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Place Name
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Nashville
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Place Status (Type)
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city
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Population
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510,784 (1990)
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Location
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Davidson County, Tennessee (TN), United States, North America
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Latitude
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36°10'N
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Longitude
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86°46'W
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Nashville
, city (1990 pop. 510,784),
 Tenn., coextensive with Davidson co., central Tenn., on the
Cumberland R., 195 mi/314 km NE of Memphis;
36°10'N 86°46'W. In a fertile farm area, Nashville is a port of
entry and an important commercial and industrial center. The city has
RR shops and diverse mfg., including wood, glass, and rubber prods.,
shoes, aircraft parts, and steel. Noted for its music business; it is a
major recording center, esp. for country music. It also has many
publishing houses producing religious materials, school annuals,
magazines, and telephone directories. Several large insurance and
finance companies have their hq. here, and the country's largest
healthcare conglomerate, Hospital Corp. of Amer., is based here.
Founded (1779) by a group of pioneers under James Robertson. Fort
Nashborough was built on the banks of the river, and the next year 60
families arrived to settle the area. As the N terminus of the Natchez
Trace, the settlement developed early as a cotton center and river port
and later as a RR hub. It became the permanent state capital in 1843.
After the fall of Fort Donelson in Feb. 1862, Nashville was abandoned
to Union troops under D. C. Buell and became an important Union base
for the remainder of the Civil War. Sometimes called the “Athens of
the South,” Nashville has many buildings of Classical design,
including a replica of the Parthenon, built in 1897. Among its many
institutions of higher education are Vanderbilt Univ., Fisk Univ.,
Tenn. State Univ., the Univ. of Tenn. at Nashville, Meharry Medical
Col., Amer. Baptist Col., David Lipscomb Col., Belmont Col., Free Will
Baptist Bible Col., Aquinas Junior Col., and a state school for the
blind. Nashville has many cultural amenities, including a symphony
orchestra, ballet and opera companies, and several theater troupes, art
galleries, and mus. Points of interest include the capitol (completed
1855) with the tomb of James K. Polk; the war memorial bldg.; the
Country Music Hall of Fame and mus.; Opryland; Ryman auditorium
(original home of the Grand Ole Opry); a replica of Fort Nashborough;
and several old churches and antebellum homes, including Belle Meade
mansion. Nearby is the Hermitage, home of Andrew Jackson. Inc. as a
city 1806, merged with Davidson co. 1963.
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