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All the United States Tennessee Nashville Timothy Demonbreun's Cave

Timothy Demonbreun's Cave

The small cave that housed Tennessee's "first citizen."

Nashville, Tennessee

Added By
Tom Hudson
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Demonbreun’s Cave   Wayne Hsieh on Flickr
Demonbreun’s Cave   Wayne Hsieh on Flickr
Taken from the General Jackson Showboat, July 2017   Shelly / Atlas Obscura User
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Seemingly little more than a wide crack in the rock on the Cumberland River, Timothy Demonbreun's Cave actually served as a makeshift home for the locally famous fur-trapper, among the 650,000+ Native Americans of various tribes that called Tennessee home. This area is squarely located in what is known ancestrally as Chickasaw land.  

The son of French Canadian nobles, Timothy Demonbreun disregarded his titles and took up the life of a simple fur trader in Tennessee. After finding a spot along the Cumberland that attracted a great deal of game, he chose to stay in the remote area and establish himself, but with no man-made shelter around, he holed up in a small cave. The first resident of European descent in what is now Nashville, Demonbreun used this cave as a temporary home for several months while pursuing his livelihood as a fur trader and building a more suitable residence. Later a successful merchant and tavern keeper, this "First Caucasian Citizen of Nashboro" still has many descendants in the area today.

The cave now seems like just a large crack in the rock above the Cumberland, but it is actually protected as a national landmark and the entrance is guarded by steel bars.

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Caves Eccentric Homes Ecosystems Homes

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Demonbreun's cave can best be viewed from the river; it is about 1 mile upstream from downtown Nashville, on the right bank. Its entrance is blocked by a cage of steel bars that were damaged in the flood of May, 2010.

Community Contributors

Added By

thudson3055

Edited By

Shelly, choctawgirl84, adamleonard42, EricGrundhauser

  • Shelly
  • choctawgirl84
  • adamleonard42
  • EricGrundhauser

Published

July 27, 2012

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Sources
  • http://www.examiner.com/article/how-a-local-cave-helped-shape-nashville-s-future
  • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timothy_Demonbreun
Timothy Demonbreun's Cave
1700 Omohundro Dr
Nashville, Tennessee, 37210
United States
36.160845, -86.708861
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Nearby Places

The Nashville Clayscape

Nashville, Tennessee

miles away

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miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Nashville

Nashville

Tennessee

Places 44
Stories 2

Nearby Places

The Nashville Clayscape

Nashville, Tennessee

miles away

Lane Motor Museum

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The Horn

Nashville, Tennessee

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Nashville

Nashville

Tennessee

Places 44
Stories 2

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