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The Hermitage - Home of President Andrew Jackson
Rating Details »
Categories: Local Flavor, Museums, Landmarks & Historical Buildings [Edit]
4580 Rachels LnHermitage, TN 37076
(615) 889-2941
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
11 reviews for The Hermitage - Home of President Andrew Jackson
The Home of Andrew Jackson. My friend and I were planning on being tourist while in Nashville, so we stopped by on the way. Apparently, Andrew Jackson is one of her favorite presidents. I'll probably have to wikipedia him just so I can remember which president he was.
Anyhoo - it was such a pretty place with all the green fields and the trees. We started in the visitor center where we had to serender a license to get the headset thingy. Then there was a video in their theatre about the place. From there it was self-guided with the help of the headset thingy and numbers. We got to see some great historical objects as well as the house itself.
We walked along a long path to the house. There were numbers along the way so that we could hear about the grounds as we walked to the house.
The house has some older Americans in period dress explaining to us various things about the house and the day to day living situations in the house. One lady cracked us about when she was telling us about how many times people wash their hair, or even bath in general each year. She then said - she couldn't read those period romance novels anymore because "they are FULL OF IT."
Because of the pending DOOM of thunder and lightning quickly moving upon us, we rushed to get to the cemetery, forgoing the gardens and other parts of the grounds. Once we ran through there, took some pictures, we quickly headed back to the visitor center so we could check out. No sooner than when we got there, it started pouring rain.
One note - there were cows that seriously looked like oreos. They were black - white - black. Even the street sign showing that cows were in the area had that coloring.
Overall, great historical place to visit.
I would have given this place 5 stars, but one lady who worked there kinda ruined it for me.
I agree with what most of the other reviewers have mentioned about the place. It's actually pretty cool (and I usually don't like touristy stuff like this), and MOST of the people were friendly. I learned a lot.
However, I will mention that in order to obtain a headset and a tour guide device to plug it into, you need to provide some form of ID (like a driver's license) as a form of collateral. So I handed over my driver's license to one of the ladies working the headset booth. As I'm handing my license over, she asks me to spell out my last name, and I do. And then she chuckles.
um...whatthefuck?!
Look lady, I can understand that you may think my last name sounds "funny" and "ethnic", but it's *extremely* rude to laugh at it. I mean, seriously, who does that? She reinforced a stereotype that I'm sure plenty of other Southern folks would really like to shake! I would like to request that she go through diversity or sensitivity training.
Note to Hermitage management: I don't know the lady's name, but I was there on Sunday, June 28, 2009 from 1 - 3 pm. She kinda looks like Laura Bush. And I'm not trying to be a bitch and get someone in trouble, but I think it's really important that your employees treat visitors with respect, so they don't feel compelled to write reviews like this one. Bah!
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I visit Presidential sites as a hobby and as a travel method. So I know already that there is a vast difference from one site to another. I had been looking forward to the trip and had prepared by reading Pulitzer prize author Jon Meacham's American Lion, a remarkable biography that is a must read before visiting the Hermitage (or after if you didn't get the chance before).
I agree with those who find the visit useful. I was especially impressed by the fact that so many of the furnishings and appointments in the mansion were there when Andrew Jackson lived there. I think that 90% were there and this is way beyond what might be found in most presidential homes.
My discomfort with the place has to do with big holes in historical interpretation that are chosen by the people who interpret. It was interesting to me that no mention of the scandal around Jackson's marriage to Rachel, who was actually married at the time of their marriage, ever was evoked. Likewise, Jackson's proclivity to dueling and the fact that he killed in dueling was not mentioned.
However, I did think that the interpretation of slavery on the Jackson plantation was fairly well done.
The other matter that I would like to warn visitors has to do with the cafe. When I went through the lines, not a single item was priced. Even though the potato soup and the tuna salad sandwich were tasty, if not exceptional, when I discovered the actual prices, I thought they were way overpriced. My suggestion is to try not to eat at this cafe and to save your money for the Loveless or some other place that is more reasonable.
In the same commercial vein, I was interested in the fact that the pamphlet we picked up in the hotel on the Hermitage did not list prices of entry. Probably if many people knew it was $17.00 a person they might reevaluate going there. Again, a policy, it seems, of not communicating up front prices, as in the cafe.
I do not regret paying the price to visit the Hermitage. I learned a good deal on the visit. However, I do not think it deserves either a four or five star rating. For me it was just ok.
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A lot of museums and historical places bend over backwards now to highlight both the positive and negative aspects of their subject. The Hermitage is not one of them.
The nastier aspects of Andy Jackson's life were relegated to the former slave shack on the back of the property. And the PBS film that's edited down and shown at the beginning of the tour cut out more of the info on Andy's nastier side.
That being said, Jackson is one of the more important U.S. presidents who I didn't know much about. My visit to The Hermitage changed that.
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It's the home of President Andrew Jackson, so therefore it's very interesting and a must see. It's not the most spectacular plantation I've seen. I personally prefer the tour and activities at Belle Meade but this is something everyone visiting Nashville should experience once.
