Repurposed/revitalized historical buildings in Nashville

[BnaBreaker]

8 minutes ago, nashvylle said:

please dont ever tear down!

Agreed... It is such a lovely, quirky little gem! 

[donNdonelson2]

7 hours ago, markhollin said:

2410 West End Ave. is 3 stories tall and covers 11,469 sq. ft.  Originally built as a residence in 1935, it has been home to Emma's Flowers since 1947.

 

Here’s some history you might enjoy.

https://www.nashvillescene.com/news/article/13038506/a-supoilative-birthday-to-ed-stratton-100-the-voice-of-emmas

Edited September 24, 2019 by donNdonelson2
Correction

[markhollin]

1211 57th Ave. North (1 &2 stories, 18,606 sq. ft.) has had exterior renovated and interior converted into office space.  It was originally built in 1960.

[markhollin]

Some interior and back patio shots from the newly-opened Parson's Chicken and Fish at 425 Chestnut. Originally opened as a gas station in 1925:

 

[markhollin]

211 29th Ae. North is 2 stories tall and encompasses 1,178 sq. ft.  It was built in 1925, and currently houses Venezia Salon.

 

[markhollin]

1314 51st Ave. covers 3,400 sq. ft. and was originally built in 1949.  It currently houses 51st Deli.

 

[markhollin]

1515 Church St. covers 8,000 sq. ft. in it's one-story storefront layout.  It was built in 1930, and currently houses Suzy Wong's.
 

[markhollin]

918 Buchanan St. covers 3,760 sq. ft. on its single floor and was built in 1960.  It is the new home of Willie B's Daiquiri Bar.

 

[markhollin]

215 29th Ave North covers 2,250 sq. ft. Over it’s 2 stories, and was built in 1927. It is currently home to Hale Insurance.
 

[markhollin]

2414 Lebanon Pike is a former gas station built in 1969 that covers 2,208 sq. ft. on one floor.  It is now home to Sunflower Cafe.
 

[donNdonelson2]

1 hour ago, markhollin said:

2414 Lebanon Pike is a former gas station built in 1969 that covers 2,208 sq. ft. on one floor.  It is now home to Sunflower Cafe.
 

Sunflower Bakehouse is all vegan AND gluten free! 

[nashvylle]

3 hours ago, donNdonelson2 said:

Sunflower Bakehouse is all vegan AND gluten free! 

no wonder why no one is in there. JUST KIDDING

I'll have to check it out. 

[donNdonelson2]

15 minutes ago, nashvylle said:

no wonder why no one is in there. JUST KIDDING

I'll have to check it out. 

I’ve only had one of their cupcakes...it was fantastic! 

[CenterHill]

4 hours ago, donNdonelson2 said:

Sunflower Bakehouse is all vegan AND gluten free! 

The OG in Berry Hill is fantastic 

[markhollin]

1504 Demonbreun is 2 stories tall and covers  3,149 sq. ft. It was built in 1920, and currently houses the Pedal Tavern HQ.

 

[markhollin]

801 18th Ave. South is 3 stories tall and encompasses 5,755 sq. ft.  It was built in 1922 and is currently home to G7 Entertainment.

[markhollin]

700 Hadley Ave. in Old Hickory is a 1 story, 1,600 sq. ft. former service station built in 1958 that has been converted into Five String Cafe, which features bluegrass music.

 

[markhollin]

The one time garage/small manufacturing site at 29 Hermitage Ave. covers 12,800 sq. ft. over two floors.  Originally biult in 1950, it has been expanded with a rooftop deck, and is currently home to R.E. Dunn Construction:

[markhollin]

The old railroad passenger station in Madison now serves as home to the local Farmers Market as well as other community events.  Here's a history by Brent Moore:

The L&N Railroad built this passenger station in 1910. Although the town was Madison, L&N named this station Amqui. Nobody remembers where the name Amqui came from but one popular theory is it's an Indian word that nobody remembers. The other theory is Amqui is short-hand for really fast, but they took the 'd' off the front and the 'ck' off the end.

Decades later, like most depots, Passenger service was discontinued at Amqui. Nearby resident Johnny Cash would see his local station and it inspired his song "The L&N Don't Stop Here Anymore."

Cash purchased the station in 1979 and relocated it closer to his home in Hendersonville where he used it to hold his train memorabilia. Eventually, June Carter Cash also also used it as an antique store.

Upon Johnny Cash's death in 2003, he donated the depot back to the city of Madison. Three years later, they relocated it to some donated land a mile south of the original location. Locals spent several years refurbishing the building, creating a museum and building the adjoining pavilion. As of 2010, the Amqui station is again available for all to enjoy.

 

[BnaBreaker]

That's a lovely structure and I'm glad it's getting used for something, but... I kinda just wish that instead of serving as a Farmer's Market it was still just serving as a train station!  

[markhollin]

I may have mentioned this before, but there's a lot of cool history in this abandoned building along Dickerson Pike (I believe the address is 3559).

Here's some background from Historic Nashville's Facebook page in 2015: 

Did you know that this brown concrete block building on Dickerson Pike in Madison is the legendary Starday-King Sound Studios? Or, that some of the biggest names in country and R&B recorded here in the 1960s and 1970s? Names like Dottie West, Minnie Pearl, Jim Reeves, Archie Campbell, Jimi Hendrix, and James Brown. Or that a tribute to MLK, Jr. was recorded here in 1968?

Built in 1960 on Dickerson Pike at the Due West intersection, this recording studio was home to the Starday record label and one of the busiest studios in Nashville in the 1960s, rivaling RCA Studio A and Owen Bradley's Quonset Hut on Music Row. In 1968, Starday acquired King Records of Cincinnati. Starday and King were powerhouse independent labels known for traditional country, bluegrass, rockabilly, gospel, and R&B music.

