History of Davidson County, Tennessee, with illustrations and biographical sketches of its prominent men and pioneers, Part 80

Author: Clayton, W. W. (W. Woodford)
Publication date: 1880
Publisher: Philadelphia, J.W. Lewis & Co.
Number of Pages: 1013

USA > Tennessee > Davidson County > History of Davidson County, Tennessee, with illustrations and biographical sketches of its prominent men and pioneers > Part 80

Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).

Digitized by Google

305

CITY OF NASHVILLE.

From carefully prepared statements which have been pub- lished, we select the following particulars.

History of the Building .- Previous to the year 1843 the seat of government of the State had not been finally settled upon. It had been located at various times at Knoxville, Kingston, Murfreesboro', and Nashville. The Davidson County court-house had been used previously for the meet- ings of the Legislature, but, the building becoming too small for the increasing members of the body, the project of building a State Capitol was spoken of, but the permanent establishment of the seat of State government had first to be determined. Its location at Nashville was not by any means a fixed fact, though the sessions of the Legislature had been held there for several years,-that is, for the years 1812, 1813, 1815, and from 1820 to 1843. Almost every town in the State having any pretensions at all to eligibility or convenience of position had its advocates. Thus the following places were successively voted for : Woodbury, Mcminnville, Franklin, Murfreesboro', Kings- ton, Lebanon, Columbia, Sparta, Gallatin, Clarksville, Shel- byville, Harrison, Chattanooga, Cleveland, Athens, Knox- ville, and finally Nashville.

The location had once been fixed at Kingston, but, on a reconsideration of the vote, Nashville was selected, though this result must be mainly attributed to the liberality of her citizens, having purchased the site, then Campbell's Hill, from Hon. G. W. Campbell, for thirty thousand dollars and presented it to the State as a free gift. This act was passed Oct. 7, 1843. Jan. 30, 1844, an act was passed making the first appropriation for the Capitol,-ten thousand dollars. Commissioners were appointed, Governor William Carroll, William Nichol, John M. Bass, Samuel D. Morgan, James Erwin, and Morgan W. Brown, to whom were added, May 14, 1844, James Woods, Joseph T. Elliston, and Allen A. Hall. John M. Bass was appointed chairman March 31, 1848, and held the position until March 31, 1854, when Samuel D. Morgan was appointed. April 20, 1854, Messrs. John Campbell, John S. Young, and Jacob Mc- Gavock were appointed commissioners by Governor Andrew Johnson. By act of Feb. 28, 1854, Messrs. R. J. Meigs and James P. Clark were appointed commissioners, and Mr. John D. Winston was appointed by the Governor. The following Governors of the State have, ex-officio, held the office of commissioner : William Carroll, James K. Polk, James C. Jones, Aaron V. Brown, Neill S. Brown, William Trousdale, William B. Campbell, Andrew Johnson, and Isham G. Harris. Upon the first appointment of the com- missioners they were extremely fortunate in securing the services of so distinguished an architect as Mr. William Strickland, of Philadelphia, than whom no man of his pro- fession in the country had a wider or more merited reputa- tion.

Clearing of the ground for the site was begun about Jan. 1, 1845; foundations were dug and nearly finished by the 4th of July, on which day the corner-stone was laid in the southeast corner of the building with imposing ceremonies. An eloquent oration was delivered on the occasion by the Hon. Edwin H. Ewing. The building was carried on regularly and steadily without error or interruption till the time of Mr. Strickland's death, April 7, 1854. His funeral

ceremonies were conducted in the Representative Hall, and he was entombed in a recess in the wall of the north base- ment portico. There are but few instances in which so noble a work has served as the tomb and monument of its designer. Sir Christopher Wren, architect of St. Paul's Cathedral, London, and the architect of the Cologne Cathe- dral, are the noted examples of that sort.

After the death of Mr. Strickland, the work was for several years carried on by his son, Mr. W. F. Strickland. The last stone of the tower was laid July 21, 1855, and the last stone of the lower terrace March 19, 1859, which completed the stone-work. The building was first occupied by the Legislature Oct. 3, 1853. Since that time, chiefly from 1867 to 1873, convict labor was employed in com- pleting the grounds, which are now among the most attrac- tive and complete in the United States. The entire cost of building and grounds was upwards of two million five hundred thousand dollars.

Plan and Structure .- A concise statement of the site, plan, and structure of the building is indispensable to the formation of a correct idea of its appearance.

