A Nashville preservation group has released its latest list of endangered buildings and landmarks with the hope of inspiring protective measures.
The nonprofit Historic Nashville Inc. worries about buildings that are falling into disrepair and several that could be lost to redevelopment.
The “Nashville Nine” ranges widely and includes Scott’s Chapel AME Church in Hermitage, the 1855 “Renraw” home in East Nashville and the Spence Manor Motor Hotel with its guitar-shaped pool on Music Row.
Unlike past years, the sites are mostly not under threat of immediate demolition, leaving hope that many can remain, says Brian Mansfield, president of Historic Nashville.
“A lot of these, with the right attention, with the right new owner, could very easily be saved,” he said.
As an example, he highlights the Fisk Little Theater. It’s a wood building that has been in continuous use since the Civil War and in need of serious maintenance.
“They’ve got a good track record of working with people,” he said. “But if you don’t know about the Little Theater … then you don’t know to help.”
Each year, Historic Nashville accepts recommendations for this list. This time, Mansfield says they intentionally tried to go off the beaten path and into more neighborhoods. That includes calling attention to a small cemetery with unmarked graves in Cane Ridge and to the House of God Youth Center in North Nashville, which is a former African American school that’s now up for sale.
Here’s a roundup of what Historic Nashville Inc. is sharing about this year’s Nashville Nine sites:
Courtesy Historic Nashville Inc. Fisk Little Theater
Fisk Little Theater, 998 Dr. D.B. Todd Blvd.
Dating to the Civil War and in use as a theater since 1935, this wooden building needs window and gutter replacements and preventative measures taken to slow moisture issues.
More: African art installation highlights iconic piece of Fisk’s campus
“Renraw” house, 1016 McClurkan Ave.
Built in 1855, the former home of businessmen Edwin and Percy Warner has been part of the Lincoln Tech college campus in East Nashville. There are now plans to redevelop the campus and move the home to the corner of Trevecca and McClurkan avenues.
Pasqueit Cemetery, Hobson Road
This informal graveyard includes burials from the mid-1800s. It has ties to the early history of the Cane Ridge area and unmarked graves that are believed to contain burials of enslaved persons. A new development could lead the cemetery to be fenced in, but preservationists are asking for a more detailed survey to understand the site.
Courtesy Historic Nashville Inc. Home of Robert Emmitt Lillard
Robert Lillard House, 1026 2nd Ave. S.
The home of civil rights attorney and city councilmember Robert Lillard is the last historical structure left on the east side of this portion of 2nd Avenue South.
House of God Youth Center, 2420 Batavia Street
The Church of Christ operated this K-12 school for Black members of the church from 1940 until 1967. Its gymnasium is listed on the National Register of Historic Places but is now up for sale.
Scott’s Chapel AME Church and Fellowship Hall, 511 Tulip Grove Road
This property in Hermitage has served the Scott’s Hollow community, whose founders were once enslaved at nearby Tulip Grove plantation and at Andrew Jackson’s Hermitage. The schoolhouse portion needs “major” repairs.
Courtesy Historic Nashville Inc. Spence Manor Motor Hotel
Spence Manor Motor Hotel, 11 Music Square East
This hotel — done in the Mid-Century Modern Brutalist style — features a guitar-shaped pool and long catered to music stars. Its future is uncertain because of a dispute among residents and its prominent location.
The Fontanel, 4225 Whites Creek Pike
Preservationists are watching for the latest developments for the former home of country star Barbara Mandrell and the inn, distillery and amphitheater that occupy more than 200 surrounding acres. The parcels were up for auction in October, following proposals in recent years that never materialized.
4900 Block of Charlotte Avenue
This block was once the core of the independent “New Town” development that’s now part of West Nashville. And while the surrounding area is thriving, many of the early-1900s buildings on this block are vacant or boarded up.
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