Davidson County, Tennessee

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Metro Nashville Davidson County, Tennessee

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History

"Davidson County is the oldest county in the 41-county region of Middle Tennessee. It dates to 1783, when the North Carolina legislature created the county and named it in honor of William Lee Davidson, a North Carolina general who was killed opposing General Cornwallis and the British Army's crossing of the Catawba River on February 1, 1781. The county seat, Nashville, is the oldest permanent European (white) settlement in Middle Tennessee, founded by James Robertson and John Donelson during the winter of 1779-80. The first white settlers established the Cumberland Compact in order to establish a basic rule of law and to protect their land titles. Through much of the early 1780s, the settlers also faced a hostile response from Native American tribes who resented their encroaching on their territory and competing for resources. As the county's many known archaeological sites attest, Native American cultures had occupied areas of Davidson County for thousands of years. The first whites to enter the area were fur traders. Long hunters came next, having learned about the large salt lick, known as French Lick, where they hunted game and traded with Native Americans." ^[1]

In 1765, Timothy Demonbreun, a French-Canadian fur-trader and former Governor of Illinois (under the French), lived in a small cave on the Cumberland River near present-day downtown Nashville. He became known as the first white citizen of Nashville, his children the first white children to be born in middle Tennessee.

Geography

Adjacent counties

Davidson County/Nashville in relation to others nearby

Protected Areas

Rock Spring, on Natchez Trace

Registered Historic Sites

The Hermitage, home of President Andrew Jackson

Nashville Parks and Recreation, Historic Sites
Hodge House, in Percy Warner Park, a preserved home built by the Hodge family around 1811.
The Historic Belmont Mansion, historic Italian-style plantation home , built in 1853
The Parthenon, a full-scale replica of the Greek Parthenon
The Hermitage, home of U.S. President Andrew Jackson.
The Historic Belle Meade Plantation, began operations in 1806, a site of farm operations and slave holding
Fort Nashborough, once a source of protection against Indians, for new settlers ^[2]
Fort Negley, the largest fort built in the United States during the Civil War ^[3]
Stone Hall, a Colonial revival home
Two Rivers Mansion, built in 1859, one of the best preserved historic homes in Tennessee
Nashville City Cemetery, Opened in 1822; the oldest continuously operated public cemetery in Nashville; many notable interments.