The State House is a parallelogram, 112 by 239 feet, with an elevation 64 feet 8 inches above an elevated terrace walk, which surrounds it, or 74 feet 8 inches above the ground. Rising through the centre of the roof is the tower, 36 feet square and 80 feet high. The main idea of the elevation of the building is that of a Greek Ionic temple, erected upon a rustic basement, which, in its turn, rests (in appearance) upon a terraced pavement. The building has four fronts, north, south, east, and west, each side graced with a noble portico. The end porticoes-north and south-are each composed of eight magnificent Ionic columns; the side porticocs-east and west-are composed each of six columns. These columns, twenty-eight in all, are each 4 feet in diameter, 33 feet high, and rest upon the entablature of the basement. This entablature is supported by a rusticated pier, rising through the basement-story under each column of the portico above. The end porticoes are capped by an entablature, which is continued around the building. Above this entablature is a heavy pediment. The side porticoes are capped by the entablature and double blocking-courses.

The building inside is divided into three stories,-the crypt, or cellar; the basement, or first floor; and the main, or second floor.

The crypt is used for the State Arsenal, and for furnaces and the like.

The basement has a passage or hall through the centre of the building, 204 feet long by 24 feet wide, crossed transversely by three halls, the main one 100 feet long by 30 feet 3 inches ; height of this floor, 16 feet 4 inches. This floor is divided into offices for the Governor, the Comp- troller, the Treasurer, the Secretary of State, Register of Lands, Superintendent of Weights and Measures, aud Keeper of Public Arms (each of which is 16 by 24 feet), and by the Archive Room, which is 34 feet square. Be- sides, there is a Supreme Court-room and a Federal Court- room, each 35 feet by 52 feet 8 inches, the latter, however, now occupied by the Superintendent of Public Instruction and the Commissioner of Agriculture, Statistics, and Mines.

Digitized by Google

306

HISTORY OF DAVIDSON COUNTY, TENNESSEE.

These rooms are fitted up in a handsome manner, with book- and paper-cases made of white walnut, and the rooms otherwise handsomely furnished. The court-rooms are also well furnished, the Supreme Court-room in a very excellent manner.

The main floor is reached by a handsome flight of twen- ty-four steps, eleven feet wide, at the west end of the base- ment transverse hall. The balusters or hand-railing of this stairway are of East Tennessee marble, a most beautiful mottled marble, very hard and taking a high polish. The transverse hall of this upper is the same as that of the lower floor in dimensions. The longitudinal hall of this floor is 128 feet 2 inches long by 24 feet 2 inches wide, the side passages the same as below. The height of these halls and of all the rooms of this floor is 39 feet. The rooms are : the Representative Hall, 61 by 97 feet ; Senate Chamber, 34 feet 8 inches by 70 feet 3 inches ; Library Rooms, re- spectively 16 by 34 and 34 by 34 feet ; Law Library, 16 by 34 feet ; and committee-rooms, cach 16 feet 8 inches by 16 feet 8 inches.

Representative Hall .- The Representative Hall is a truly noble apartment, and an honor to the taste and genius of the architect. The main floor, 61 by 97 feet, is flanked on the east and west sides by eight committee-rooms, 16 feet 8 inches square. Above these rooms, on each side, are the public galleries. The front of each of these galleries is graced by eight coupled columns, 21 feet 11 inches high and 2 feet 10 inches in diameter, of the Composite order, and fluted. The shaft of each column is of one block of stone, capped by exceedingly graceful and elaborate capi- tals, the device of the architect. This room is well fur- nished and windows curtained. The Speaker's stand and screen-wall is composed of red, white, and black Tennessee marble. The chandelier is from the establishment of Cor-

nelius & Baker, of Philadelphia, and is one of the largest, most elaborate, and graceful chandeliers in the country, and cost fifteen hundred dollars. The chief points in the de- sign are representations of the natural, animal, and vege- table productions of the State, such as cotton, corn, and tobacco. There are also six buffaloes, extremely well exe- cuted, a number of Indian warriors, each nearly two feet high, and of most excellent proportions. The burners are forty-eight in number.

The Senate Chamber .- The Senate Chamber, 34 by 70, is also handsomely fitted up, and is surrounded on three sides, north, west, and south, by a gallery for the public, 10 feet 9 inches wide, supported by twelve smooth Ionic columns of red Tennessee marble, each 10 feet 3 inches high and 3 feet 5} inches in circumference, with black marble bases, and architrave of red and white marble. This room has also a chandelier, similar in design to that of the Representative Hall, though smaller and of probably better proportions.

There are thirty-four chandeliers, eleven brackets, twelve pendants, and eight gaselabras in the whole building, with four hundred and twenty burners. There is one chandelier of forty-eight burners, three of thirty burners, one of eighteen, one of fifteen, two of twelve, six of eight, two of six, eighteen of four, etc.

