Centennial Park (Nashville)
Centennial Park | |
---|---|
Type | Public park |
Location | Nashville, Tennessee, United States |
Coordinates | 36°08′56″N 86°48′43″W / 36.149°N 86.812°W |
Area | 132-acre (0.53 km2) |
Created | 1903 |
Operated by | Metropolitan Nashville Department of Parks and Recreation |
Centennial Park is a large
Cultivated as farmland by some of the earliest families in Nashville, the territory became controlled by the state and used as a park after the American Civil War. In the last decade, it was used as a racetrack. It was redeveloped as the site of the Tennessee Centennial and International Exposition in 1897. Afterward most of the temporary exhibit structures were removed, but the replica of the Parthenon remained. Centennial Park was opened in 1903. Due to the popularity of the Parthenon, it was rebuilt in the 1920s in steel and concrete.
History
The 132-acre (0.53 km2) park was originally farmland that had belonged to
Some of the land was part of the
After the Civil War, this land was adapted for the state fairgrounds. From 1884 to 1895, more of the site was devoted to a racetrack and was known as West Side Park. In 1897, it was developed as the site of the Tennessee Centennial and International Exposition and was renamed as Centennial Park. In preparation for the exposition, the area was landscaped and new, temporary buildings were constructed for exhibit space. An artificial lake, Lake Watauga, was developed in the park, as were sunken gardens and a bandshell for music performances. The lake was named for an area in western North Carolina that was the origin of a number of early settlers of Nashville.
A replica of the Parthenon was also built, to honor Nashville's status as "The Athens of the South", and was intended to be longterm. It was designed by William Crawford Smith.[7][8]
As was common with such expositions, afterward most of the temporary buildings and exhibits were dismantled. Lake Watauga, the gardens, bandshell and the Parthenon were the most prominent features when the park was officially dedicated in May 1903.
In 1909, the Confederate Private Monument, designed by George Julian Zolnay, was dedicated. The United Daughters of the Confederacy (UDC) had helped raise money to commission the monument.[9]
Centennial Park became an important recreation site for
The Parthenon replica had been built as a temporary building to house the Nashville pavilion. As it deteriorated, it was proposed for demolition but residents favored keeping it. Finally, in the 1920s the city and park officials agreed to replace the temporary plaster building with a permanent, concrete and steel structure. It is still standing and has been renovated as needed.
From 1954 to 1967, the Parthenon was the backdrop for an enormous nativity scene sponsored by Harveys department store. (This has since gone out of business.) The scene was approximately 280 feet (85 m) long, 75 feet (23 m) deep and was flooded with colorful lights. However, by 1968, it was sold to a Cincinnati shopping center. According to the Nashville Banner, the nativity scene was shown only two Christmas seasons in Cincinnati before it collapsed and was discarded.[citation needed]
In the 1960s, the park was the site of Sunday afternoon concerts; Pat Boone was among the early performers in this series.[14] In 1975, Robert Altman shot the climactic scene of his film Nashville in the park.
In 1990, a statue of Pallas Athena, designed by Nashville sculptor Alan LeQuire, was added to the art gallery inside the Parthenon. It is dedicated to the women's suffrage movement.[15]
By the late 20th century, the park had many mature shade trees. The
On November 11, 2005, Centennial Park became Nashville's first wireless internet park by offering free Wi-Fi internet access to park patrons.[17] The park's bandshell was the site of the annual "Shakespeare in the Park" presented by the Nashville Shakespeare Festival for thirty years until its move to Nashville's oneC1TY in 2019.[citation needed]
In 2012, workers found the source of the spring that was a major feature during Anne Robertson Johnson Cockrill's ownership of the land. For 100 years, it had been capped and piped to the sewer, with a flow of more than 100 gallons of water per minute.[18] What is now called Cockrill Springs is a new natural feature of the park.[19]
On August 26, 2016, as part of Women's Equality Day, a monument by Alan LeQuire was unveiled in the park. It features depictions of Carrie Chapman Catt, Anne Dallas Dudley, Abby Crawford Milton, Juno Frankie Pierce, and Sue Shelton White, local activists for women suffrage.[20][21]
The park also contains a recreation center. It is also the site of the administrative offices of the city's Department of Parks and Recreation, but these area being relocated to the East Bank of the Cumberland River and the offices of the former Nashville Bridge Company.[citation needed]
Popular culture
American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift mentioned Centennial Park twice in her song "Invisible String" from her eighth studio album Folklore. Swift lived in Nashville during the beginning of her music career.[22] When she returned in 2023 for The Eras Tour, a bench was put in the park to honor her time in the city.