In the 1960s, some of the many artists that recorded here included Dottie West, Minnie Pearl, Reece Sisters, Cowboy Copas, Red Sovine, Howdy Kempf, Jimmy Day, Pete Drake, Archie Campbell, and Jim Reeves. In 1961, Mike Higashi of Tokyo recorded bluegrass songs here after playing the Grand Ole Opry.

In 1962 and 1965, Jimi Hendrix played guitar on several recordings here with artists such as Billy Cox, Johnny Jones, and Frank Howard and the Commanders. In 1968, Nashville's WLAC disc jockey Bill "Hoss" Allen recorded "He Went to the Mountain Top" at Starday as a tribute to Martin Luther King, Jr., soon after he was murdered in Memphis.

Perhaps the biggest star to record here was James Brown, who in 1970 recorded "Get Up (I Feel Like Being A) Sex Machine" and "Super Bad" in this little concrete block studio on Dickerson Pike. The following year, he recorded "Hot Pants" and "I'm a Greedy Man" here. Brown recorded several other songs at Starday from 1970-1975. In fact, several artists in the music industry refer to this building a "James Brown's Starday-King Studios" and some claim he had it painted the color brown.

The Starday-King label changed ownership several times before landing with Gusto Records. Vacant for nearly 15 years, the historic landmark is showing signs of deterioration although we hear Gusto would like to restore the studio. We also heard the Discovery Channel filmed some footage at the building a few months ago. We'll keep you posted.

Some folks have suggested making it into a museum/attraction. The problem is that it is pretty far off the beaten path north of town---would be hard to get tourists up there because there's virtually nothing else of interest in the area.

A buddy and I even considered trying to get some investors together to buy it and possibly try something....but the several hundred thousand dollar price tag seemed a bit much to try and figure out a return on investment.

I'm not sure if any of the equipment is still inside.  If so, perhaps it could be purchased and made part of the National African American Music Museum at 5th & Broadway.  Or perhaps it could eventually be part of a Nashville Studio Museum somewhere along Music Row.  

 

[BnaBreaker]

^Incredible!  I had no idea!

[rookzie]

1 hour ago, markhollin said:

Built in 1960 on Dickerson Pike at the Due West intersection, this recording studio was home to the Starday record label and one of the busiest studios in Nashville in the 1960s, rivaling RCA Studio A and Owen Bradley's Quonset Hut on Music Row. In 1968, Starday acquired King Records of Cincinnati. Starday and King were powerhouse independent labels known for traditional country, bluegrass, rockabilly, gospel, and R&B music.

.....
Perhaps the biggest star to record here was James Brown, who in 1970 recorded "Get Up (I Feel Like Being A) Sex Machine" and "Super Bad" in this little concrete block studio on Dickerson Pike. The following year, he recorded "Hot Pants" and "I'm a Greedy Man" here. Brown recorded several other songs at Starday from 1970-1975. In fact, several artists in the music industry refer to this building a "James Brown's Starday-King Studios" and some claim he had it painted the color brown.

The Starday-King label changed ownership several times before landing with Gusto Records. Vacant for nearly 15 years, the historic landmark is showing signs of deterioration although we hear Gusto would like to restore the studio. We also heard the Discovery Channel filmed some footage at the building a few months ago. We'll keep you posted.

Some folks have suggested making it into a museum/attraction. The problem is that it is pretty far off the beaten path north of town---would be hard to get tourists up there because there's virtually nothing else of interest in the area.

A buddy and I even considered trying to get some investors together to buy it and possibly try something....but the several hundred thousand dollar price tag seemed a bit much to try and figure out a return on investment.

I'm not sure if any of the equipment is still inside.  If so, perhaps it could be purchased and made part of the National African American Music Museum at 5th & Broadway.  Or perhaps it could eventually be part of a Nashville Studio Museum somewhere along Music Row.  

 

I used to drive by that thing when it still was Starday-King.  I was aware of the Cincinnati connection and was delighted that it put Jame's Brown directly with a Nashville presence back then around 1968-69 or so, when I was a senior in H.S.
I still have a bunch of 45s recorded at King and Starday-King

It had been only briefly during the late '60s, that James Brown and some of his "entourage" back-ups,  recorded with Starday-King (after King had been acquired by Starday of Nashville). Starday-King Records had tended to encourage the mixing of genres and artists, and that might have contributed to the cosmopolitan role that Nashville has played in landing multiple genres of artists within the distinct coexistent markets served by Nashville.

Edited October 22, 2019 by rookzie

[markhollin]

953 Main St covers 6,600 sq. ft. on its one floor, and was built in 1960.  It is currently home to Star Physical Therapy and East End Chiropractic. Kudos on all the solar panels. 
 

[markhollin]

1102 Grundy St. in the North Gulch is a warehouse that was built in 1951 covering 24,500 sq. ft. over a single floor.  It has been reimagined as Pins Mechanical Company and 16 Bit-Bar. It has been expanded by 6,000 sq. ft. Between the 2 attractions, there are 40 classic arcade games, 16 lanes of duckpin bowling, 20 pinball machines, bocce ball, Connect Four, and Giant Jenga.  There are also 24 taps at each, pull-in slots for food trucks.  The complex had its official opening on oct. 28th.

More at NBJ here:

https://www.bizjournals.com/nashville/news/2019/10/29/virtual-tour-from-pam-anderson-to-hulk-hogan-this.html?iana=hpmvp_nsh_news_headline

Website here:

https://www.pinsbar.com/nashville