A Memorable Spring In the South

I have been down to Nashville a few times in my lifetime. We all know that Nashville is THE Music City, and if you want to hear some great country, rock or bluegrass, you can find it in Nashville.

I recently visited Nashville as part of a conference, and even though I had been before, I decided to try something different. If you have never been, visiting the Grand Old Opry, listening to live country music and enjoying some southern cooking is a must.

On my third time down, I decided to go for the historical perspective on Nashville and was lucky enough to do a few tours of a couple of southern mansions. One I stumbled on as I drove on a quick errand and came across The Hermitage and home of former President Andrew Jackson.

The other I found online using the Viator app (a tour company I had used when I was in Europe). The second one, Belle Meade, a mansion and thoroughbred farm, was also dripping in southern hospitality.

Both homes are grand in scale and oozing history.

Two Southern Tours

In my previous blog on touring the Metropolitan Museum of Art, I mentioned my love of museums. You can get lost in all that history, and museums always give you a new perspective on life. They teach you what life was like back when but also teach you what we have learned and what yet we have to learn.

The two tours – The Hermitage and Belle Meade – were stunning. They were stunning both in terms of the dwellings and surrounding lands and rich in history and stories of southern life – good and bad.

Both featured families who owned the land centuries ago and, in their way, made a rich and luxurious living in Nashville. But you also learn about the darker side of the era where both farms saw civil wars and had a history with slavery.

As I said earlier, it’s essential to learn about our history, good and bad. But, it’s also important to remember that museums tell you “a” story, and it is also essential to keep learning even after you leave the museum.

In this two part series, I’ll share info on the Hermitage. And in Part 2, will share more about Belle Meade.

The Hermitage and Home of President Andrew Jackson (7th US President)

About

The Hermitage is a 1200-acre farm located in Nashville. In addition to the mansion, the grounds have a 1.5-mile walking trail peppered with buildings from the era, including a farm and the burial site of the former President, along with more modern trappings such as a gift shop, and café and a wine tasting area.

The Inside Tour

When you walk upon the Hermitage, you notice a grand mansion at the end of a tree-lined driveway. The grand scale of the front yard is breathtaking. As you walk up the trail in the front yard, you can’t help but notice the grand trees of the south lining each side of the driveway. You can almost see the horse-drawn carriage coming up the lane.

The Hermitage offers a guided tour, and once you arrive, staff greet you wearing era-appropriate costumes, and you quickly get a sense of the times.

Once inside, the grand scale of the 8000+ square foot residence and the 14-foot ceilings are stunning. The wrap-around Parisian wallpaper is so detailed that it tells a story. Yes, perhaps in today’s time, it would be over the top, but that hallway could be bigger than some of the main floors in homes today.

As you travel the rooms, you are cautioned not to touch any artifacts as many are centuries old. But the rooms are laid out with such detail that you would think the family would walk in any moment. Every room has the original furniture, including serving-ware, glassware, and décor such as clocks, frames and books.

On the tour, you travel to the main bedrooms, the main sitting room and the dining room. Next, you go up to the second floor and only visit the bedrooms for visitors. According to the tour guides, the second floor was only for visitors to the mansion. However, it welcomed all visitors, including those without a home who needed a place to rest. Therefore, these rooms were as equally decadent and luxurious.

Outside Tour

As you walk outside, you enter the sprawling homestead. You can take a 1.5-mile stroll throughout the property, visiting the original homestead (before the Jacksons built the mansion), the Springhouse cabin, and the enslaved people’s homes.

On your way back, you can go through the garden that holds the tombs of Andrew and Rachel Jackson.
To complete the tour and not feel rushed, you need about 2 ½ hours. In the end, you can choose to visit the gift shop, enjoy lunch and enjoy a wine tasting of authentic Nashville wine. (In terms of the wine, I was pleasantly surprised and bought myself a delicious red.)

Overall, I knew very little about the era and this President. However, stumbling on the Hermitage made for a perfect sunny southern afternoon.

Bliss Reflection

I love to wander. I am not 100% sure why, but I love to wander and learn about the life, people, traditions, and history.

Travelling, for me, is the school of life. It’s a history, geography, social studies and science lesson wrapped into one. Sure I heard about the civil war, southern plantations, and enslaved people in history books.

But until you are there, you don’t appreciate the stories, struggles and successes in the same way. There is so much more meaning to those stories when you see the place where it happened.

I consider myself blessed for being able to travel as I do. That came to a complete stop during Covid. And Nashville was the first trip in a post- Covid environment – ok, maybe a quieter period during Covid.

Being there just for four days gave me life. It once again fed my curiosity. I always leave with lots of questions and a renewed appreciation for the talent in a non-digital and non-tech world.

The artistry in the buildings, wood, food, and agriculture is impressive. But, seeing it in person allows everything you studied in school to leap off the page. And if you are like me, these travels inspire you to want to read and understand more.

So, it’s important to allow yourself to wander. Take the time to breathe and play.

Bliss Hints and Tips

• To read more about The Hermitage, check out their main page
• The Whitehouse (of course) has more information about the 7th President, Andrew Jackson
• For more information on this controversial figure, read a story from History.com.