MoneyINC Logo
25+
Years of
Trust
13,000+
Articles
Written 
10M+
Annual 
Readers
300+
Global
Mentions

10 Tennessee Plantations You Should Visit

Plantation

Nothing stirs more emotion than visiting the peaceful plantations in Tennessee. In addition to the attractive and elegant mansions, you get to visit places where confederate women cooked meals for Union leaders, generals planned Civil War strategies, and where the mortally wounded soldiers took their final breaths. In each of these plantations, you will get to learn different stories and expand your knowledge of the historic properties in that era. With favorites like the Belle Meade Plantation and Andrew Jackson's Hermitage, we will take a closer look at the 10 Tennessee Plantations that you should explore.

10. Cherry Mansion (located in Savannah, Tennessee)

The Cherry Mansion, situated in Savannah, Tennessee, was originally constructed by David Robinson and later given as a wedding gift to her newly married daughter, W.H. Cherry, in 1830. During the Civil War era, the Union General, Ulysses S. Grant, used the plantation as his headquarters in the Battle of Shiloh. By visiting the Cherry mansion, you learn more about the Civil War heritage and relive the historic moments and experiences in the Civil War historic sites.

9. The Belmont Mansion (located in Nashville, Tennessee)

The Belmont Mansion is a 19th-century plantation owned by Adelicia Hayes Franklin Acklen Cheatham. She was born in 1817 to a wealthy family, married, and has several children. Later on, her husband passed away, and she inherited the Belmont mansion. As of 1846, she had a net worth of approximately $1 million. In 1853, she married again and built the Belmont mansion together with 16 rooms. There are guided private tours to the Belmont Mansion, and the mansion is open daily except for major holidays.

8. Davies Manor Plantation (located in Bartlett, Tennessee)

The Davies Manor Plantation is located in Bartlett, Tennessee. Although it is still unknown who originally built this mansion, Joel W. Royster redesigned the log cabin when he bought it between 1831 and 1837. Later in the 1860s, Royster added a dining room, a breezeway, and a two-story bedroom area. A self-guided tour is usually available on the plantation; thus, you can view the slave cabins and commissary.

7. Carter House (locate in Franklin, Tennessee)

The Carter House is a start-of-the-art brick mansion whose overall stature significantly represents the Civil War's landmark battles. This is mainly because, in 1864, Carter House was the Union army field headquarters and was commandeered by General Jacob Cox for the Battle of Franklin. This battle is remembered to date as it took thousands of lives of Confederate soldiers. During this war, the Carter family and their neighbors took shelter in the mansion's basement.

6. Sam Davis Home and Plantation (located in Smyrna, Tennessee)

This Southern plantation mansion located in Smyrna was initially built in the 1850s and settled on a 160-acre farm that grows cotton to date. It was the home of the Confederate boy soldier, Sam Davis, who worked behind enemy lines by disrupting communication between Union troops and retrieving vital Union information. Davis was later captured and sentenced to death after refusing to betray the Confederate spy who passed him information on the Union troops' movements. The Sam Davis Home and Plantation is an appealing white-period mansion with decent glimpses of authentic craftsmanship from the doors, floors, and woodwork. Additionally, this 19-th century plantation serves as a monument to the African-American slavery era.

5. Historic Travelers Rest Historic House (located in Nashville, Tennessee)

The Travelers Rest Plantation is located in Nashville, Tennessee, and was originally constructed in 1799 by Judge John Overton. Overton decided to name this 2,500-acres of land "Travelers Rest" as he had great affection for his home after making long, tedious horseback rides while serving as a judge. Visitors to the plantation can now explore the mansion and the house by themselves or on a guided tour. The Travelers Rest plantation is the ideal place to visit to learn over 50 individual stories of the enslaved African Americans who worked on the plantation.

4. Ramsey House Plantation (located in Knoxville, Tennessee)

The Ramsey House Plantation is a 101.5-acre mansion situated in Knoxville, Tennessee. It was originally built by Thomas Hope for Francis Alexander Ramsey, a member of one of the first few families in Knoxville back in 1797. This mansion displays excellent woodwork craftsmanship on almost everything found in the home. There is also a preserved pianoforte.

3. Bowen-Campbell House (located in Nashville, Tennessee)

The Bowen-Campbell House was initially constructed in 1788 by the American Revolutionary War Veteran, Captain William Bowen. The mansion's original grounds were highly utilized in the Civil War era, which is now transformed to the Moss-Wright Park. Moreover, the Bowen-Campbell house is known as the oldest brick mansion in the middle Tennessee region that features a fort to protect the frontier settlers from Native American attacks. The plantation is usually open for daily tours.

2. Belle Meade Plantation (located in Nashville, Tennessee)

The Belle Meade Plantation is a lovely country mansion that is located just outside of downtown Nashville. It was John Harding's home back in 1820 but was later redesigned by Williams Giles Harding to feature limestone pillars, a cherry wood, cantilevered staircase, and a ruby glass transom placed above the front door. The plantation is also home to Nashville's first Winery –The Belle Meade Winery, which was established in 2009 and offers a wide array of amazing experiences like wine and food tasting. Although it is free to walk around the eye-catching plantation grounds, you will be required to pay an additional charge if you want to learn more about the African American slave experience.

1. Andrew Jackson's Hermitage (located in Nashville, Tennessee)

One of Nashville's best-known plantations is The Hermitage, which was also the home of the seventh President Andrew Jackson. Before Jackson owned the mansion, it belonged to Nathaniel Hays in 1780, who later sold it to the future president—Andrew Jackson. Jackson and his family transformed this mansion into a 1,000-acre plantation and built a Federal-style home between 1819 and 1821. Thanks to Jackson's wealth earned during his time in government, he built a museum, farm office, copper gutters, library, and a two-floor entrance portico with Doric columns on-site. Tours of the property are self-guided, but an extra fee is charged for tours at the mansion. The Hermitage also features a gift shop for visitors. The mansion is usually open daily, except for major holidays.

Conclusion

With so many amazing Tennessee plantations to choose from, it can prove to be difficult when deciding on which plantation to visit. Luckily, this guide will help you make a uniform decision on what plantation to visit.

You can also read:

Liz Flynn

Written by Liz Flynn

Liz Flynn has worked as a full-time writer since 2010 after leaving a career in education. She finds almost all topics she writes about interesting, but her favorite subjects are travel and food. Liz loves the process of researching information, learning new things, and putting into words what others who share her interests might like to read. Although she spends most of her time writing, she also enjoys spending time with her husband and four children, watching films, cooking, dining out, reading, motorsports, gaming, and walking along the beach next to her house with her dog.

Read more posts by Liz Flynn

Related Articles

Stay ahead of the curve with our most recent guides and articles on , freshly curated by our diligent editorial team for your immediate perusal.
As featured on:

Wealth Insight!
Subscribe to our Exclusive Newsletter

Dive into the world of wealth and extravagance with Money Inc! Discover stock tips, businesses, luxury items, and travel experiences curated for the affluent observer.
linkedin facebook pinterest youtube rss twitter instagram facebook-blank rss-blank linkedin-blank pinterest youtube twitter instagram