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Image 1 of 6: Printers Alley sign on Church Street, 2018. Image courtesy of the MHCF.
Printers Alley sign on Church Street, 2018. Image courtesy of the MHCF.
Photograph of the Maxwell House Hotel and the Noelle Hotel in the background, 1961. Courtesy of the Tennessee State Library and Archives.
Photograph of Printers Alley, 1963. Skull's Rainbow Room is visible in the background. Image courtesy of Nashville Public Library.
Image of what’s generally considered to be a syphilitic hospital during the Civil War, 1863. Courtesy of the Tennessee State Library and Archives.
View of the north side of Capitol Hill, 1954. This neighborhood was generally known as Hell's Half-Acre. Image courtesy of the Nashville Public Library.
Venereal Disease propaganda poster, ca. 1940. Courtesy of the National Library of Medicine (NLM).
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Printers Alley sign on Church Street, 2018. Image courtesy of the MHCF.

Seedy Side and Printers Alley

1 hr 1.1 mi 10 stops

The mention of Nashville brings many things to mind—music, cowboy boots, architecture, the Parthenon, and hot chicken—to name a few. Lesser known are the stories about bootleggers, murder, and prostitution, but that’s precisely what this tour is going to show you, through your journey to the “Seedy Side.” Much of this history has been lost due to the urban renewal and new development, but this tour will take a trip back in time to the city’s darker side.

Hidden among Nashville’s most popular restaurants and honky tonks lies a surprisingly intact underworld of vice. As “Seedy Side and Printers Alley” deals with mature topics, we do not recommend that children participate in this tour. You will begin the tour on the waterfront, near the Music City Star Riverfront Station.

Start Walking Tour Take Virtual Tour Get Directions to Start
Tour Stops
1

The Idahoe

Cumberland River, Nashville, TN 37201

2

Moskovitz Second Hand Shop

111 Fourth Avenue South, Nashville, TN, 37203

3

Smokey Row

Church Street on First, Second, Third, and Fourth Avenues, Nashville, TN, 37219

4

Maxwell House Hotel and Noelle Hotel

200 Fourth Avenue North, Nashville, TN 37219

5

Climax Saloon and Dream Nashville Hotel

210 Fourth Avenue North, Nashville, TN 37219

6

Southern Turf Saloon

222 Fourth Avenue North, Nashville, TN 37219

7

Printers Alley

Printers Alley, Nashville, TN 37201

8

War Memorial Auditorium

301 Sixth Avenue North, Nashville, TN 37243

9

Edward W. Carmack Statue

600 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, Nashville, TN 37219

10

Cedar Street and Capitol Hill

600 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, Nashville, TN 37243

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