New: Nashville Sites Launches Self-Guided Centennial Park Tour

If you’ve visited the Parthenon, attended Musicians Corner, or walked the lake loop on a sunny day, you may think you know Centennial Park.

But there’s more to the story.

A new self-guided tour from Nashville Sites reveals the layered history of this iconic space—where music, protest, and creativity have intersected for generations.

Accessible via QR codes and maps throughout the park, the tour can be followed in sequence or explored freely. In about an hour, visitors encounter stories that span centuries—from ancient Indigenous pathways and the 1897 Tennessee Centennial Exposition to present-day culture and activism.

Tour stops include:

• Performance spaces like the Bandshell and Musicians Corner

• Sites of reflection and protest, including the Great Lawn and Centennial Art Center

• Environmental features such as the herb gardens and Lake Watauga beehives

• Cultural landmarks like the Croquet Café and Taylor Swift bench

The tour is guided by Wesley Paine, Parthenon director from 1979–2021, and features voices from Nashville Sites Cultural Ambassadors Jerome Moore, Canesha Conger, Trenton Wheeler, Virginia Ezell Briley, and Dr. Angela Sutton.

The project is sponsored by the Centennial Park Conservancy and written by Dr. Learotha Williams Jr., professor at Tennessee State University and Nashville Sites Director of Public History, with contributions from Russell LeStourgeon, Abby Hikade, Mary Ellen Pethel, and Steve Citerin.