Cheekwood Belle Meade, TN!!!
The city of Belle Meade is located just eighteen minutes from downtown Nashville, TN. Belle Meade is a historic area to those that live there along with the visitors to this historic city. The area was first discovered in 1807. The city wouldn't be incorporated until 1938. Prior to the area being incorporated in 1929 a family would purchase a portion of land to build their estate.
After the Cheek Family made a fortune in the coffee industry with being the founders of Maxwell House Coffee along with the family's grocery business they purchased the land and built Cheekwood that would completed in 1932. The name derives from the couple's two last names of Leslie Cheek and Mabel Wood. The mansion itself is 30,000 square feet and has multiple rooms for the residence, dining, lounging, kitchen, and botanical garden. The architecture is Georgian Style with limestone that is beautifully constructed. The Cheeks would travel to England to purchase a large amount of art pieces that would eventually decorate the mansion itself. The daughter Hudah Cheek Sharp and her husband would inherit the property and in 1957 they decided to donate the property to become a cultural property which would open in 1960 to the public.
Today the property is open to the public and offers a extraordinary piece of Nashville history to tour. They have the families original furniture, collections, art pieces, and a massive botanical garden. The gardens are based on the seasons so this time of year it has a fall theme to it. The cost to view the property which includes both the mansion and the gardens. They are open Tuesday through Sunday from 9:00 am until 5:00 pm. This is one site that I highly recommend and one that was recommended to me by post it note. Add a visit to Cheekwood when visiting Nashville, TN. #ridingwithkurt #postit #cheekwood
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