The Tower .- Above the centro of the building, and

through the roof, rises the tower, supported by four mas- sive piers rising from the ground, ten by twelve feet. The design of the tower-for it is a splendid work in itself-is a modified and improved reproduction of the " Choragic Monument of Lysicrates," or, as it is sometimes called, the " Lantern of Demosthenes," erected in Athens about 325 B.C., and still standing. The tower is composed of a square rustic base, thirty-six feet square and forty-two feet high, with a window in each front. Above this the lantern or round part of the tower rises twenty-six feet eight inches in diameter, by thirty-seven feet high. It consists of a circular cell, with eight most beautiful three-quarter fluted Corinthian columns, attached around its outer circumfer- ence with alternate blank and pierced windows between cach two columns, in each of the two stories of the cell. The columns have each a very elaborate and beautifully wrought capital of the purest Corinthian style, and, above all, a heavy entablature. The column shafts are two feet six inches in diameter by twenty-seven feet eight inches high, and capital four feet high. The roof and iron finial ornament are together thirty-four feet high above the last stone of the tower, making the whole height of the edifice above the ground two hundred and six feet seven inches, or over four hundred feet above low water in the Cumber- land River. In comparison, it may be interesting to say that the head of the statue on the Capitol at Washington is but three hundred and seventy-seven feet above tide- water ; the height of St. Peter's, at Rome, from the pave- ment to the top of the cross, is four hundred and thirty feet, and that of St. Paul's, at London, four hundred and four feet.

Visitors to the Capitol should not fail to ascend the tower, for from its observatory may be obtained a series of views-rus in erbe-city and country, ravine and river, ex- ceedingly grand and lovely, and perhaps the most pictur- esque in America.

Table of Dimensions .- The following table exhibits some of the principal dimensions of the building at a glance :

Length 239 ft. 3 in. Length, including terrace at euch end, seventeen feet

wide, and projecting steps sixteen fect ten inches ... 306 " 8 " Width at each end. 112 “ 5 4 Width at each end, including terrace seventeen feet wide at each side. 142 " 5 "

Width at the centre, including side porticos, each thir- teen feet wide.

138 “ 5 "

THE HEIGHT OF BUILDING.

Lower terrace, or pavement ... 2 ft.

Upper terrace.

8 . 9 in.

From upper terrace to top of entablature of main building.

64 4 8 "

End pediments, or of the roof ...

13 "

Stonework of tower, above roof of main building. 79 € 2 4

Iron finial ornament, together with tower of roof 34 "

Total height. 206 ft. 7 in.

Some more of the minute details should be mentioned. The roof of the building is constructed of rafters composed of Cumberland River wrought-iron ties and braces, trussed in sections, and joined together by cast-iron plates and knees, by wrought-iron purlins ; the greatest span of these wrought-iron rafters is over the Representative Hall, a distance of sixty-five feet. The whole is sheathed and

Digitized by Google

307

CITY OF NASHVILLE.

covered with copper. The water is conveyed from the roof by cast-iron gutter pipes eight inches in diameter, inserted in the walls, and is carried to basins under the terrace pave- ments all around the building. This water is to be used to irrigate the grounds.

The walls of the building for the foundation are seven feet thick, upper walls four and a half feet thick, inner walls are respectively three feet, two feet, eighteen inches, and twelve inches thick. All of the inside walls are laid with rubbed stone ; the terraces, pavements, and the round part of the tower, square-droved or chiseled; outer walls of the first story and square part of the tower rusticated-work and tooled. The walls around the grounds are drafted bush- hammered.

The material of the building is of a stratified limestone, full of fossils, some of it very hard, of a slightly bluish- gray tint with cloud-like markings. It was procured within half a mile west of the building, in a quarry opened by the State on the grounds of Mr. Samuel Watkins. Stones have been quarried from this place weighing, in their rough state, fifteen or twenty tons, and thirty or more feet long. One of the terrace stones of the building is eight feet three inches by fourteen feet, and the cap-stones of the terrace buttresses are five feet ten inches by sixteen feet eleven inches, the heaviest weighing probably eight or ten tons. The stone may be considered, both as to durability and beauty of appearance when worked well, equal, if not superior, to any building-stone in the Union. The build- ing, or parts of it, have now stood the test of the storms of over thirty years, and is still without flaw, though our cli- mate is exceedingly changeable, and very destructive to building-stone when much exposed. The doors, window- frames, and sash are of Tennessee oak. The stairways throughout are hanging and of stone, except the tower steps and the splendid spiral stairway leading to the upper corridors of the library, which are of iron. Nearly the whole of the work on this building was done by Tennessee mechanics and artisans. The stone-cutting and setting are most admirably done, and not excelled, or hardly equaled, in the United States or Europe.

