Nashville History - 1786 To 1860

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Nashville History-1786 to 1860 1786 - The first store or shop for the sale of merchandise was opened in Nashville in 1786 by Lardner Clark. Clark brought his goods from Philadelphia packed on ten horses. The store contained assorted items such as cheap calicoes, unbleached linens, and coarse woolens. He also operated a tavern out of the same establishment selling liquors to the local citizens. With little or no money in the early settlement, Clark took pelts in exchange for goods. 1785 – The first physician set up shop in Nashville, Dr. John Sappington, maker and vendor of "Sappington's Pills." Considered a "panacea for all the ills that flesh is heir to; but, the secret being discovered, the pills lost all reputation and Dr. Sappington his practice." History of Nashville. Pg. 89. 1787 – Nashville had approximately 6 "framed and hewn log houses and some twenty or thirty log cabins." Another tavern opened to accommodate the growing population. The court decided to regulate the business of tippling and grog-selling. "One-half a pint of whisky, such as will sink tallow, shall sell for 2s.; a bowl of toddy, made with loaf-sugar and whisky, 3s. 6d.; one quart bowl of punch, with fruit, 10s.; dinner and grog, 4s. 6d." Taxes of the same year were to be paid one-fourth in corn, one-half in beef, venison, or pork, one-eighth in money. Prices for these were: corn, 2s. 8d. per bushel; good, fat bear meat, 4d. per pound; fine buffalo beef, 3d.; good venison, 9d.; dried beef, 6d.; and salt, 2s. 4d. per pound. The 26 town lots had been sold in 1787 and were taxed one dollar each, revenue of $26. History of Nashville, pg. 90. 1788 - The most popular and aristocratic tavern in Nashville was kept by "Black Bob," a Negro w... ... middle of paper ... ...eer as a sea captain, Driver sailed to Tahiti and discovered the descendants of the Bounty mutineers, whom he returned to Pitcairn Island. When his wife died in 1837, Driver decided to move with his three children to Nashville to be near his brother's family. During the Civil War, the Union Army occupied Nashville, and Driver, who had remained a Unionist, asked the Union soldiers to raise "Old Glory" over the State Capitol where it flew for approximately a month. The name has been popular ever since. Driver's family later gave the flag to President Harding. Today it can be seen in the Smithsonian Museum of American History. Captain Driver is buried in the Old Nashville City Cemetery. His grave and that of Francis Scott Key are the only two places in the United States where the American flag is permitted to fly twenty-four hours a day. Source: History of Nashville

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