Front Gate

Fort Negley is located on St. Cloud Hill, one of the most strategic hills in the city. The hill was confiscated from the descendants of Judge John Overton, who was an early settler in Nashville and a prominent slaveholder. After the Union Army captured Nashville in February 1862, plans emerged to install a ring of defensive forts around the city. Between August and December 1862, approximately 2800 enslaved and free African-American men, women, and children worked to make the Federal Army's plans a reality. 

It was mid-December 1864 when Lieutenant General John Bell Hood’s Confederates arrived on the outskirts of Nashville. On November 30, the Confederate Army of Tennessee had been defeated twenty miles south in Franklin, but they still pursued the Union Army. From their offensive lines, they would have seen Fort Negley, the largest of the Union’s ring of forts around the city. Towering 150 feet above the surrounding land, the star-shaped fort included 18,000 cubic yards of earth and 62,000 cubic yards of stone. In total, the fort’s footprint covered four acres. While the front gates in front of you were not constructed until the 1930s, the fort itself was undoubtedly intimidating to all who saw it.

Over December 15 and 16, 1864 the Battle of Nashville raged. It was one of the last stands for the Confederate Army and a test of the Union’s strength. Especially for African Americans, like my ancestor, it was a chance to prove themselves to the Union soldiers and officers who often did not trust their abilities. We’ll continue the story of the Battle of Nashville and the Black troops who fought here when we reach the top of the fort.

With your back to the Visitors Center, turn RIGHT and follow the blacktop path to the flagpole.