Burns
Until the mid-1860s, life in this region was isolated, with access to cities limited to horse-drawn vehicles traveling rough roads. At the outbreak of the War Between the States, the Nashville and Northwestern Railroad had completed its line only as far out of Nashville as the Harpeth River at Kingston Springs. After General US Grant was given command of the Grand Army of the Republic in March 1864, one of his first actions was to order the Union Army to complete the railroad from Kingston Springs to the Tennessee River in order to provide a secure route for supplies into Nashville, Chattanooga and points beyond.
The settlement established here was first called “Mile Post 36,” indicating its mileage from Nashville. During the war it was inhabited by Union soldiers and railroad workers. In 1866 Yankee carpetbaggers began to relocate to the area. John McClelland, the first postwar postmaster, was a federal appointee described as an “ambitious politician seeking to share in the spoils of war.” The first post office opened on June 27, 1866.
Soon after the War, the Nashville and Northwestern Railroad took over the rail line from the Federal government and Mile Post 36 was renamed Burns Station in honor of the President of the Nashville and Northwestern Railroad. Over the years the “Station” part of the village name was dropped, although Burns retained its depot and was a regular stop on the railroad until about 1970. The depot was converted into Burns’s first Town Hall. The first meeting of the Town Council was held April 6, 1953.
Postwar Burns was a thriving town with general stores, mills, saloons, blacksmith shops and several other businesses. The year 1911 saw the opening of one of Burns’ most memorable establishments, the Berry House. J.C. Berry and his wife operated a combination hotel, boarding house and restaurant for 34 years. The clientele ranged from ministers to acrobats and tightrope walkers from traveling circuses. Berry’s homemade wine was locally famous as was the bounty of his wife’s table. Burns Bank & Trust Company operated from 1919 until 1940. Spencer’s Mill operated in Burns from 1919 until about 1945.
Burns was also the site of a Lime Kiln with its own railroad spur to transport packaged lime across the United States. The high grade of lime mined here was actively marketed from 1875 until 1951. In 1955 Burns Stone Company reopened the limestone quarry and produced both lime and stone at the location until it relocated to an open pit mining operation in Dickson in 1958. The advent of paved roads required a harder stone than was available at the Burns location.
In the 1930s and 40s the government constructed a Park just east of Burns on the site of the former Laurel Furnace built by Iron Master Richard C. Napier and later owned by Iron Master Epps Jackson. Under the supervision of the National Park Service with labor provided by the WPA and CCC the newly completed park was turned over to the State of Tennessee in 1944. The Inn and restaurant was completed in 1951 and Clement Lodge was opened in 1965. The Frank G. Clement Golf Course was opened in the early 1970s and a new Inn and Convention Center was opened in 1998. The 3,982 acres park is one of the most visited parks in Tennessee. The Park was named in honor of Montgomery Bell, considered the leading capitalist and industrialist of the first part of the 19th century in Tennessee. The Park now manages the Narrows of the Harpeth – the site of an impressive Iron Forge owned by Montgomery Bell and located just east of White Bluff.
A. C. Luther built Ridglea Farms which contained 4,100 acres during the 1940s through the 1970s. The farm was known internationally for its outstanding cattle. During the 1990s, the farm became a center of residential development for the Southeast portion of the county. Subsequent owner Henry C. McCall donated land for the construction of Stuart-Burns Elementary School.
Interstate 840 is intersecting with Interstate 40 in the Burns vicinity and will be the driving force for economic development and residential growth in this section of the county during the 21st century.
Burns has continued to grow and prosper and in the 1980 census the population was 777. The population jumped to 1,386 by the 1990 census and 1,366 by 2000.
Contact Information
Burns City Hall, P.O. Box 36, Burns, TN. 37029, (615) 446-2851
Mayor
Jeff Bishop
Population 2000 Census
1,366