Starry Night Clarksville

This mural is painted by @draftsbyolasubomi features the Montgomery County Courthouse and Customs House museum on a background similar to Van Gogh's Starry Night. It is located off Madison St. near Hiter St. in the parking lot for Dollar General.

Customs House at Night - Clarksville, TN

From Wikipedia:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Customs_House_Museum_and_Cultural_C...
The Customs House Museum and Cultural Center is Tennessee's second largest general interest museum. It features fine art, history, and children's exhibits. It is located in Clarksville, TN's Downtown District on 200 South 2nd Street. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1972 as Clarksville Federal Building. It was established in 1984 as the Clarksville Montgomery County Museum.

The 1898 portion of the Museum was originally designed for use as a Federal post office and custom house to handle the large volume of foreign mail created by the city's international tobacco business. It is built on the site of a former boarding house.

The structure was designed by the Supervising Architect of the Treasury, William Martin Aiken, in the eclectic style popular to Victorian America. Aiken incorporated many architectural styles including Stick, Queen Anne, Italianate, Romanesque, Flemish and Gothic. Its highly pitched roof with large eagles on the four corners, steep gabled windows and elaborate terra cotta ornamentation combine to give importance to a relatively small building. Contrary to popular myth, the design was not inspired by the architect's visit to China.

The building was constructed by Charles A. Moses of Chicago.

1957 Chevrolet Bel Air Ambulance

This well maintained classic ambulance is located in front of McReynolds, Nave & Larson Funeral Home in Clarksville, TN.

Frank Sutton (Sgt. Carter) Statue - Clarksville, TN

Frank Sutton was an actor from Clarksville, TN best known for portraying Sgt. Vince Carter on the TV show Gomer Pyle USMC. This statue was made in his honor in his hometown of Clarksville, TN across from the Roxy Theater.

Busy Bee Drive-In - Clarksville, TN

Sadly, this mom and pop restaurant in Clarksville looks to be out of business.

Post Card Tuesday: Vacation Motor Hotel - Clarksville

This neon motel sign looks suspiciously like an old school Holiday Inn sign. I don't know if it once was a Holiday Inn which became independent, or they just wanted a copycat sign. The motel is still open for business along highway US41A/79 in the Providence area of Clarksville.

Montgomery County Courthouse Bell

This 4200 pound bell was put in the clock tower of the courthouse when the courthouse was rebuilt following the 1900 fire. During the 1999 tornado, the bell came crashing to the ground and they decided to place it on the plaza grounds instead of putting it back int he reconstructed tower. It was built by the MC Shane Bell Foundry of Baltimore, MD in 1900.

Dunbar Cave Lake (From Inside the arch)

Dunbar Cave is a scenic State Natural Area in the middle of a residential area in Clarksville, but a hundred years ago it was a rural tourist destination.

At one time, a resort hotel operated here. More significantly, the opening of the cave became a popular party spot for big bands in the 1930's and 40's. (So popular, that Roy Acuff bought the area in 1948).

Caves tend to maintain a nice cool temperature, and having lots of people hang out by the entrance would be a cool place on a hot summer evening, plus the rock formations around the entrance make for a nice bandshell. The springs from the cave were dammed to make the picturesque Swan Lake.

The typical picture of the area shows the triple arches of the white concrete. As soon as I got here, I went down there, and there was nothing there. It looks like it should be an entrance, but it isn't. Instead, it's purpose from the big band era was to hold up the concrete dance floor. The reason the arched area was made accessible was so you could walk the nature trail along to the other side of the lake. The actual entrance is of course above the arches.

Today, Dunbar Cave is owned by the state and operated by the State Park service.

Wilma Rudolph Statue - Clarksville, TN

In honor of the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio...



Wilma Rudolph is perhaps Clarksville's most prominent citizen ever. Most people are familiar with her story, from growing up with Polio all the way to her multiple gold medals at the 1960 Summer Olympics. The City of Clarksville placed this bronze statue of Rudolph along the RiverWalk near the base of the pedestrian overpass. Many of you will even remember the famous photo of Rudolph crossing the finish line that this statue was adapted from.

Clarksville: John Montgomery statue

This statue honors John Montgomery, for whom Montgomery County is named. While on a long hunters' expedition, Montgomery claimed Clarksville, Tennessee's second oldest city, so named for Gen. George Rogers Clark. The statue was erected in 2002.

Dunbar Cave Arches

Dunbar Cave is a scenic State Natural Area in the middle of a residential area in Clarksville, but a hundred years ago it was a rural tourist destination.

At one time, a resort hotel operated here. More significantly, the opening of the cave became a popular party spot for big bands in the 1930's and 40's. (So popular, that Roy Acuff bought the area in 1948).

Caves tend to maintain a nice cool temperature, and having lots of people hang out by the entrance would be a cool place on a hot summer evening, plus the rock formations around the entrance make for a nice bandshell. The springs from the cave were dammed to make the picturesque Swan Lake.

The typical picture of the area shows the triple arches of the white concrete. As soon as I got here, I went down there, and there was nothing there. It looks like it should be an entrance, but it isn't. Instead, it's purpose from the big band era was to hold up the concrete dance floor. The reason the arched area was made accessible was so you could walk the nature trail along to the other side of the lake. The actual entrance is of course above the arches.

