Old Hickory

    Old Hickory is a neighborhood in northeastern Nashville-Davidson County that is rich in history. The homes in Old Hickory were built during World War I in what was then rural Davidson County to house workers at a gunpowder plant constructed by the Du Pont Company.
    Today the area is home to a Du Pont chemical plant and remains as a middle-class housing area. Old Hickory, while not incorporated, has its own Chamber of Commerce -- the Old Hickory Chamber of Commerce. The area is served by the Nashville-Davidson County metro government. It was named after President Andrew Jackson, the Nashville politician and general, who was known as Old Hickory.
    Nearby is Old Hickory Lake, which was created when the waters of the Cumberland River were dammed. The lake is managed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

History

    Ground was broken for the Du Pont gunpowder plant in 1918.¹  By the end of 1918, more than 300 homes had been built.  But World War I soon ended and the plant was closed in 1919. Du Pont located a Rayon manufacturing operation in the plant in 1923. The homes in the area continued as a "company town," owned and operated by Du Pont until 1946. At that time, the homes were sold to the workers.
    Old Hickory was incorporated into Nashville when the city of Nashville and Davidson County merged in 1963.

References

^{1    This information and other historical material about Old Hickory is taken from the Web site of the Old Hickory Chamber of Commerce.}

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