Burying the Building to Save the View: The Hermitage Unveils a $132 Million Plan for Its Front Door
For more than a century, the view has been the point at The Hermitage. Visitors walk up through the trees, the columned front of Andrew Jackson's mansion comes into sight across the lawn, and the fields beyond it still roll out much the way they did in the 1830s. Now the site's caretakers want to spend $132 million on a new front door — and much of the building will go underground so it doesn't spoil that view.
The Andrew Jackson Foundation unveiled the plan on Monday, Sept. 21. Its centerpiece is a new Visitor and Education Center of roughly 70,000 square feet, replacing the building that has welcomed guests since 1989. Architecture firm Perkins & Will drew the concept, which tucks much of the new structure below grade so that sight lines across the historic landscape look more like they did in Jackson's lifetime.
What the $132 million buys
The new center is the headline, but the plan reaches across the property's 1,120 acres. It calls for a tree-lined approach, re-oriented walking paths, expanded interpretation, restored historic spaces and new visitor amenities, including updated restrooms. Behind the scenes, The Hermitage cares for a collection of about 800,000 objects, and the project is meant to give far more of that material a place to be seen and taught.
A first phase is covered by a $6 million state appropriation. The rest is expected to come from private philanthropy, public support and grants. Foundation leaders have said fundraising alone could take about two years, and that the full effort — fundraising plus construction — should run four to five years. The site plans to stay open through most of the work.
Why it matters for Nashville
The Hermitage is one of Nashville's oldest attractions. Jackson bought the land in 1804, built the brick mansion that stands today, and is buried in the garden beside his wife, Rachel. In 1889 a group of Nashville women formed the Ladies' Hermitage Association to save the property, one of the earliest historic preservation efforts in the country. Today it draws more than 170,000 visitors a year.
It is also a place where history is complicated by design. The estate was a working cotton plantation built on enslaved labor, and in recent years the site has put far more of that story in front of visitors, from the cabins where enslaved people lived to the archaeology that has recovered their belongings. Foundation leaders framed the new center as room to tell all of it: a presidential home, and also a place where some of the country's most consequential and difficult chapters played out.
For the east side, a bigger draw means more reason for out-of-towners to leave Lower Broadway for an afternoon. Our guide to Nashville's suburbs and neighborhoods covers the Hermitage area for anyone thinking about more than a day trip.
Planning a visit now
Nothing closes yet. The mansion, grounds, gardens and tomb are open, and early fall is the best season to see them, when the heat breaks and the hardwoods start to turn. The Hermitage sits about 15 miles east of downtown, an easy half-day trip from any hotel in the city.
