The Hermitage (Tennessee)
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| The Hermitage | |
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| (U.S. National Historic Landmark) | |
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| Location: | 12 mi. E of Nashville on U.S. 70N |
| Nearest city: | Nashville, Tennessee |
| Architect: | Reiff & Hume |
| Designated as NHL: | December 19, 1960 |
| Added to NRHP: | October 15, 1966 |
| NRHP Reference#: | 66000722 |
The Hermitage is a historical plantation and museum located in Davidson County, Tennessee, USA, 12 miles (19 km) east of downtown Nashville. The plantation was owned by Andrew Jackson, the seventh President of the United States, from 1804 until his death at The Hermitage in 1845. Jackson only lived at the property occasionally until he retired from public life in 1837.
[edit] History
The Hermitage is not only the name of Jackson's home but of the surrounding farm. The land, which was ideally located two miles (3 km) from the Cumberland and Stone’s rivers, was originally settled by a Nathaniel Hays in 1780. Hays sold the 640-acre (2.6 km²) farm to Jackson in 1804. Jackson and his wife Rachel moved into a two-story log cabin on the farm (the two-story building was eventually split into two one-story buildings used as slave quarters after Jackson built the main house). Initially Jackson operated the cotton farm with nine African slaves, but this number gradually grew to 44 slaves by 1820 as the farm expanded to 1,000 acres (4.0 km²).
The original Hermitage mansion was a two-story 8-room Federal style brick building built between 1819 and 1821. 1828 was the height and depth of Jackson's life. In November, he was elected 7th President of the United States, however, his wife Rachel died the following month. In 1831, while Jackson was away in the White House, he had the mansion remodeled with flanking one-story wings (one with a library and the other with a large dining room and pantry), a two-story entrance portico with Doric columns and a small rear portico. Jackson also had a Grecian “temple & monument” for Rachel Jackson's grave constructed in the garden. Craftsmen completed the domed limestone tomb with a copper roof in 1832. In 1834 a chimney fire seriously damaged much of the building. This prompted Jackson to have the current Greek Revival structure built which was completed two years later. The entry hall is decorated with wall paper depicting scenes from Telemachus' visit to the island of Calypso.
On May 5, 1863, units of the Union Army, specifically those from Indiana, approached the grounds of The Hemitage. A Pvt. Joseph C. Taylor wrote of the account in his diary.
At 2 this morning Co.'s according to previous agreement, saddled up and started for a big scout. About daylight we arrived at Stone River. Colonel McCook was with us. We used great caution while crossing the river. We formed a line of battle and crossed a Company at a time, forming a line on the opposite side. We all crossed in safety, and proceeded to the Hermitage of General A. Jackson, where we halted for a while. Then by orders of the Colonel went to see the hermitage also the tomb of General A. Jackson. I will describe the place as well as I can. There is a nise gravel road from the Main road to the house. On each side of this mall there is a nise row of large cedar trees, which almost darken the passage as the branches meet overhead. When in 20 steps of the front door, this road for and directly in front is a space in the shape of a heart. Around this the road runs, which enables the carriage to come up to the door. This heart is enclosed by a similar row of cedars. The inside of this heart, and also on each side of the carriage way is thickly set with pines, cedars and other shrubbery of long standing, which almost excludes the sun shining on the ground. There is nise gravel walks leading to every place that a person want to go. From appearances those walks are but little used, as the grass is growing in the walks to some extent. We then went in the garden which is situated on the East of the house. Which is between the house and the Lebanon Pike, and is full of shrubbery and flowers of all kinds. Also walks running in all directions which beautifies the place and also give it a cold look to me, as I never saw a garden arrainged in this fashion. In the South East corner of this garden stands the monument of General Andrew Jackson. General Jackson lays on the South side of the tomb. His head in the direction of West, his feet to the East. His wife lays on the North and 2 infant children lay on the South of the tomb. It is all together a dark and secluded spot and looks to me as though it was verry old fassion."
– Pvt. Joseph C. Taylor, Co. I, 2nd Indiana Cavalry [1]
In 1889, the Hermitage was opened to the public as a museum, both of Jackson's life and the antebellum South in general. Each year, the home receives more than a quarter million visitors, making it the 4th most visited presidential residence in the country (after the White House, Mount Vernon, and Monticello).
The tomb of Andrew and Rachel Jackson is located in the Hermitage garden.
The Hermitage escaped a near-disaster during the 1998 Nashville tornado outbreak. An F-3 tornado crossed the property at approximately 4:00pm CDT on April 16, 1998, missing the house and gravesite, but toppling many trees that had reportedly been planted by Jackson himself nearly 200 years earlier. Whereas the trees had once hidden the house from view of passers-by on U.S. Highway 70, it is now in plain sight.
The area of Davidson County, Tennessee surrounding the Hermitage is known as Hermitage, Tennessee. A posh hotel named The Hermitage Hotel, located in downtown Nashville, Tennessee opened in 1910 and is still open today. Many celebrities and U.S. Presidents have spent time there.[2]
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