Existing comment:
Andrew Jackson's Early Years at The Hermitage, 1804-1815:
On July 5, 1804, Nathaniel Hays sold his 425-acre property and two-story farmhouse to Andrew Jackson for $3,400. Hays soon moved to newly opened Indian territory south of Nashville. Jackson first called his new farm, "Rural Retreat," but soon changed the name to The Hermitage. Both names meant the same thing and apparently signified Jackson's desire to retire from public life. Despite his intentions, Jackson never retired from public life. Two years before he bought The Hermitage, Jackson was elected Major-General of the Tennessee Militia. Although he had little military experience, his friends and neighbors recognized him as a community leader. Jackson's service during the War of 1812, including the quelling of the Creek Indian uprising in Alabama and his defeat of a superior British Army at the Battle of New Orleans in January 1815, brought him to national fame and would soon launch a second career in politics for Jackson. At The Hermitage, Jackson began to rebuild his fortune. His nine slaves grew cotton and he built one of the first cotton gins in the area. The gin not only saved him the cost of having someone else gin his cotton, but it also served as a money-maker as he ginned his neighbors' cotton for a fee. Jackson also established a store and racetrack at nearby Clover Bottom.
The fine furniture the Jacksons acquired during their residence in the log Hermitage attests to the lifestyle they enjoyed in this house. Nashville cabinetmakers created the majority of the furniture.
Jackson's first military fame came from leading the Tennessee Militia against the Creeks during the War of 1812. It was Jackson's first step in securing the Southeast for white settlement. |