Getting to Know President Andrew Jackson – The Hermitage, Nashville TN [September 6, 2016]

Here we are on the front porch of the Hermitage

President Andrew Jackson is a controversial character in American History, and therefore a very interesting one.  He fought in the American Revolution as a 13 year old, was orphaned at 14, is well-known as the hero of the Battle of New Orleans at the close of the War of 1812, and became the 7^th US President.  He is the first US President to have a nickname, Old Hickory, which his troops gave him because he was as tough as old hickory.  He was a self made man.  The Hermitage was his home from 1804 until his death in 1845.

The Hermitage seen from the rear with Alfred's slave cabin in the foreground

What sets the Hermitage apart from other historic Presidential homes, is that the Andrew Jackson Visitor Center explains the cultural and political turmoil of his time, and sets it in context to today.  Some of his decisions were good - he “popularized” the US government, tearing down what he considered elitist government traditions.  Some of his decisions were not so good - he set up processes for removing Indians from their lands.  The exhibit explains the electoral college – Jackson was defeated there after his first run for President – and draws connections to the Bush/Gore election.  The Visitors Center is VERY well done and worth an hour or so of your time.

The Hermitage from the front

From the Visitor Center, you move to the grounds and the mansion.  Costumed interpreters take you through the house.  An audio tour takes you around the grounds.  Andrew and Rachel Jackson adopted one of the twin sons of Rachel’s brother who lived nearby, so that they could have an heir.  Andrew Jackson, Jr. was not a good businessman and the estate that entrepreneurial Jackson, Sr built soon fell into debt.  Because of that, the family was unable to paint walls, and replace furniture.  This was a boon to historians who received the house generations later with the original wall paper and furnishings intact.  The tour of the house is very interesting, especially with so many original furnishings.

A slave cabin believed to have been built with timbers from the 2nd story of the original residence

Efforts have been made to restore slave quarters on the grounds.  Compared to the splendor of the brick mansion, the rough log structures are tiny and sobering.  When Andrew and Rachel Jackson first lived on the property, they lived in a two story log structure.  After the mansion was built, they took the second story off of the building, made the one story building into slave quarters, and used the logs from the upper story to build another slave cabin.  One slave, Alfred, continued to live in one of the cabins after he had been freed, and even after the house was opened to the public as a tourist attraction (there are old photos of an elderly Alfred with visitors to the site).  In fact, when Jackson descendants started selling off furniture to pay debts, Alfred bought some of pieces to furnish his log cabin.

It is hard to imagine how far into the frontier Nashville was at the time that Andrew Jackson lived at the Hermitage.  When guests came to visit, the trip there was so long and arduous that they stayed for a while.  It is said that the Jackson family never ate meals alone, there was always a guest present.