel forces battled in the front yard and the mansion's massive stone columns sustained many bullet holes - still evident today. The grounds of the mansion consist of a 1790 log cabin, an 1820 smokehouse, an 1840 mausoleum and an 1884 creamery.

In the Centennial Park, southwest of the city center, is the famous reproduction of the Parthenon, originally built in wood in 1897 to commemorate the centenary of the state of Tennessee and later rebuilt in cement on the same site.
The Parthenon is Nashville's replica of the ancient Greek temple. It features a permanent art collection of 63 works by 19th and 20th C American painters.

At 116 5th Avenue N is the Ryman Auditorium, in which the Grand Ole Opry show was performed from 1943 to 1974, which is now a museum.
The Ryman Auditorium opened in 1892 in Nashville as a vision of Captain Thomas G Ryman. It was originally called the Union Gospel Tabernacle. The Ryman has been restored and features classical and concert series, bluegrass shows, musical theater and television tapings.

The Adventure Science Center in Nashville features hands-on, interactive exhibits and engaging programs that encourage children of all ages to explore how science, invention and innovation affect their lives. Adventure Science Center encourages imagination and curiosity.

To the south of the park is the Belmont Mansion, built in the 1850s. One of the finest houses of its kind in the United States, it has thirteen rooms preserving much of their original decoration and furnishings.
Belmont was built in the style of an Italian villa and set in elaborate gardens with many outbuildings. Exhibits include furniture, paintings, and original statues by American artists.

Bicentennial Capitol Mall State Park in Nashville is a 19-acre site that commemorates the 200th year of Tennessee as a state. A granite map of the state is imbedded in the concrete plaza. An area containing 31 vertical water fountains marks each of the predominant waterways in Tennessee.

Cheekwood is the Nashville estate of the Cheek family with display gardens. The Woodland Sculpture Trail has four greenhouses with camellias and orchids as well as a learning center with contemporary art galleries. The Museum of Art is housed within the 1920s Georgian-style mansion. American art from the 19th and 20th C is featured.

The Downtown Presbyterian Church in Nashville is an example of Egyptian Revival architecture. The Egyptian decorative theme is continued inside with wall paintings, woodwork, and the stained glass windows. The church was used as a hospital during the Union occupation of the city during the Civil War. It was designated Hospital No. 8 and housed 206 beds.

On the banks of the Cumberland River is a reconstruction of Fort Nashborough, the original nucleus of the city, established by pioneers in 1779.

The Fox Trot Carousel at Riverfront Park in Nashville overlooks the Cumberland River. It is unique among carousels in that the figures on it are all symbols of Tennessee by artist Red Grooms. They include some country and western stars, famous personages from the state and a dancing fox.

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The Music Valley Car Museum in Nashville features more than 50 classic cars, including Randy Travis' 1965 Ford Mustang. Many of the cars once belonged to country music performers and stars of the Grand Ole Opry.

The Music Valley Wax Museum in Nashville features 53 stage sets with life-size wax figures of country music stars. The Sidewalk of the Stars has more than 250 handprints and signatures.

The Nashville Opera has the largest opera company in Tennessee. It produces four main-stage performances and one school tour each year.

The Nashville Toy Museum features vintage toys and model railroads. Antique toys from Europe and North America include toy and model boats, toy soldiers, and rare dolls.

The Tennessee Agricultural Museum in Nashville is located in the Ellington Agricultural Center. The Museum has a collection of home and farm artifacts from the 19th and early 20th centuries as well as rural Tennessee prints and folk art sculptures. Some of the highlights include textiles, a woodworking collection, buggies, wagons a McCormick reaper and Jumbo steam engine.

The Tennessee State Museum in Nashville features exhibits that began 15,000 years ago and continue through the early 1900s highlighting the Prehistoric, Frontier, Age of Jackson, Antebellum, Civil War, and Reconstruction periods. Special displays of furniture, silver, weapons, quilts, and paintings are on display.

The Texas Troubadour Theatre in Nashville offers full-scale musical productions and a late-night radio variety show, the Ernest Tubb Midnight Jamboree, is also broadcast from here.

The Travellers Rest Plantation in Nashville was established in 1799 by John Overton, a law partner and presidential advisor to Andrew Jackson. During the Civil War the Battle of Peach Orchard Hill was fought on the grounds.

The Upper Room Chapel in Nashville features a woodcarving of Leonardo da Vinci's painting, The Last Supper, which was sculpted by Ernest Pellegrini. The woodcarving was created by more than fifty woodworkers under his guidance over fourteen months' time.

The Upper Room Museum displays religious paintings from 1300 to present day. Two special exhibits are Ukrainian eggs in spring and 100 Nativity scenes during the Christmas season.

15 mi. north of Nashville on I 65 is Millersville, with the Museum of Beverage Containers and Advertising, which claims to have the largest collection of drink cans (36,000 items), together with a large collection of advertising material.

The Museum of Beverage Containers & Advertising features more than 36,000 soda cans, 9,000 bottles, and many types of advertising.