Nashville History
In 1796, the territory was admitted to the union as the state of Tennessee. Nashville was still a small settlement in a vast wilderness, but its central location and status as the state capital made it the political, commercial, financial and religious center of the state.
Tennessee was the last state to join the Confederacy on June 24, 1861, when Governor Harris proclaimed " Tennessee is a free, independent government, free from all obligations to or connection with the Federal Government of the United States of America." The Battle of Nashville in December 1864 was a victory for the Union forces.
In 1897, Nashville hosted the Tennessee Centennial and International Exposition, a World's Fair celebrating the 100th anniversary of Tennessee's entry into the Union. A replica of the Parthenon was built for the event. The Parthenon replica is now the centerpiece of Centennial Park.
Music entrepreneurs such as Roy Acuff (1903–1992) made Nashville the Country Music capital after World War II. In 1942, Acuff co-founded the first major Nashville-based country music publishing company —Acuff-Rose Music. The Second Avenue/lower Broadway district supports a large music industry as well as a musically flavored tourist center. On March 1, 1941, W47NV (now known as WSM-FM) began operations in Nashville, becoming the first FM radio station in the U.S.
An interesting sidenote occurred during the administration of Theodore Roosevelt. President Roosevelt visited Nashville and took his lodging at the Maxwell House Hotel. Joel Cheek, proprietor thereof, had served a special blend of coffee at the hotel's restaurant, and after drinking a cup of this coffee, Roosevelt proclaimed it "good to the last drop!" Cheek subsequently sold the blend to General Foods and to this day, Maxwell House coffee is enjoyed by millions.