The gardens here are more extensive and make a warm weather visit worth your time. The usually have an Andy Jackson impersonator on the clock which adds extra excitement especially for the younger visitors. Although if cash is tight and you're deciding between this or the Belle Meade, I'd save my money and head into town.
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Being in Nashville for a quick family reunion we had to pick and choose what to do. Eighteen family members and the majority wanted to go to The Hermitage. We arrived in the afternoon and decided to do the outside tour first, knowing we could come back in and cool off while watching the film that shows every 30 minutes or so.
A 1.5 mile trail leads around the grounds while stopping at different points along the way. The mansion is one main stop. Volunteers in period dress take you through and give insights into the house and the family that lived there. There is an audio tour which is well worth listening to because it gives so much more info. There is two different tracks on the audio, one for adults and one for children. My daughter who is eleven thought the one for children was way too elementary for her and she listened to the adult track which she enjoyed very much.
A couple notes concerning the mansion tour. There is no photography allowed. Surprisingly the house was air conditioned which was a very nice treat on this hot, humid day. The tour does lead upstairs and you will need to climb about 20-30 steps to the second floor. If you cannot 'do stairs' you can by pass that part and just meet your party where they will come back down. I do recommend to climb those stairs if at all possible, as there is beautiful mural wall paper both up and downstairs.
We ended our time here watching the short video back at the main museum. A nice respite from the heat, but can't say the film was anything to write home about.
There is plenty of on site lot parking. They do offer a triple A discount, which I believe will save you $2.00 per ticket.
As everyone else has mentioned, The Hermitage was former President Andrew Jackson's home. $16 gets you in to begin a wholesome and educational escapade. You can start your day with a 15-minute film about the Hermitage and Andrew Jackson that gives you some good background knowledge to take with you as you tour the grounds. Next, you'll usually head to Andrew Jackson's Greek Revival style mansion, where you'll get a great glimpse into the manor that housed a former president. Bar none, my favorite part of the visiting the Hermitage is just being able to wander the grounds myself (The audio tour is a great to learn as you roam). Walking around The Hermitage will lead you to garden's, tombs, farm houses, and what I find most intriguing - the slave quarters.
In recent years the Hermitage has embarked on an attempt to go beyond the story of Andrew Jackson to highlight the lives 150+ enslaved peoples that kept the Hermitage running. I can't even tell you how amazing it to get a glimpse of the traditions that were kept alive in such oppressive times. You'll also get to see the places that they are currently excavating in their effort to rebuild the history of the Hermitage's enslaved peoples. Check out their exhibit: Stories from the Hermitage Slave Community.
The Hermitage is the Home of former President Andrew Jackson. The property is just a few miles East of Nashville in Hermitage, TN. You can visit the home where Andrew Jackson lived and see the property where he farmed. They have a good exhibit about his personal and political life and they have created a documentary that can be viewed at the beginning of your guided tour through the house. They also have an exhibit about the slaves that lived and worked at the Hermitage.
The tour guides are all dressed in period dress to make the experience more exciting. They are all well informed and gladly discuss questions that anyone may have along the tour route through the house.
The cost to visit is about $15. I would say it is well worth it, to get this great picture of Andrew Jackson and to learn more about his life and work.
The five teenagers I was traveling with on a church trip actually thanked me for taking them here. I'm not quite sure if this it was because the History Channel-like movie we watched was the first TV they'd seen all week, or whether it was because the air conditioning was just the right temperature, but I was grateful to those who make this a pleasant and insightful place to visit.
President Andrew Jackson - the "Hero of the Battle of New Orleans" in the War of 1812 - was involved in one of the first political smear campaigns in an American presidential election. His campaign ended in victory but also in personal tragedy, as his wife died days after his election to the first of two presidential terms.
You'll learn lots more about Andrew Jackson here, but this is also a good example of a southern plantation, with some attempt at discussion of slavery and how former slaves adapted to life after emancipation (there is a startingly well-furnished slave cabin on the grounds at the Hermitage.)
Admission price was a bit steep (I'm guessing that's because this is a presidential home), but they do offer an AAA discount.
I really don't like going to historical places...but I really enjoyed the Hermitage. Pay the extra $7 for the wagon ride - it's really worth it. The tour was very informative and the guide was quite a character. The tour of the mansion is air-conditioned - there are some interesting rooms to see. The flower and herb garden are beautifully done - great picture opts. There is a movie to see before the tour - we did thing backwards and saw the movie last and everything came into place and made sense. The grounds are huge - but go on a cool day if you plan of walking them. There is a gift shop - overpriced of course and a restaurant that looked OK. This is supposed to be one of the most visited attractions in TN. Has anyone else been there? LOL
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Another choice on the Nashville All-Access Pass. Our visit to The Hermitage included the grounds and gardens, mansion, mausoleum and outlying buildings of Andrew Jackson's (7th President and Hero of New Orleans) plantation. Perhaps most interesting were some exhibits on the lives of the approximately 140 slaves who worked the land and maintained the household. Very little was documented, but archaeological exploration has lead to many fascinating discoveries.