Nashville museums hold rhinestone guitars, artistic masterpieces and classic cars – Tennessean
Nashville isn’t just the geographic and political center of Tennessee: It’s also the Volunteer State’s hub for culture, history and, of course, country music. Music City’s many museums celebrate the things that make the city special, from its larger-than-life onstage personalities to its history as a civil rights battleground.
Call ahead or check online for hours of operation, ticketing and current COVID-19 health and safety guidelines before your visit.
Adventure Science Center
Hands-on exhibits are always great for families, and Nashville’s Adventure Science Center has them in spades. The museum features over 150 exhibits exploring everything from biology to environmental science to physics and beyond, and space lovers can check out the Sudekum Planetarium’s 63-foot dome theater. Older visitors get the run of the museum in “Way Late Play Dates,” occasional 21-and-up events featuring local food, drinks and themed programming.
800 Fort Negley Blvd.; 615-862-5160; adventuresci.org
Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum
The Country Music Hall of Fame celebrates Nashville’s most iconic export through a sprawling collection of instruments, stagewear and other memorabilia. The multilevel museum features vehicles owned by Elvis Presley and Brooks & Dunn, guitars played by Alabama, lyric sheets handwritten by Taylor Swift and hundreds of other items. The Hall of Fame rotunda honors country music icons inducted since the Hall’s founding in 1961.
222 Rep. John Lewis Way S.; 615-416-2001; countrymusichalloffame.org
Frist Art Museum
The imposing art deco building at the corner of Broadway and Fifth Avenue in downtown Nashville was first built as a post office but now houses Nashville’s premier fine art museum. It’s a big draw for both regional and international exhibits: In February 2021, the Frist was the sole United States stop for “Picasso. Figures,” a collection of Pablo Picasso works from France’s Musée National Picasso-Paris.
Read more: Why is Nashville the only U.S. stop for a new Picasso exhibit? It’s Frist Art Museum magic
919 Broadway; 615-244-3340; fristartmuseum.org
The Hermitage
President Andrew Jackson’s legacy looms large over Tennessee, which has countless streets, monuments and cities named his honor. The Hermitage, located northeast of Nashville, is his historic homestead and his final resting place. It’s now a museum that examines his complicated legacy as someone who fought for the common man as “The People’s President” but also enacted policies such as the Indian Removal Act that led to the Trail of Tears.
Read more: Trump’s embrace of Andrew Jackson’s legacy was complicated; at The Hermitage, it still is
4580 Rachels Ln. (Hermitage); 615-889-2941; thehermitage.com
Lane Motor Museum
Car culture is alive and well in Middle Tennessee, where some of the world’s best drivers compete in events such as NASCAR’s Ally 400 or IndyCar’s Music City Grand Prix and automakers General Motors and Nissan churn out thousands of vehicles a year. The Lane Motor Museum, a privately owned collection housed in South Nashville, celebrates automobiles of the past with the largest collection of European cars and motorcycles in the United States.
702 Murfreesboro Pike; 615-742-7445; lanemotormuseum.org
Musicians Hall of Fame
The Musicians Hall of Fame honors both well-known stars and the backing musicians that helped turn song fragments and lead sheets into timeless classics. One example: You may not know James Jamerson’s name or what he looked like, but any Motown fan can recognize his bass playing on tracks such as Marvin Gaye’s “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough” or “My Girl” by the Temptations. One of Jamerson’s Fender Precision Bass guitars is on display at the Hall alongside hundreds of other instruments and music history artifacts.
401 Gay St.; 615-244-3263; musicianshalloffame.com
National Museum of African American Music
The National Museum of African American Music, one of Nashville’s newest museums, anchors the massive Fifth + Broadway development near Lower Broadway. The 56,000-square-foot space celebrates African American songwriters, performers and innovators through exhibits focusing on jazz and the blues, the religious roots of American music, the Civil Rights Movement, hip-hop and more.
Read more:National Museum of African American Music’s Celebration of Legends: ‘Black music has a home’
510 Broadway; 615-301-8724; nmaam.org
Tennessee State Museum
Why did Tennessee break off from North Carolina to become the 16th U.S. state, and what Native American tribes settled there before colonization? Why it was such a critical battleground in the women’s suffrage and Civil Rights movements? And just how many volunteers have joined the military from the Volunteer State? The Tennessee State Museum has the answers to all these questions and more at the foot of Tennessee’s state capitol building downtown.
1000 Rosa L Parks Blvd., 615-741-2692; tnmuseum.org
Country artist museums
As the home of country music, Nashville also houses many smaller museums dedicated to specific artists. They include:
- George Jones Museum
- Glen Campbell Museum and Rhinestone Stage
- Historic RCA Studio B
- The Johnny Cash Museum
- Loretta Lynn’s Ranch
- Patsy Cline Museum
The Nashville Convention and Visitors Corp has more information online at visitmusiccity.com/things-to-do-in-nashville/attractions/museums.
Cole Villena covers business at The Tennessean, part of the USA Today Network — Tennessee. Reach Cole at cvillena@tennessean.com or 615-925-0493. Follow Cole on Twitter at @ColeVillena and on Instagram at @CVinTennessee.