The Nashville, Tennessee, skyline along the Cumberland River looks quite different from the way it did in 1779 when my ancestors came there to found a new settlement. Courtesy: Carol M. Highsmith’s America Project in the Carol M. Highsmith Archive.

Nashville, Tennessee skyline. Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is the second most populous city in the state after Memphis. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state.