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It is said that horse racing is the sport of kings. I myself am well schooled on the subject, having learned to read a racing form when I was 8 years old. (There are benefits to being raised in a family whose members include degenerate gamblers and assorted criminal types.) But I digress,. . . the history of thoroughbred racing in the U. S. can be traced back to one source.
The Belle Meade Plantation was founded in 1807 by John Harding and by 1816 he was boarding horses for income. It was soon after that he was advertising stud services in the local newspapers. By 1823 he had his farm’s racing silks registered with the Nashville Jockey Club. The first American jockeys were slave boys between the ages of 8-12 years.
The Civil War had both Union and Confederate armies commandeering horses. John Harding’s son had inherited the farm by this time and he was able to keep Belle Meade’s racing stock intact by hiding their best thoroughbreds from the war. Bob Green, a slave who was the head groom would move the horses to different secret locations on the expansive 5000+ acre property. After the war they really got serious about horse breeding. Every single horse to race in the Kentucky Derby since 2003 can trace their bloodlines directly to the Belle Meade Plantation.
Today it is a historical site that is now home to a winery and restaurant. There are no horses. However, we did enjoy the tour of the mansion and grounds. Our period costumed guide told some great stories about the family. We even got to stick our fingers in the holes left by the Civil War bullets. They also have an extensive collection of horse drawn carriages and sleighs. They host events like weddings and conferences. Finally, our luck ran out when we were leaving the plantation. We saw the first raindrops pelting our windshields as we were pulling out of the parking lot. We drove four hours through an on and off deluge.
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So we’ll end our Nashville journey with my list of things about Nashville that surprised me:
1. It’s a big city with big city problems like a significant homeless population and pockets of poverty. Although it’s pretty compact and you can get from one end of town to the other pretty simply.
2. It’s not just country music. Nashville is home to all types of music and venues that support them.
3. I was less than impressed with honky tonk row. I guess having a young child in tow makes a difference and we did not venture in to that area at night since Damian seemed to have absolutely no interest in it.
4. It is a family friendly town with plenty to do that did interest Damian.
5. They are extremely military friendly. Every single place we made a purchase offered a military/veterans discount.
6. They have a thriving arts scene, once again, not just music.
7. It’s a huge events center, they have a ton of conventions etc. in town all the time.
8. They have 4 seasons. Although they don’t get a lot of snow they do get some. The summers can be pretty oppressive.
9. Home to the worst drivers I’ve ever seen (and I lived in New York).
10. These things were not a surprise but I feel they deserve a mention: the people are extremely friendly and seem to have a naturally good humor about them, the food is not just fried everything (although the fried stuff is really good), this is a foodie town.
Visit Nashville, you won’t be disappointed. Now we’re spending Easter in North Carolina with our son’s family. May you enjoy a Blessed Easter. (Yes, the beer label really does say, “Sweet Baby Jesus” – no letters please.)
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