June 10, 2013 The Hermitage

Front Entrance of The Hermitage

 We entered the central time zone in central Tennessee on US route 70 west towards Nashville.  We have visited Nashville before and toured the legendary country music sites, but had not stopped at Andrew Jackson's home, The Hermitage.  A beautiful mansion with original furniture and even some original wall paper, it served as the plantation manor house of business as well as hosting between 25-50 guests a night.  Priveleged guests got to sleep in one of the two guest beds, but most had to roll out their sleeping rolls on the floor, but a hearty breakfast was served to all. 

Andrew Jackson was a highly controversial and complicated president:  He was an impressive military war hero, but forcibly removed Indians (Trail of Tears is just one example) from lands east of the Mississippi to make more room for white expansion.  He aggressively promoted democracy for the "common man,"  but owned about 100 slaves at the Hermitage.  He was pro-slavery, but anti-nullification.  Jackson's democracy was limited to white men, but his legacy was the concept of democracy for the common man which was adopted by women and non-whites as their birthright, too.

We enjoyed a fried chicken and melt-in-your-mouth biscuit dinner at the famous Loveless Cafe, southwest of Nashville before settling in at our campground in Montgomery Bell State Park.



Andrew Jackson's Grave

Slave cabins