Cheekwood Botanical Gardens and Museum of Art, Nashville

Cheekwood, a top example of the American Country Place Era estates, was initially the residence of Mabel and Leslie Cheek. This grand estate from the 1930s, boasting a Georgian-style mansion and 55 acres of expertly maintained gardens and broad views, is now a public botanical garden, arboretum, and museum. It features historic rooms, art galleries, and a permanent collection of 7,000 pieces, along with various temporary exhibits. The estate encompasses 13 unique gardens and a woodland trail over a mile long, adorned with modern and contemporary outdoor sculptures.

Cheekwood's art collection, established in 1959, began with assets from the former Nashville Museum of Art. It includes a wide range of American and British decorative arts, focusing on contemporary outdoor sculpture for the Woodland Sculpture Trail. The American art collection has 600 paintings and 5,000 prints, drawings, and photographs, covering the entire spectrum of American art history.

The Cheek Mansion itself is a key part of the collection. A renovation completed in June 2017 restored many original elements of the building, uncovering authentic wood and marble floors and preserving historical architectural features like the illusionist murals in the main corridor.

Spanning the entire 55-acre (22 hectares) site, the Botanical Garden extends from the Museum of Art and focuses on display, education, and research. The garden hosts a variety of plant collections such as boxwood, conifer, crape myrtle, daffodil, daylily, dogwood, fern, herb, holly, hosta, hydrangea, Japanese maple, magnolia, Southeastern US natives, redbud, and trillium.

Cheekwood is on the National Register of Historic Places, accredited by the American Alliance of Museums, and ranked among the top 10 botanical gardens in the USA by USA Today.

Why You Should Visit:
The gardens are terrific every season – even around Christmas. They do a couple of special exhibitions each year, including one outside during the warm months.
In the summer they stay open late on Thursdays, have live music, and bring in food trucks – a great way to enjoy the impressive outdoor art installations.

Tip:
When you go to Cheekwood, you are traveling through an amazing old Nashville neighborhood. Go along Harding, Belle Meade and Chickering and see lots of famous people's homes. You can even stop at a local visitor center and get a map of the homes so you can know who lives/lived where.