Greenville, TN for Travelin' Thursday

So this time I actually got the post put on Thursday. Yea for me! I'd like to feature the small town of Greenville, TN this week for my Travelin' Thursday. You may ask why and so I'll tell you. This is the home of the national historic site for our 17th president Andrew Johnson. As I was driving back to Nashville at the end of my last business trip I stopped to see this WONDERFUL historic site.

There are four key locations to visit at this site. The first is the house that Andrew and he wife lived in before he became president. You are able to walk through the ground level and see in the basement. Across the street is a modern building with a short video about Andrew Johnson's life, a small museum with many artifacts and discussion about his presidency. However, the BEST and most interesting item in this building is the actual shop that Andrew Johnson ran his tailor business. It is absolutely fascinating to see this building just as it was over 100 years ago.

The next stop is Andrew Johnson's home that he lived in before and after his presidency. You are able to tour the ENTIRE house. It is a guided tour and the guides know just about everything there is to know about the Johnson family. The most interesting part about this portion of the tour is that the home was in the Johnson family until around 1950. At the time in which it became a national park the direct descendant of Johnson gave the tours herself!

The final stop at the national park is the national cemetery. It is best to drive to this location and there is some parking near the top. The cemetery is beautiful and Johnson's monument is impressive. I spent several minutes there in complete silence, enjoying the view and the fresh air.

To top it all off, IT IS FREE!!! Even the guided tour! If you are in Tennessee I highly recommend you make time for this stop in your plans. It will take about 2-3 hours to complete the visit. This timeframe also depends on when you get there and when the guided tours are scheduled for. You may need to wait around until the tour starts. For more information visit the website: http://www.nps.gov/ANJO/index.htm