Cockrill Springs

Hi, I’m Trenton Wheeler—musician, producer, and founder of IndigeNash. This stop is part of the Nashville Sites walking tour. To explore more stories, take the full tour on NashvilleSites.org.

Now let me tell you about Cockrill Springs as you walk through the garden. Once hidden underground, this natural spring now flows again thanks to a 2014 restoration. In the 1700s, Cockrill Springs was a vital watering stop for travelers along the Natchez Trace. The spring has been returned to the natural landscape.

But this spring’s story goes back much further. For thousands of years before Centennial Park existed, natural springs like this once served as gathering places for Indigenous Peoples. Archaeological evidence shows that people lived in this area as early as the Paleoindian period, nearly 15,000 years ago. By the late 1700s, the Shawnee, Cherokee, Chickasaw, Creek, and Choctaw nations used this land seasonally for hunting and gathering. A visitor at that time would have seen dense forests of oak and hickory, freshwater springs, and tall river cane lining the banks.

During the Revolutionary War era, the land was granted to Anne Robertson Cockrill, the first woman to receive a land grant in what would become Tennessee. Her son, Mark, developed it into a working farm using enslaved labor. He gained fame for producing high-quality wool and was known as the “Wool King of the World” on the eve of the Civil War.

In the 1800s, the spring was covered and diverted into the city sewer system due to concerns about diseases like cholera. Over time, it was forgotten. Then, in 2012, Metro workers rediscovered it. Remarkably, it was still flowing with force, producing more than 100 gallons of fresh water per minute.

Two years later, a coalition of partners—including Metro Parks, the Parthenon, and Centennial Park Conservancy—launched a project to bring the stream back to the surface. The result is what you see today: a meandering, stone-lined stream with cascades, shallow pools, and native wetland gardens. Cockrill Springs now irrigates the park and helps replenish Lake Watauga, making it both beautiful and ecologically sustainable.

Cockrill Spring’s revival is part of a broader effort to restore the park's natural features and layered history. Just as the nearby Parthenon pays tribute to the ideals of ancient Greece, this spring honors the deeper human relationship with water—one that spans centuries and cultures.

Directions: Follow the walking trail to 26th Ave N and turn LEFT. Find the sidewalk on the eastern side of the park. Walk up the stairs and back toward the Parthenon. Listen to the final stop and the conclusion as you walk next to Great Lawn.