Sam Davis Home — Attraction in Tennessee

So many missed opportunities. The story of Sam Davis, who was hanged as a spy by federal officials, is a very interesting one. Beyond the question of the legitimacy of the charge, there are a lot of compelling questions a museum could explore while recounting his story. Why, for example, does Davis’s story become such an important aspect of Lost Cause memory in Tennessee after the war? Military executions were a common event in the war. Does his story stand out because he was from a prominent family? Why does Sam Davis, “boy hero of the Confederacy” (he was actually 21, not a boy) become a Lost Cause icon? The Museum fails to tells us much about Davis, or address the idea of the Lost Cause in a serious way.

The house tour was led by an elderly gentleman who made a big deal out of the fact that we were visiting from a northern state, then announced proudly that he was an “unreconstructed rebel.” This was slightly amusing at first, but quickly became tiresome. He made almost no attempt to explore the lives of the 51 enslaved people who lived on this plantation, beyond a dubious declaration that they were all very happy to be slaves because they got Sundays off. He spent more time trying to persuade us that the South was right and that Lincoln was evil than actually explaining and interpreting the objects in the home. He did not appear to have any professional training as a historian.

The best thing one could say about this site is that it was a living artifact of Lost Cause revisionism—a fossilized museum preserving a racist, Lost Cause revisionist interpretation of the past. Most plantation museums today have evolved and seek to examine the experiences of all who lived and toiled there. This one does not do that in any meaningful way. In sum “this museum belongs...

The land is beautiful! The Wine on the Veranda was a nice event. We really enjoyed ourselves when we didn't think too much about where we were.

And I know that this was a home of Confederates but I wish they focused more on the fact that they had slaves instead of honoring the owners. I also didn't like the selling of Confederate flags or the fact that they were hanging around. It is history, so put one in a case and display it in the museum but don't have them hanging around and for sell. If they are trying to attract new people to the place, I believe they will have to change things so that everyone feels comfortable. A statue or some kind of memorial to the people who were slaves there would be a great. And I thinking adding some diversity to the staff could...

My visit was in late March, it was fantastic. The house's museum is top notch and has information about the Civil War, Sam Davis and his family, and how daily life ran in the mid-1800s. There is a well-made short film visitors watch in the museum before the house tour. Bring a jacket because the museum is kind of chilly. The house is in really good shape and a lot of the furniture and objects are original to the house. Our guide, Hewitt, led a very nice, informational, and laid back tour through the home. The focus was on how life was during the Civil War. He pointed out a lot of interesting small details that would be glanced over if never brought to our attention. Highly recommended. they also give a college student discount which is really...