Fifth Avenue Historic District

The Fifth Avenue Historic District is listed in the National Register and is centered in the 200 block of Fifth Avenue North. The larger area stretches to Fourth Avenue and encompasses twenty-eight buildings dating from the mid-19th to the mid-20th centuries and for many years was considered the city’s most fashionable place to shop—literally. There were also discount department stores, restaurants, and movie theaters including The Fifth Avenue, The Strand, and The Rex.

The Fifth Avenue Historic District also represents a broad range of architectural styles. With your back to the entrance of the Arcade look to your right to see the c. 1935 terracotta-clad Art Deco facade of the S. H. Kress & Co. Department Store at 237 Fifth Avenue North and the 1889 pressed-metal clad Neoclassical facade of the French Piano Company Building at 240 Fifth Avenue North. Look to your left to see the c. 1869 brick-clad Second Empire style facade of the St. Cloud Block building at 201 Fifth Avenue North. 

Arguably the most unique structure in this district is the Arcade, whose entrance is in the middle of the 200 block of Fifth Avenue. The Arcade runs parallel to Church Street between Fourth and Fifth Avenues. It remains one of Nashville’s most treasured and hidden historical gems. Local businessman Daniel Buntin was inspired during a trip to Italy where he visited the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, an indoor/outdoor mall, in Milan.

When he returned to Nashville, Buntin met with several other local businessmen, and the group commissioned the architecture firm of Thompson, Gibel, and Asmus to design the two-story brick structure with an iron and glass roof in 1902. When it opened in 1903, the Arcade was the city’s first enclosed shopping area at 367 feet long by 80 feet wide. See our historic images to see the Arcade in its glory days, as shoppers promenaded under the skylights in the early 1900s. 

If open, take a stroll through the Arcade and grab a meal at one of its many local restaurants or visit one of the art galleries on its second level. Also, be sure to check out some of its oldest tenants, like the Peanut Shop, formerly Planters Peanuts, which is located on the right just past the midway point of the building. Fresh peanuts have been roasted there since 1930. Another worthwhile stop is US Post Office, the Arcade’s oldest tenant. It’s been at this location since 1929, and its original Art Deco storefront remains intact. For more stories about the Arcade, take our Downtown Public Art and Murals, Food for Thought, and Civil Rights Sit-Ins Tours.

Continue down the Arcade to its Fourth Avenue North entrance. If the Arcade is closed, walk back to Union Street and turn RIGHT. Continue one block to Fourth Avenue North and turn RIGHT. Once you reach the Fourth Avenue entrance to the Arcade continue walking down Fourth Avenue North.