Natchez Trace Parkway to Nashville Pt. 2

After our sojourn to visit Oprah Winfrey and Elvis’s birthplaces, we rejoined the Parkway and took one of the walking trails.

A varied walk from lush green forests, to open grasslands it was an opportunity to stretch our legs.

And among all the greenery, there were small pockets of wildflowers and pops of colour.

We’ve discovered that America is a wonderful destination if you enjoy history. It’s not only travelling destinations, like the Natchez Trace or specific towns that provide historical information but across the country we’ve seen many signs that give historical information in a few short sentences. They’re similar to our Historical Markers in Australia. For the signs we see along the road we can rarely stop, and if we did we would never complete our lap, there are so many. We also notice that many of these signs, monuments and statutory are attributed to the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR).

The above historical marker is an example. Today, we spoke with someone who told us that they are greatly esteemed in America, so it was about time we found out more about them.

They were founded on October 11, 1890 by four women, and now boast a membership of over one million women. There was a renewed patriotism at this time and women, being excluded from men’s organisations, sought a way to make an impact in society. As a result, Mary S. Lockwood, Ellen Walworth, Mary Desha and Eugenia Washington formed a female only organisation to perpetuate the memory of those who helped America gain independence, to preserve history, promote the “diffusion of knowledge” and to foster freedom, patriotism and liberty throughout America.

They raise money to maintain historical sites, including graves, headstones and monuments, contribute to restorations, memorials and commemorations and preserve historical archives and documents. They also provide scholarships, volunteer and support veterans past and present and provide awards and medals.

To become a member you must provide proof of descendance from an ancestor who helped America gain independence and provide their Revolutionary War service history between 19 April 1775 from the Battle of Lexington, which was the first major battle of the war and 26 November 1783, when British troops left New York.

So, now when we read historical markers like those here on the Natchez Trace Parkway, we can appreciate who was responsible for them. And, as we travel further north, we’re learning not only about the settlers and westward expansion but the ecology, geography and the original inhabitants of the land.

For example the Pharr Mounds

There are a number of locations along the Trace that have burial mounds like these, but this is the largest, and most important grouping in Northern Mississippi, containing 8 mounds. Some have been excavated by archaeologists and then returned to their original state.

They are deeply spiritual locations where members of the Chicasaw and Choctaw Indian tribes still come to remember their ancestors.

It wasn’t long that we passed from Mississippi into Alabama and another walk through the beautiful forest.

Shortly after, we crossed the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway on the Jamie L. Whitten Bridge. A navigable route from the Gulf of Mexico, for the early settlers however, the Colbert Ferry provided access across the waterway. Chicasaw George Colbert ran the ferry between 1800 and 1819 and also a stand that provided travelers food and lodging. He was one of many Chicasaw that owned plantations and used slave labour.

And shortly thereafter, we crossed another state line

During our last lap of America in 2008/09 we spent some time following the Meriwether and Clark history trails. Meriwether Lewis and William Clark were appointed by Thomas Jefferson to undertake an expedition exploring the newly purchased Louisiana region. Lewis was Jefferson’s protege and personally chosen for the expedition. They began in May 1804, reached the Pacific Ocean in 1805 and completed the journey in September 1806. Meriwether returned with detailed documentation, maps and journals, having established the presence of Americans across the new land as a deterrent to European arrivals and had favourable encounters with at least 24 Indian tribes. The endeavour was hailed a great success. Meriwether was appointed Governor of Louisiana as a reward but it was a posting that caused him great depression. While journeying along the Natchez Trace in 1809 he committed suicide and is buried where he died at Grinder’s Stand.

This monument was erected over his grave in 1848, the broken column symbolising a life cut short.

After we visited the small Meriwether museum, we did another of the hikes through the forest.

Finally, we’d come to the the end of journey along the Natchez Trace Parkway and Gordon House, one of the last historical homes. Built in 1818 by Captain John Gordon, it was one of the most imposing homes in the region. Gordon and his wife Dolly had 11 children and ran a ferry across the river and a stand for weary travelers. Gordon died not long after completing the house but his wife remained until her death in 1859.

And just like that, we were in Nashville, Tennessee, the home of country music, Ryman Auditorium built in 1892 and the Grand Ole Opry launched in 1925.

It was great to see our Keith Urban front and centre.

This mural is painted on the Honky Tonk Bar. How many can you recognise?

Fun fact: The fellow on the barstool sitting between Johnny Cash and Willie Nelson is Brad Paisley. His image replaces Taylor Swifts, because she “shifted away from her signature country sound”. Effectively, the locals complained that a “pop” idol shouldn’t share the same space as “country legends”.

Our sojourn into Nashville, the capital of Tennessee was on a warm but overcast day that threatened rain. We left Joey behind, about a 40 minute bus ride out of town, so he could have a scheduled service. With the booking for 7am, we arrived in Nashville city centre before the tourist crowds and enjoyed our walk around the famous streets, sans tourists.

As you can see, even at 8am in the morning, the neon lights were ablaze.

Cowboy boot shops were prominent too, but don’t let the street frontage fool you. There were long racks with hundreds of boots lined up in this store! We also noticed that a lot of tourists(mostly women) wear fancy boots around and some are quite amazing. If I thought for a minute that I’d actually wear a pair, I would have been very tempted! But I was told by a local, “they’re pretty uncomfortable to wear all day”. He said most tourists buy them, take them home and don’t wear them again. So I left without a nice new pair of boots.