References
- ^ a b Bucy, Carole Stanford. "Ann Robertson Johnston Cockrill". The Tennessee Encyclopedia of History and Culture. Tennessee Historical Society and the University of Tennessee Press. Retrieved August 27, 2016.
- ^ Stanford Bucy, Carole (December 25, 2009). "Ann Robertson Johnston Cockrill". The City Cemetery. Archived from the original on June 16, 2012. Retrieved April 22, 2017.
- ^ Newspapers.com.
In anticipation of the ruin to Southern interests that his keen vision foresaw, he sold his large Mississippi plantation, to which he was in the habit of going every winter [...]. He also sold the 300 slaves on the plantation with the exception of about sixty selected "hands", whom he brought to Tennessee to watch and care for his sheep.
- ^ Newspapers.com.
- ^ Epstein Ojalvo, Holly (February 13, 2017). "Beyond Yale: These other university buildings have ties to slavery and white supremacy". USA Today. Retrieved April 7, 2018.
- OCLC 44274945.
- ^ JSTOR 42626877.
In May of 1903, Centennial Park was officially opened to the public.
- ^ "Confederate Private Monument, (sculpture)". The Smithsonian Institution. Archived from the original on September 6, 2017. Retrieved September 6, 2017.
- Newspapers.com.
Jack Spore, city recreation director, said attendants at Centennial Park Pool refused to sell the Negroes tickets and the group left quietly.
- Newspapers.com.
On Tuesday, six negroes were denied admission to a Centennial Park pool reserved for white persons.
- OCLC 940632744.
- ^ "Centennial Park". Nashville.gov. Retrieved September 16, 2020.
- Newspapers.com.
The folks are shown where Pat Boone attended school and told how Pat got his start with the Sunday concerts in Centennial Park.
- ^ Bliss, Jessica (August 24, 2016). "Alan LeQuire's Women Suffrage Monument unveiled in Nashville's Centennial Park". The Tennessean. Retrieved April 22, 2017.
LeQuire has created numerous public commissions in his 35-year career. At age 26, he began Athena Parthenos, the looming sculpture inside the Parthenon at Centennial Park. It took eight years to complete and was unveiled in 1990.
- ^ Ian Demsky. "Tornado sirens go unheard in many areas". The Tennessean, June 9, 2004.
- ^ "Centennial adds wireless service". The City Paper. November 10, 2005. Archived from the original on April 22, 2017. Retrieved April 22, 2017.
- ^ Ferrier, Dennis. "Underground spring to help transform Centennial Park". Retrieved May 6, 2015. The spring was excavated and the stream was subsequently daylighted.
- ^ "Cockrill Springs is 'new' feature of Centennial Park". www.cleanwaternashville.org.
- ^ "Women's Suffrage Monument Unveiled - Story". Newschannel5.com. Retrieved August 27, 2016.
- ^ "Nashville's Newest Monument Celebrates State's Role In Women's Winning The Right To Vote". Nashville Public Radio. Retrieved August 27, 2016.
- ^ Bailey, Alyssa (July 24, 2020). "Taylor Swift's 'Invisible String' Lyrics Give a Revealing Update on Her Relationship with Joe Alwyn". Elle. Archived from the original on July 26, 2020. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
Further reading
- Johnson, Leland R. (1986). The Parks of Nashville: A History of the Board of Parks and Recreation. Nashville: Metropolitan Nashville Board of Parks and Recreation.
External links
- Tennessee Centennial Exposition, Tennessee Virtual Archive, Tennessee State Library and Archives.
- Tennessee Centennial and International Exposition (1879) Collection, 1895-1900, Tennessee State Library and Archives.