Travel: 48 Hours in Nashville Part One: Bar-B-Que with a Side of Two Mansions

“I loved being outside. We’d hold lightning bugs in our fingers and pretend they were diamond rings.” – Loretta Lynn

We recently spent a few days in Nashville and visited two fascinating mansions, each about an hour from downtown. One belonged to our seventh President, Andrew Jackson, and the other to Loretta and “Doolittle” Lynn. Both were filled with history and artifacts, and both were wonderful in their own unique way.

Located 16 miles northeast of Nashville, Andrew Jackson purchased The Hermitage in 1801. He and his beloved wife Rachel lived there from 1804 until his death in 1845. Sadly, Rachel passed away just before his inauguration in 1829. Initially a farm, they turned it into a large cotton plantation with slave labor. The museum, that is part of the experience there, makes frequent references to that. The tour not only includes information about Andrew Jackson’s life but a great history lesson as well.

Go to thehermitage.com/ for tickets, directions, and general information.
I recommend taking the full guided tour, including a buggy ride of the property.

The second mansion of the trip was Loretta Lynn’s Ranch, which encompasses her home, a museum filled with memorabilia, and an exact replica of the cabin she grew up in in Kentucky. I found it to be incredibly fascinating as I am a huge fan of the 1980 movie Coal Miner’s Daughter.

The tour includes a walk through the mansion where you see all of Loretta’s collectibles, including hundreds of Avon perfume bottles. It made you really feel like she was “one of us,” despite her huge stardom. The Ranch is located in Hurricane Mills, about 70 miles west of Nashville.
Information at https://www.lorettalynnranch.net/

If all that touring makes you hungry, we ate two outstanding meals on our trip. Monell’s, which is near downtown, offered the most mouthwatering array of southern favorites served up family-style. And Jack’s Bar-B-Que, right in downtown, served order-at-the-counter chicken, ribs, brisket, and sides.

A great short trip. We visited 2 mansions in 2 days–the seventh President of the United States and the First Lady of Country!