Ornamental Statues .- On each step buttress, on cach front of the building, are ornamental iron lamp-posts (six- teen altogether), made at the establishment of Wood, Perot & Co., Philadelphia, which are certainly the most elaborate and costly objects of the kind which have yet been put up in iron in this country. Each post consists of a composite fluted column, resting on a heavy base, and supporting above a large glass lamp with gas-burners. Around this column, and standing on the base, are three youthful fig- ures, nearly life-size, representing " Morning" and " Night" (female figures half draped), and " Noon," a youth holding a torch,-a happy conception of the artist and a credit to him. There are twenty-four of these figures altogether.

State Library .- In the beautiful and elegant library- rooms of the State-house may be seen a collection of twenty thousand volumes, embracing not only a full collection of State and law publications, but many rare and costly theo- logical, scientific, medical, and miscellaneous works,-pocts, essayists, critics, historians, etc.,-together with a full file of all the daily papers published in Nashville, and other points

in the State, for many years back. In fact, there is no- where in the South to be seen such a collection of intellec- tual pabulum as in this large and varied library, the gath- erings of years of constant labor. A good library properly sustained by the State would prove, if sufficiently used, the most valuable gift which could possibly be made to the youth of the country. The present librarian is Mrs. Gen. Hatton, widow of the gallant and beloved Gen. Robert Hatton ; assistant, the accomplished Miss Emma Hatton. These ladies are ever courteous and attentive to visitors. The library is opened from nine A.M. till four P.M.

Museum of the Historical Society .- There is still another feature about the State-house worthy the attention of the vis- itors. It is the collection of rarities and curiosities gathered by the Tennessee Historical Society. The museum of the society occupies, in conjunction with the State library, the same apartments. Here one may see many unique and cu- rious objects,-from an Egyptian mummy to the rude battle swords of our forefathers, coins of all nations, geological, mineralogical, and botanical specimens in profusion, with many a relic of the past,-all interesting, all instructive. Portraits and paintings, flags and trophies, adorn the walls, and form a sight so delightful and entertaining as to well repay a visit to the Capitol.

The Grounds .- The grounds of the Capitol are unsur- passed in picturesque beauty by those of any public building in America. The esplanade is beautifully terraced and in- tersected by splendid stone walks and graveled carriage- ways. Lakes, fountains, rustic bridges, arbors, and other attractive features in landscape gardening are to be seen. Each county in the State has planted a centennial tree, and these, when added to the exquisite shrubbery already full grown, make the " Capitoline Hill" delightfully ro- mantic.

UNITED STATES CUSTOM-HOUSE.

This beautiful building occupies the square formed by Broad, Spruce, and Vine Streets, very nearly in the geo- graphical centre of the city. The site is three hundred and thirty by one hundred and sixty-five feet in size; the build- ing one hundred and fifty-one feet six inches by eighty-one feet six inches, and three stories high, surmounted by a tower one hundred and ninety feet high from the sidewalk. The style of architecture is Pointed Gothic. The building is constructed entirely of stone and iron,-rock-faced ashlar relieved by fine cut stone carvings. The basement is of granite from Winnsboro', South Carolina ; superstructure of cream-colored limestone from Bowling Green, Ky., and sometimes called " Green River Marble;" the columns are of polished red Missouri granite, and the roofing of iron, covered with slate.

The first floor, which is nineteen feet high, is arranged for use of the post-office entirely. Aside from the general delivery and the general working room, there are four private offices, for postmaster, assistant-postmaster, money- order business, and route agents and carriers' rooms. There are entrances from Broad and Vine Streets, respectively. The iron stairway-the stair-well fifteen feet in width-runs to the upper stories, and also a passenger elevator, at the Vine Street entrance, runs from the basement to third story. Ou the first panel, constituting the exterior of the

Digitized by Google

308

HISTORY OF DAVIDSON COUNTY, TENNESSEE.

staircase, is a representation of the prow of a vessel with two oars and two dolphins, the head of Liberty as the figure-head of the vessel, the American eagle, the Treasury shield, with the thirteen stars on its bars, the key of Uncle Sam's strong box, the United States flag, and the custom- house flag.

