The Hermitage

The Hermitage Review

The life and times of Andrew Jackson, known as Old Hickory, are reflected with great care at this house and museum. Jackson built the mansion on 600 acres for his wife, Rachel, for whose honor he fought and won a duel. Both are buried in the family graveyard. The Andrew Jackson Center, a 28,000-square-foot museum, visitor center, and education center, contains many Jackson artifacts never before exhibited. By the 1840s, more than 140 African-American slaves lived and worked on the Hermitage Plantation, and archeological digs have uncovered the remains of many slave dwellings—yard cabins, Alfred's cabin, and field quarters. Mansion tours are led by costumed guides, while tours of the grounds are self-guided. Wagon tours are offered April through October. The Garden Gate Café, a museum store, and the Hermitage Garden Shop are also on the grounds. The Hermitage is 12 mi east of Nashville; take the I-40E to the Old Hickory Blvd. exit.