Belle Meade | |
|---|---|
 The namesake of Belle Meade, Belle Meade Plantation | |
 Flag  Seal  Logo | |
 Location of Belle Meade in Davidson County, Tennessee. | |
| Coordinates: 36°05′45″N 86°51′25″W / 36.0958924°N 86.8569448°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Tennessee |
| County | Davidson |
| Area | |
| • Total | 3.07 sq mi (7.95 km2) |
| • Land | 3.07 sq mi (7.95 km2) |
| • Water | 0.00 sq mi (0.00 km2) |
| Elevation | 560 ft (170 m) |
| Population | |
| • Total | 2,901 |
| • Density | 944.95/sq mi (364.83/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC-6 (Central (CST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-5 (CDT) |
| FIPS code | 47-04620[4] |
| GNIS feature ID | 1305087[2] |
| Website | www |
Belle Meade is a city in Davidson County, Tennessee. Its total land area is 3.1 square miles (8.0 km2), and its population was 2,901 at the time of the 2020 census.[5][6]
Belle Meade operates independently as a city, complete with its own regulations, a city hall, and police force, but it is also integrated with the Nashville government.[7] Developed in part on the territory of the former Belle Meade plantations, residential areas are suburban with tree-lined streets and wooded areas. The median annual income of Belle Meade residents is $195,208, which exceeds the median annual income in the U.S. by more than three times.[8]
The city's history dates back to 1807, when John Harding of Virginia purchased the Dunham's Station log cabin and 250 acres (100 ha) on the Natchez Trace near Richland Creek. He named the property Belle Meade, which is French for "beautiful meadow". Over the next few decades, enslaved African Americans built Harding's mansion,[dubious – discuss] and established a thoroughbred breeding farm and cotton plantation. He conducted various service businesses on the property, including a grist and saw mill, a cotton gin, and a blacksmith shop – all primarily operated by enslaved African-Americans.[citation needed]
Harding's son, William Giles Harding, inherited the estate in 1839. In 1866 his daughter Selene married brigadier general William Hicks Jackson, who controlled the land from 1883 and made the estate gain international recognition for its horses.[9] In 1906, debt forced the Harding family to sell Belle Meade.[7] Belle Meade Land Company built the first road and in 1938 developed the neighborhood that established the City of Belle Meade. The mansion was converted into a museum. On December 30, 1969, it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places.[10]
- ^ "ArcGIS REST Services Directory". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved October 15, 2022.
- ^ a b U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Belle Meade, Tennessee
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
USCensusDecennial2020CenPopScriptOnlywas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
- ^ Access, Data; (DADS), Dissemination Systems (October 5, 2010). "Results". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved June 19, 2018.
- ^ "Profile of General Population and Housing Characteristics: 2010 Demographic Profile Data (DP-1): Belle Meade city, Tennessee". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved March 13, 2012.
- ^ a b "Community History". Belle Meade: Health in an Urban Community (in Afrikaans). Archived from the original on June 20, 2018. Retrieved June 19, 2018.
- ^ "Belle Meade, TN". Data USA. Retrieved June 19, 2018.
- ^ Ely Moticka (March 9, 2023). "The Belle Tolls". Nashville Scene. 42 (6): 14–16.
The estate passed to his son William Giles Harding in 1839 [...] the 1866 marriage of his daughter Selene Harding and William Hicks Jackson [...] brigadier general [...] Jackson took control of the land in 1883 [...] had gained an international reputation for its horses.
- ^ "NPGallery Asset Detail". NPGallery Search. Retrieved June 19, 2018.