June 26, 2026
When planning their trip, Jeanne said that since she picked the Johnny Cash Museum to see in Nashville, I should pick the next attraction. At first, I wanted to see the Nashville Parthenon, which is a full-size replica of the Greek Parthenon. Bruce and I visited it in our 20s, and I thought it would be wonderful to see it again. It is a magnificent building. Unfortunately, it was temporarily closed. My next idea was to see the Hermitage, Andrew Jackson’s home.
On June 16, we met Larry and Jeanne in the hotel lobby and dining area. We ate breakfast in the very attractive dining area. The spread was nice: scrambled eggs, sausage, biscuits, make your own waffles, and other items on the buffet that I don’t recall. We loaded our luggage into the car, checked out, and headed out. We drove the short distance to the home of Andrew Jackson, the Hermitage. It is the third most visited presidential home after Mount Vernon and Monticello.
I am going to let my friend Jeanne from the blog, ajeanneinthekitchen.com tell more about our visit. She writes so beautifully. (If I remember correctly, she was an English major for one of her degrees.)
Goin’ South – Part 5 – The Hermitage
There is so much more to Nashville and Tennessee than the hustle and bustle and bright lights found on the downtown strip. There is a lot of history …
Goin’ South – Part 5 – The Hermitage
I enjoyed learning about duals and the proper way a dual happened. The “shot” dualist hammed it up, dying very slowly.
We were not allowed to take pictures in the home.
In a time of unimaginable government debt, it was amazing to find out that Andrew Jackson completely paid off the national debt. He didn’t just have a balanced budget; there was no debt. The national debt didn’t remain paid off; by the end of his presidency, the economic challenges caused the debt to reaccumulate.
Bruce and I live in an area marked with signs following the Trail of Tears. This horrible event was part of Andrew Jackson’s expansion plans for the growth of the United States. Visiting the Hermitage tied it together. No wonder he is known as Devil Jack to the tribes who were forced marched from their homes.
We learned so much about the history and seeing it was amazing.
Blackberry Homestead 
Thank you for the shout out. You remembered correctly. 🙂 I loved visiting The Hermitage. 🙂
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🙂🙂🙂
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What a amazing place to visit in Nashville with your friends. The grounds were really something and I’m sure the dual was very entertaining.
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It was very educational and a great experience.
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Interesting…I love this kind of place. We have been to both Mt Vernon and Monticello, so maybe this needs to be on our bucket list. There is a newish documentary on Netflix about Thomas Jefferson. One of the people telling about Thomas Jefferson is a guy who works as an interpreter at Monticello. He dresses up and plays the role of Thomas Jefferson there. We met him and got a photo with him on our visit there!
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So do I. We’ve been to Monticello, but haven’t made it to Mt Vernon. I didn’t realize there was a documentary on Thomas Jefferson on Netflix. I’ll have to check it out. It is fun when they have interpete(s) play the role(s) of famous people.
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The fact that the Hermitage is the third most-visited presidential home after Mount Vernon and Monticello genuinely surprised me. I also appreciate that you didn’t gloss over the Trail of Tears connection — holding the ‘paid off the entire national debt’ fact and the ‘Devil Jack’ reality together in one visit is exactly what makes these homes worth seeing. We’ve found those layered, complicated stories are the ones that stick with our kids long after a trip.
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It surprised me as well. I had no idea it had so many visitors. I had wanted to visit the Hermitage for many years. I was happy I got the chance. The home is beautiful with all the original furniture. They do not let you take pictures inside the house and you can only enter the house with a guide. The separate museum does a great job of presenting the good and the bad.
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