The Tennessee Historical Commission announced three Tennessee sites have been added to the National Register of Historic Places. The National Register of Historic Places is the nation’s official list of cultural resources worthy of preservation. It is part of a nationwide program that coordinates and supports efforts to identify, evaluate and protect historic resources. The Tennessee Historical Commission administers the program in Tennessee.
“The National Register honors places that help Tennesseans understand our heritage and what makes our communities unique and enjoyable,” said Patrick McIntyre, executive director of the Tennessee Historical Commission. “We are confident this recognition will help retain these unique sites for future generations to know and appreciate.”
Sites recently added to the National Register of Historic Places include:
American Baptist Theological Seminary – Located in Nashville, the American Baptist Theological Seminary Historic District has statewide importance in the areas of African American heritage as it relates to education, religion and the Civil Rights Movement.
Now known as the American Baptist College, three historic buildings comprise the historic district. These are the 1924 Griggs Hall, the 1947 J.B. Lawrence Administration Building and the 1954 T.L. Holcomb Library. The college emphasized a Christian education and racial equality that would result in advancing the Nashville Student Movement. John Lewis, Bernard Lafayette, C.T. Vivian and James Bevel were all students at the college who became prominent in the Civil Rights Movement. Most events of the Civil Rights Movement took place elsewhere in Nashville, but the foundation for these events was cultivated in the college.
Hawthorne Hill – Constructed circa 1805, Hawthorne Hill is located near Castalian Springs in Sumner County. The two-story building has Federal-style details seen in the symmetrical façade entrance with transom and interior woodwork. In addition to being important for its architecture, Hawthorne Hill is a noteworthy representation of settlement and exploration patterns in the region. The property was historically part of a 208-acre farm owned by Colonel Humphrey Bate. Today the property consists of 10.45 acres and contains the house, a 20th century barn, a 20th century shed, a historic cemetery and a circa 1805 cistern. The property was purchased by the state in 2007 and it will eventually be opened as one of the Tennessee Historical Commission’s state-owned historic sites.
Rosemark Historic District – The community of Rosemark in Shelby County is an excellent example of an agricultural community that developed because of cotton farming and ginning in the 19th century and adapted to diversified agriculture in the 20th century. Of the 36 principal resources in the district, 24 are residences, two are churches, two are industrial buildings and eight are community buildings. The majority of the buildings in the district were constructed before 1920 and reflect the community’s greatest period of growth. Architecturally, the district is important for the late 19th century and early 20th century mixture of vernacular architecture seen in the principal buildings and the outbuildings associated with them. It is one of the few intact rural communities in the county.
Links to each of the completed nomination forms can be found in the site descriptions listed above. For more information about the National Register of Historic Places or the Tennessee Historical Commission, please visit the website at www.tnhistoricalcommission.org.