Our city walk took us down to the Tennessee river front, with the intention of walking along the boardwalk to Riverfront Park and the Nashborough Fort. However, we discovered a slight issue.

Unbeknown to us, they’d had a lot of rain here, which we had pretty much managed to dodge, and the river front was flooded.

So, we wandered back to the happenin’ part of Nashville.

There were guitars everywhere and I lost count of how many establishments had drum kits in the windows. We discovered, as the morning wore on, that all these establishments have live bands playing from about mid morning until well into the night.

Artists sculpture of Charlie Daniels “Reflections”

Nashville city centre is certainly a colourful and vibrant city, that comes to life once the tourists venture out. By mid morning, live band music was playing from most establishments and the streets were quite busy. It’s hard not to immersed in the music vibe.

This sculpture was in an Ariat store (they sell riding apparel and country clothing) and very well done.

it seems Taylor Swift wasn’t ousted from everywhere in Nashville.

At one point during our wanderings we came across this police officer/security guard who was exceptionally chatty and very happy to give us some hints and tips for visiting his city.

There was a lot of road and building works causing road closures so I asked him some directions. We learned that a man had detonated a car bomb in downtown Nashville on Christmas Day 2020 which had decimated an entire city block. More than 50 buildings were either destroyed or damaged and the building works are ongoing to restore the city block that was destroyed.

But our friendly police man also pointed us in the direction of some iconic venues.

Chief’s, a music/bar/restaurant is quite famous and a must see, he said.

There are 5 floors in the venue and it’s open for anyone to wander through. So we did. The “stained glass” windows are actually stickers but in conjunction with the floor to ceiling artwork, it’s serious sensory overload. In the photo above, you’re actually looking at the floor and a wall. In the picture below, the ceiling is also covered.

The band were playing, people were sitting around the bar and it was barely 11 am! And this was the vibe everywhere! Numerous venues were serving food and alcohol and playing live band music. Including on the rooftops.

Determined to explore more than the country music scene, we took in some of Nashville’s food, the Capital building, learned about their push for women’s vote and visited their Parthenon.

Seriously, a heart attack in a jar!

And to go along with the milkshakes, a GooGoo. The “Home of America’s First combination Candy Bar”, according to the sign.

The novelty here is that you use a touch screen to customise your GooGoo biscuit by choosing the chocolate, nuts, caramel etc. You pay at the screen and it takes about 10minutes for someone to hand make it. We made a selection but at $12.95 for 1 biscuit, decided to give it a miss.

We walked around Nashville State Capital building which is situated upon a grassy hill, providing great views of the surrounding area. Like other state capitals we’d visited, they welcome the public, so we took the chance to have a look inside.

Although it wasn’t as ornate as Baton Rouge, it wasn’t any less majestic.

It was interesting to see the bust of David Crockett sitting in the company of Andrew Johnson and that his credentials were frontiersman and Militiaman.

As lunch time approached, we discovered the market and these interesting artworks.

After lunch we found out that our service was complete but that Joey had a leaky seal in the front hub that they needed to order a part for but they could finish it first thing the following morning, Friday. No worries, that meant another day exploring Nashville.

On Friday, we caught the same bus at the same early morning time then walked out past Vanderbilt University to the Parthenon. Apparently, for the 1897 world exhibition, Nashville movers and shakers decided to build an exact size replica of Greece’s iconic building. It was to be the centrepiece of the exhibition but also only a temporary construction built from wood, plaster and brick.

When the exhibition concluded, Nashville locals petitioned to stave off the demolition and it remained until 1921. By then, it was such an iconic part of the city that over the following ten years it was reconstructed in permanent materials. So, here it is, the Parthenon in Nashville.

If you ignore the wide expanse of lush, green lawn, you would easily think you were in Greece. It’s also not only to look at. They hold regular exhibitions, and give a variety of guided tours, including studies on the architecture.

Our walk back to Nashville’s city centre took us through the beautiful park that the Parthenon sits in, some stunning murals and a walk through the old Marathon Motors factory.

And I can never resist a cute squirrel photo!

Another lesser known fact about Nashville, it’s home to the Marathon Motor Works which began in 1907 and was relocated to Nashville in 1910. Although it lasted only 4 years, closing in 1914, it was the first factory to make automobiles entirely in the Southern USA and this was not surpassed until General Motors made the Saturn in 1990. In 1910, Marathon made 600 cars but also all the components. Today, there are as few as nine Marathon cars in existence.

The building now houses an eclectic collection of gift and souvenir shops, a micro brewery, a Harley Davidson apparel shop and a couple of art galleries/shops, however many of the original tools and machinery pieces are on display in the halls and there are information display boards detailing when and how the Marathon car was made.

As we walked back to Nashville city centre, we got a call from the mechanic. Grim news! No one could find the part they needed and being a Friday afternoon, everyone was going home. While they were confident they could locate a part, it would have to wait until Monday. So, instead of being on our way, Joey would be parked in their forecourt for the weekend and we were without transport. At least they hooked us up with power. We figured, if you’re given lemons, you make lemonade! So after some googling, we located a reasonable car to hire for the weekend, picked it up within an hour and drove it back to Joey. Now, to plan where to go on our unexpected extra weekend of sightseeing, with unlimited mileage.