Nancy De Gennaro, Daily News Journal, Monday, April 20, 2015
MURFREESBORO – Saturday marks the 39th annual Pioneer Days, a free festival at Cannonsburgh Pioneer Village, a sort of tangible time capsule of what life was like in early Rutherford County.
Suzanne Hebden talks about the history of Cannonsburgh Pioneer Village
Located at 312 South Front Street, the village includes a grist mill, school, chapel, town hall, general store, blacksmith shop and other buildings the public can tour.
Cannonsburgh was constructed as part of Rutherford County’s Bicentennial Celebration, said local historian Shirley Farris Jones, and remains as one of the state’s only standing exhibits from that era.
“One of the most outstanding events … was the dedication of the pioneer village (on June 26, 1976),” Jones said. “But the project was actually launched in 1975 as part of a (federal) bicentennial grant for $75,000.”
Cannonsburgh, the original name of Murfreesboro, was named after a young Tennessee politician named Newton Cannon, who eventually became the state’s governor, Jones said.
But when Revolutionary War Capt. William Lytle offered up 60 acres that would become the Rutherford County seat, the name was changed to Murfreesborough in honor of his fellow soldier, Col. Hardy Murfree, and later to Murfreesboro, Jones said.
Suzanne Hebden, left, and Bob Mayfield talk about the way of life during the pioneer days at Cannonsburgh Pioneer Village.
So when the bicentennial rolled around, the Cannonsburgh Pioneer Village project was born, spearheaded by then Mayor W.H. Westbrooks and County Executive Ben Hall McFarlin, she said.
After the bicentennial was over, the city of Murfreesboro “wasn’t quite sure what to do with it,” said Cannonsburgh staff member Malinda Perdzock, and eventually Murfreesboro Parks and Recreation took over the site.
The world’s largest cedar bucket is on display Cannonsburgh Pioneer Village.
Site for Cannonsburgh Village, located a block off Southeast Broad, was part of what was once known as The Bottoms, said staff member and tour guide Kathy Owen. The area was filled with factories, mainly feed mills, and had become “rundown.”
“It was sort of the beginning of Urban Renewal,” a time when aging buildings were razed and replaced with newer structures, Owen said.
Many visitors assume the village buildings are all replicas, but the majority are historic, and only the gas station and grist mill are replicas, Owen said.
The mill equipment is historic and still works, said tour guide and site volunteer Bob Mayfield.
“The grinder came off the mill is from Alabama,” Mayfield said.
A scaled-down gristmill is pictures at Cannonsburg Pioneer Village.
The small chapel, where weddings have been held for decades, was once a school, but the stained-glass windows did come from a historic church in Germany, Owen said. Once she had women from Germany who visited the site to see the windows.
What now serves as the schoolhouse on the site was once a corn crib from a local farm. Volunteer guide Susanne Hebdon likes to tell stories about what getting an education was like in rural America.
“If you were good, you got to sit up by the stove, but if you were bad, you sat in the back. Little ones sat up front and bigger kids sat toward the back. We talk about how they got their knuckles rapped with a ruler for discipline,” Hebdon said.
Next to the school is the telephone operator’s house, which was once housed in Rockvale. A widow and her daughter lived in the house, Hebdon said. She was on call 24/7, and if you did get a phone call, she had to connect you.
Another building known as the University House came off the land where Middle Tennessee State University is located. The dog-trot house is an example of a typical home for an early settler, with a covered central pathway in the middle.
The building known as the Town Hall pays homage to Mayor Westbrooks, whose love of history fueled the construction of Cannonsburgh, Hebden said.
At the back of the property is the Leeman House, a home that in Rutherford County that was relocated to Cannonsburgh. Owen said descendants have a yearly family reunion and love to tour the house each year. The large home — at least large for its time — features a kitchen, parents’ bedroom where Leeman family photos are displayed, and upstairs rooms of the children.
The Leeman House, once located near Milton in northeast Rutherford County, also serves as a place for brides to dress for weddings on the grounds. And in fact, the wedding dress of Lola Rowland, the niece of longtime tour guide Margaret Haskins, is on display, Owen said.
Across the way is the general store that is named after the Westbrooks family and did serve as a store. Owen said one visitor even remembers buying candy from the store as a little girl, and other visitors remember visiting some of the other buildings.
Buildings original to the site include one at the back that houses the Murfreesboro/Rutherford County Art League and large storage building next door that houses equipment. These buildings, situated near the old railroad tracks, once served as warehouses for a cotton gin operation.
The majority of furnishings are antique, although not original to each building, and were garnered by Mayor Westbrooks’ wife, Owen said.
One of the most popular stops on the Cannonsburgh tour is the blacksmith shop, which is manned by the members of the Rutherford County Blacksmiths Association. The group opens the shop for classes from 7-9 p.m. Monday and Thursday. Visit rcbablacksmiths.org for details.
Cannonburgh is also home to the World’s Largest Cedar Bucket, which was constructed in 1887 by employees of the Red Cedar Woodenworks Company and shown at several world expositions. Eventually the bucket made Cannonsburgh its home and was on prominent display next to the blacksmith shop. In 2005 an arsonist torched the historic display, but it has since been restore and is on display — this time, behind protective bars.
Cannonsburgh, located at 312 S. Front St., is open May 1 through Dec. 1 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday and 1-4 p.m. Sunday. The village is closed December through April, although the grounds are open year-round.
Pioneer Days from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday is the official kickoff of the season at Cannonsburgh.
“It’s so historical and it’s a great place to be and it’s worth saving,” staff member Malinda Perdzock said. Restoration projects are underway now on several of the buildings to preserve the structures’ integrity.
Self-guided tours are free, although guided tours are available for a small fee. Information about tours, along with brochures, gifts and treats, can be found in the Visitor Center. Hours are 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tuesday through Friday. School groups can also book tours.
The chapel and grounds can also be rented for weddings.
For more information on tours and rentals, or for general questions, call 615-890-0355 or email [email protected].
Contact Nancy De Gennaro at 615-278-5148, or follow her on Twitter @DNJMama
If you go
What: Pioneer Days
Where: Cannonsburgh Pioneer Village, 312 S. Front St., Murfreesboro
When: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday
Admission: Free, open to all ages