May 2010 flood damage: Centerville Bridge

This Bridge was built in 1913 to carry traffic over the Duck River on the west side of Centerville. I think I heard that Minnie Pearl would talk about walking across this bridge as a child.

In 1970, a new bridge was built and Tennessee highway 50 was rerouted across the river causing this one to be closed.

When the huge storms brought over a foot of rainfall in the first weekend of May 2010, floods destroyed this and to my knowledge two other bridges in Middle Tennessee. (the other two are the old bridge at Hurricane Mills and an old Harpeth River bridge on Old Harding Rd in SW Davidson Co.

2010 Nashville Flood Debris

Two years ago on this date, people all around Middle Tennessee began to survey the damage after two intense days of rain which caused flooding never seen around this area before. People in the Bellevue area were invited to bring their flood-damaged possesions to Warner Park where it could be hauled away.

Book Reccommendation: Tennessee Tragedies by Allen R. Coggins

Tennessee Tragedies: Natural, Technological, and Societal Disasters in the Volunteer State

Here is a new book that is hot off the presses!  Earlier today, I posted the post card for the James K. Polk burial site at the state capitol.  His death represents a tragedy.  Despite the fact that he was one of the most powerful people in the civilized world, he died at a young age of the cholera epidemic that swept through the state.  This, and many other maladies to befall our state are chronicled in this recent book published by University of Tennessee Press.  It makes for an interesting read of the state's not so proud past.

(As a side note, in the interest of full disclosure.  My photo of the Polk burial site posted earlier today is in this book on page 16.)

Hurricane Mills, TN

This is the mill of Hurricane Mills. Today, this area is much better known as being part of the Loretta Lynn Dude Ranch, one of the most popular tourist attractions in the state.

This mill, and other historic spots nearby are on the National Register of Historic Places listed as the "Hurricane Mills Rural Historic District." According to a plaque across the river from the mill, this mill and dam were built by James T. Anderson in 1896. "Though wool was carded here, grain processing predominated, corn meal and flour were shipped through the south."

In the mid 60's, Loretta and Mooney Lynn purchased the 1876 mansion across the street from the river. Over the next few years, they preserved many of the nearby buildings and commercially opened the area as the dude ranch. Today, you can take a tour of the area, or just walk around some of the places, like I did. The mill's water wheel was removed and placed nearby.

Today, the mill serves two purposes. First, it is one of three gift shops on the ranch. Second, it is opened as the "Loretta Lynn Doll and Fan Museum"

Unfortunately, the Middle Tennessee May floods were not kind to Hurricane Mills. Just a few feet downstream from the mill (and would have been viewable in this picture), there was an iron bridge built in 1911 that used to carry highway TN13 (but had been replaced by a newer bridge in the background on the right) was completely washed away. I can't find any confirmation of this, but I suspect the mill suffered much damage as well as it looks like the exterior is almost completely rebuilt with new wood. (If you find any pre-flood picture, the mill is painted a deep red.) The area was closed for a couple of months after the flood and just reopened July 3, 2010.

Nashville Flood Debris at Warner Park

After the big Nashville Flood, people in the Bellevue area were invited to bring their flood-damaged possessions to Warner Park where it could be hauled away.

Most of the photos on this blog were taken by me, However, this photo was taken by my mom on 5/12. Luckily nobody in our family suffered any flood damage.

The Great Flood of 2010

OK, so there were a lot of photo opportunities to get out and see the devastation or the high water levels downtown. However, I decided to stay at home this week and not get in anybody's way. Most of my postings here are usually done in advance, but a couple of my recent posts seem to be flood related, specifically last Saturday with a kayaker.

I did take a couple of flood pics on the way to work on Monday, this was the soccer field at Smyrna Middle School:



In the foreground you can see a sidewalk underwater also.

also, not far away: