Granny White Park

We went out and visited Granny White Park, which is adjacent to the Davidson County/Williamson County line, in neighboring Brentwood. You know what it’s like when you go to your wealthy friend’s house in middle school, and you can’t stop marveling over dumb stuff, like an ice maker in the fridge? That’s what this park is like. It’s got those Brentwood tax dollars.

The park itself is 32 acres, has baseball fields, a volleyball field, tennis courts, a pavilion, a large playground, and walking trails a little over a mile. The property itself was the home of John Beverly Gooch, a major league baseball player, in the 1930s. It was the home to the Tennessee Artificial Breeders Association, inseminating dairy cattle, in the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s. The property was purchased by the state in the 1980s for $500,000, and the city of Brentwood spent over $2.2 million to develop the park. The finished park was officially opened on Earth Day in 1990, presided over by future vice President Al Gore.

I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the park’s namesake, feminist icon Granny White. At sixty years old, penniless, widowed, and raising her orphaned grandchildren, Lucinda White decide to leave her North Carolina home in search of a better life. She made stops on the road to sell pies and textiles she made from scratch and landed in Nashville with $300 in 1803. With that money, she was able to buy 50 acres of land, and developed a garden. In 1812, she opened an inn that became an essential stop for people travelling. Famous guests like James K. Polk, Andrew Jackson, and Sam Houston enjoyed her wares, and she’d become a huge financial success by the time she passed away in 1816, at age 73.

Go see this park; it’s a beautiful one and absolutely well worth the visit.

Name: Granny White Park

Address: 610 Granny White Pike, Brentwood, TN 37027

History: 3 out of 5

Walkability: 5 out of 5

Kid Like-ability- 5 out of 5

Date Night-ability- 4 out of 5

Charm: 4 out of 5