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Capital of Tennessee · Davidson County · capital since 1826 · 36.2°N 86.8°W
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville, on the Cumberland River, has been the capital of Tennessee since 1826 and permanently since 1843, after Knoxville and Murfreesboro. It passed Memphis to become the state's largest city in the 2010s.
Where Nashville is
Nashville is a consolidated city-county with Davidson County, at 36.16°N, 86.78°W, in the Central Basin of Middle Tennessee. The Cumberland River winds through the city in a series of bends and continues northwest into Kentucky to join the Ohio. The Highland Rim, a ring of hills, surrounds the basin. Elevation downtown is about 400 ft. Interstates 24, 40 and 65 meet here. Tennessee is split between time zones: Nashville and Middle and West Tennessee are on Central Time, while East Tennessee, including Knoxville and Chattanooga, is on Eastern Time.
How it became the capital
Knoxville was the first capital when Tennessee became the 16th state in 1796, and the legislature also met at Kingston for a single day in 1807. Nashville, founded as Fort Nashborough in 1779, hosted the government from 1812 to 1817, then Knoxville again, then Murfreesboro from 1818 to 1826. Nashville became the capital in 1826 and the legislature made the choice permanent in 1843. Union forces held the city from 1862, and it was the first Confederate state capital to fall.
Population
Nashville-Davidson had 689,447 residents in 2020, of whom about 715,000 are counted when the semi-independent towns inside the county are included. It overtook Memphis (633,104) between the 2010 and 2020 censuses. The Nashville metropolitan area, covering 14 counties, has about 2 million people, nearly 30 percent of the state's 6,910,840.
The capitol
The Tennessee State Capitol was designed by Philadelphia architect William Strickland and built between 1845 and 1859 on the highest hill in downtown. It is a Greek Revival building of local limestone with a lantern tower modeled on the Choragic Monument of Lysicrates in Athens instead of a dome. Strickland died before it was finished and is buried in the north wall. President James K. Polk and his wife are buried on the grounds.
Distances to other cities
| City | Direction | Road distance |
|---|---|---|
| Memphis, TN | southwest | about 210 mi |
| Knoxville, TN | east | about 180 mi |
| Louisville, KY | north | about 175 mi |
Atlanta is about 250 miles southeast on Interstate 24 and 75.
Related maps
- Tennessee map — the whole state with borders, cities and counties.
- Nashville city map — the city page with nearby cities and distances.
- Tennessee county map · blank Tennessee map · printable Tennessee map.
- All 50 state capitals on one map, and the state capitals quiz.
- South region · East South Central division · Central Time Zone.