A Driving Tour: Place Names in Rutherford County

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A Driving Tour: Place Names in Rutherford County

Murfreesboro, Tennessee 37130, United States

Created By: The Heritage Center of Murfreesboro and Rutherford County

Tour Information

What’s in a name?

Rutherford County’s communities are identified by distinctive landscapes and transportation routes as well as historic sites, buildings, and structures. These familiar and unique landmarks, recognizable to longtime residents and newcomers alike, are symbols of the county’s history, land, and people. This tour invites you to learn about the names and to visit the places.


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What You'll See on the Tour

Rutherford County’s Name honors Griffith Rutherford, an Irish immigrant who was a brigadier general in the Revolutionary War, a land grant commissioner, and a member of the Southwest Territory council. The state legislature established Ru... Read more
Take E. Main, then left on Middle Tennessee Blvd., right on Greenland Drive, left on Old Lascassas Pike; obelisk marker on right (2.3 miles) Rutherford County spans 630 square miles and contains the state’s geographical center, which was ... Read more
Take W. Main, then left on Broad Street; Turn right onto Front Street (.34 miles) Cannonsburgh, the first name given to Murfreesboro, is now better recognized as the outdoor museum established during the American Bicentennial. Newton Cannon... Read more
Take E. Main, then left on N. Maney Avenue to Oaklands Historic House Museum (.79 miles) Maney Springs is named after the Maney family and is located on what was Oaklands plantation. Sallie Murfree Maney, daughter of Colonel Hardee Murfree,... Read more
Take W. Main, then left on Board Street to Discovery Center (.61 miles) Murfree Springs derives its name from Colonel Hardee Murfree. The siter was used as early as 1812 by the Murfree Spring Presbyterian Church congregation, which help ser... Read more
Take W. Main, then right on Broad Street (US 41/70S); turn right on North Thompson Lane/ TN-268 (3.70 miles) Stones River is a major tributary of the Cumberland River and was named for explorer Uriah Stone in 1767. The river is the county... Read more
Take W. Main, then right on Board Street (US 41/70S), left on Medical Center Parkway, immediate right on West College Street/Old Nashville Highway; churches; located north of entrance to Stones River National Battlefield (4.64 miles) Cemete... Read more
Take W. Main, then left on Broad Street (US 41), then left at S. Rutherford Blvd. (3.77 miles) Black Fox was a legendary Cherokee who, by the 1790s, had established a camp and trading post at the spring that bears his name. The place became... Read more
Take W. Main, right on Broad Street (41/70S), left on Medical Center Parkway/Manson Pike, right on Blackman Road (7.10 miles) In 1895, five men who carried the name of Blackman petitioned to have a post office in their community, which had ... Read more
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Take W. Main, right on Broad Street heading north on US 41/70S (12.15 miles) Smyrna, Rutherford County’s second-largest town, is a name first associated with an early Presbyterian church. Smyrna first grew as a village along the Nashville... Read more
Take W. Main, right on Broad Street heading north on US 41/70S to Smyrna; turn on Sam Ridley Parkway East; continue on Jefferson Pike (TN-266) to Jefferson Springs Recreation Area (13.3 miles) Jefferson, established in 1804, was the first c... Read more
Take W. Main, right on Broad Street heading north on US 41/70S through Smyrna (18.47 miles) “La Vergne,” translated from the French, means “the Arbor.” Francois Leonard Gregoise de Rouhlac, an early settler, thought this name was pe... Read more
Take W. Main, right on Broad Street, right on US231 North, right on TN-266 to the village (8.41 miles) Walter Hill, once called Blacks Cross Roads, was named for storekeeper and postmaster Walter Hill in 1895; he simply gave his name as the... Read more
Take E. Main, left on Middle Tennessee Blvd., right on Lascassas Pike/ TN-96 North (9.17 miles) Lascassas is northeast of Murfreesboro. Although the name may have been Las Casa or “the house” in Spanish, the exact origin remains a myste... Read more
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Take E. Main, left on Middle Tennessee Blvd., right on TN-96 North (15 miles) Milton may have been named after early settlers in the area. During the Civil War on March 20, 1863, General John Hunt Morgan’s Confederate cavalry fought Union... Read more
Take E. Main and continue east on Woodbury Pike (8.96 miles) Kittrell was named for Major Marion Kittrell, a Confederate. Its most famous resident was legendary country music star Uncle Dave Macon. Uncle Dave Macon Days are held annually at... Read more
Take E. Main, right on S Rutherford Blvd., left on John Bragg Highway/TN-70S, left on Pilot Knob Road (10.53 miles) Peaking at over 1,100 feet, Pilot Knob, located along the Woodbury Highway near Readyville, is one of the highest hills in t... Read more
Take W. Main, left on Broad Street, and continue south on US 41/Manchester Pike (10 miles) The Hoover family, who settled much of the area, gave their name to this gap in the hills. The Battle of Hoover’s Gap was an important turning poin... Read more
Take Maple Street off square; turn left on E. Vine Street; turn right on S. Church Street; continue south on US 231; turn left on Christiana Road (10.63 miles) The community of Christiana dates from the arrival of the Nashville and Chattano... Read more
Take Maple Street off square; turn left on W. Vine Street, turn right on S. Church Street; continue south on US 231; turn left on Fosterville Road North (14.54 miles) Fosterville, one of the earliest Rutherford County settlements, was named... Read more
Take W. Main, right on Broad Street, left on Old Fort Parkway (TN-96), left on New Salem Pike; continue west in TN-99; turn left at Rockvale Road (11.27 miles) Rockvale, at the headwaters of the Little Harpeth River, was awarded its first p... Read more
Take W. Main, right on Broad Street, left on Old Fort Parkway (TN-96), left on New Salem Pike; continue west on TN-99; town is at intersection of TN-99 and US41A (18.56 miles) Eagleville was named in 1836, and until 1877 the crossroads vill... Read more

 

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