Today, Dunbar Cave is owned by the state and operated by the State Park service. For a few years, the actual cave itself has been closed while researchers study the white nose syndrome which has been plaguing bats in many caves around the country.

Vacation Motel - Clarksville, TN

Located along US41A/79 in the Providence area of Clarksville, TN

First Presbyterian Church - Clarksville, TN

This church on Main St. in Clarksville, TN was completed in 1878 with a neo-gothic architecture at a cost of $43,000. It's one of several historic churches in Clarksville and is on the National Register of Historic Places.

Bridge Pier remains - Port Royal, TN

Port Royal is a Tennessee state park, mostly in Montgomery County remembering many of the states earliest settlers who lived here and various forms of transportation through the area.

For many years, the main remaining sight here was an old wooden covered bridge. Built in 1903, the original alignment of Port Royal Road crossed the Red River here. The bridge was in use until 1955 when a more modern bridge was built.

Then, in 1972 the bridge partially collapsed. Then, it was rebuilt in 1977. Next in 1998, a tornado destroyed most of the bridge and only a segment of it remained. I don't know if the huge May 2010 flood collapsed the rest of it or if it happened before then, but the flood did enough damage in the area that it would have. (This photo was taken about a month after that.)

Older photos can be seen here:
bridgehunter.com/tn/montgomery/port-royal-covered/

Port Royal, TN Masonic Lodge

built in 1859, this became the main building in the historic Tennessee town of Port Royal, In addition to being the Masonic lodge, this was a general store, Doctor's office and Post office.

Here is a picture of the building taken in 1899:
www.sitemason.com/files/fgntOo/portroyallodgeold.JPG

Today, what's left of Port Royal has been designated a state historic area, under the oversight of the Tennessee State Parks. This building today is the park's headquarters.

Dunbar Cave Vintage Concession Stand

Dunbar Cave is a scenic State Natural Area in the middle of a residential area in Clarksville, but a hundred years ago it was a rural tourist destination.

At one time, a resort hotel operated here. More significantly, the opening of the cave became a popular party spot for big bands in the 1930's and 40's. (So popular, that Roy Acuff bought the area in 1948).

Caves tend to maintain a nice cool temperature, and having lots of people hang out by the entrance would be a cool place on a hot summer evening, plus the rock formations around the entrance make for a nice bandshell. The springs from the cave were dammed to make the picturesque Swan Lake.

The typical picture of the area shows the triple arches of the white concrete. As soon as I got here, I went down there, and there was nothing there. It looks like it should be an entrance, but it isn't. Instead, it's purpose from the big band era was to hold up the concrete dance floor. The reason the arched area was made accessible was so you could walk the nature trail along to the other side of the lake. The actual entrance is of course above the arches.

Today, Dunbar Cave is owned by the state and operated by the State Park service. As of right now (July 2010), the actual cave itself is closed while researchers study the white nose syndrome which has been plaguing bats in many caves around the country.

Vacation Motor Hotel

It looks suspiciously like an Old School Holiday Inn neon sign
Located along US41A/79 in the Providence area of Clarksville, TN

Art of E.T. Wickham: Gov. Austin Peay

Enoch Tanner (E.T.) Wickham was born in 1883 and lived as a farmer most of his life in the small town of Palmyra, TN on the western side of Montgomery County. After retiring in the early 1950's, E.T. started quite a hobby.

Starting then and continuing for nearly two decades, he started making concrete statues. After each statue was built, it was places on the side of the road on his property. Soon, after he started building these, he put up a sign that said Wickham Park, and that is what the place became known as. The statues started with animals and family members but soon became famous Tennesseeans and Americans.

E.T. Wickham died in 1970.. The many statues were enjoyed by the locals, but unfortunately the elements and more importantly frequent vandalism took their toll on the statues. (which is the obvious reason why there are things missing from these pictures.)

Luckily, the family has stepped in to preserve the statues (or what's left of them) and the memory. In 2006, some of these statues were moved to a better location, making them easier to see, but also behind a barbed wire fence to cut down on vandalism. They also have a website wickhamstonepark.com/ which provides very thorough information on the statues.

Inscribed in front:
AUSTIN PEAY

THREE TERM GOVERNOR OF TENN
1923.25.27

"Nora" - Clarksville, TN

This bronze statue of Leonora "Nora" Witzel (1875-1968) is located at the northeast corner of the brick sidewalk of the Montgomery County Courthouse in Clarksville, TN. She is honored for breaking the glass ceiling and being prominent in local Portrait, Architecture and Landscape photography. The statue was sculpted by Andrea Lugar and dedicated five years ago on April 19, 2007. Part of her collection is on display at the Custom's House museum.

Old Post House - Clarksville, TN

Located in a part of town that used to be called Oak Grove, this is midway between the center of Clarksville and Hopkinsville, KY. This served as a stop for the triweekly stagecoaches which operated between Nashville and towns along the Ohio River. The building was erected in the 1830's (possibly sooner) and also was used as a post office, a church storeroom and a private residence.

Today, you can find this along highway US 41A as it runs along the entrance to Fort Campbell. As the highway had to be expanded, this was considered important enough to build around as this is between the northbound and southbound lanes, along with Bethel United Methodist Church and Patriot Park. It is also on the National Register of Historic Places. The city renovated it, which was finished in the fall of 1990.

Historical Marker:
seemidtn.com/gallery/index.php?album=historical-markers/m...