Historic Sites - Ryman Auditorium
18 Ryman Auditorium
- Nashville's Ryman Auditorium, a cultural center since the 1890s.
Known as the "Mother Church of Country Music," Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium, designed by architect H.C. Thompson, was originally built as a religious meeting hall and was called the Union Gospel Tabernacle. It was the realized dream of steamboat Captain Thomas Green Ryman, after his conversion at an 1885 revival preached by Sam Jones. Rev. Jones preached several revivals which raised money for the Tabernacle, one in 1890 which drew 10,000 people a day. For that revival, the first meeting in the new but incomplete Tabernacle, a canvas was stretched across its six foot high walls to protect those gathered from inclement weather. The Ryman became the home of the Grand Ole Opry, famous country and western music show, in 1943 and served as such until March of 1974. After being closed for many years and undergoing an extensive renovation, the building was reopened in June, 1994.
Ryman Auditorium Web Site
116 5th Avenue, North,
Nashville, TN 37219
(615) 254-1445