The second panel, opposite the staircase, is devoted to an allegorical representation of the post-office. Here is a locomotive, with its cow-catcher, and a leaf on each side, the wings of the iron horse. From a scroll are hanging packs of letters, and there, too, are seen hounds carrying missives, and arrows, which have often been used in be- sieged cities to carry messages from one army to another. Amid the leaves is observed the winged cap of Mercury, the swift-footed postman of Jupiter, king of gods. There are also carrier pigeons, the bearers of news, and a telegraph pole with its electrical wires.

On the third panel is a lighted torch, supporting a scroll of parchment on which laws are written. Pens with two antique swords crossed behind the scroll are on one side of the torch. Next is Minerva's helmet, and on the other side a lion's head, intended to suggest the idea of the deities of Justice.

On the frontispiece are emblems of Trade and Justice. In the centre of the book of laws, the scales and the sword represent Justice. On each side are winged Geniuses, with foreheads adorned with the American stars, and holding in their hands wreaths of oak, laurel, and olive.

Next to these are scrolls of foliage, one adorning the fasces with the axe, crossed by the roll of the United States Constitution. Farther on are two oars for internal naviga- tion, and Neptune with his trident for commerce of the sca. On the right of the Geniuses is the hand of justice and the torch of light. At the end of the frontispiece a winged caduceus-the wand of Mercury-with an anchor are also symbolical of commerce. Two pigeons here present also the idea of speed and fidelity.

The second floor, which is fifteen feet high, is to be used for general customs of the internal revenue service. It is divided into eleven offices.

The third floor, corridor, and offices are fifteen feet high, but the main portion is divided into United States Court- rooms. The main court-room is over the Spruce Street end, and is forty by seventy-five feet large; distance from floor to ceiling, thirty-four feet. The minor-court room is over the Vine Street end, and is forty by thirty-five feet large ; distance from floor to ceiling, twenty-four feet.

The tower is built in unison with the rest of the edifice. It is nine stories in height, each story ranging from fifteen to eighteen feet. An iron spiral stairway commences in the fifth story of the tower, aud extends upward to the dormer windows.

In the construction of the building sixty-eight thousand cubic feet of stone have been consumed. The building with all its appointments, heating, water, and gas apparatuses, and parking the grounds, will cost not far from one-half million of dollars. The work of construction was first begun in September, 1875, but the plans were changed, and the present building was commenced in August, 1876, and will probably be completed in the spring of 1881. The build-

ing was designed under Mr. William A. Potter, govern- ment architect, was pushed forward under Mr. James G. Hill, supervising architect, at Washington, and is now under the immediate supervision of Maj. James H. Coch- ran, superintendent of construction.

CITY HALL.

That venerable establishment which serves the city of Nashville the double purpose of City Hall and market- house is among the oldest and most unsightly of all our public institutions. A portion of the building was erected in 1827 or 1828. In 1855 it was remodeled and enlarged, and the addition of the City Hall made to it ; but the work, as intended, was never fully carried out, as it was proposed to build a public hall, extending over the entire market- place, and accessible from both the north and south ends. Some years ago an effort was made to remove this building, but the projectors were met by the stubborn fact that the General Assembly of North Carolina, in 1784, reserved four acres (the present public square) for public buildings, and the question has never been settled whether the city could divert the space to other purposes. The writer is not a prophet, but he dares prophesy that ten years from now the demands of progressive civilization will have removed the market-place, and on the present site thereof a superb and creditable City Hall will be erected. Furthermore, that the " public square" will lose its primitive nomencla- ture, and be known to the next generation as " City Hall Square" or "Court Square." The present building cost fifty-five thousand dollars, and on the first floor has one hundred stalls. The upper stories contain the council- chambers and the offices of the municipal authorities.

CITY WORKHOUSE.

The city workhouse is on North Front Street, near the Louisville and Nashville depot, and on the south bank of the Cumberland River. It was built in 1858, under the administration of Col. Randal W. McGavock, then mayor. The property and building is four hundred by seventy feet in dimensions, and is valued at forty thousand dollars. The prison rooms are capable of accommodating one hundred and fifty prisoners, and have had as high as one hundred and thirty prisoners in " durance vile" at one time. The usual number is about fifty. They are chiefly a vagabondish set, petty offenders, etc.

Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.

History of Davidson County, Tennessee, with illustrations and biographical sketches of its prominent men and pioneers, Part 80

Author: Clayton, W. W. (W. Woodford) Publication date: 1880 Publisher: Philadelphia, J.W. Lewis & Co. Number of Pages: 1013

Author: Clayton, W. W. (W. Woodford)
Publication date: 1880
Publisher: Philadelphia, J.W. Lewis & Co.
Number of Pages: 1013