Harpeth River
Encyclopedia
The Harpeth River, 115 miles (185.1 km) long, is one of the major streams of north-central Middle
Tennessee
and one of the major tributaries of the Cumberland River
. Via the Cumberland and the Ohio
rivers, it is part of the Mississippi River
watershed.
, just to the east of the community of College Grove
in eastern Williamson County
. The upper portion of the river has been contaminated to some extent by the operation of a lead
smelting plant located near the Kirkland community which smelted recycled automobile
batteries from the 1950s until the 1990s.
The stream flows generally westerly into the county seat of Williamson County, Franklin
, which has become a suburb of Nashville
since the 1960s. The Harpeth is both the source of the area's drinking water supply and the main site of its sewage disposal.
At Franklin, the course of the river turns more northwesterly; a few miles northwest of Franklin is the mouth of one of the Harpeth's main tributaries, the West Harpeth, which drains much of the southern portion of Williamson County. Near this site is an antebellum plantation
home called "Meeting of the Waters". The river in this area flows quite near the Natchez Trace
(the original road of that name, not the modern Parkway named for it, which is several miles distant). The river shortly crosses into Davidson County
and receives the flow of the Little Harpeth River
, another important tributary. The stream flows near the unincorporated Nashville suburb of Bellevue
and shortly after this flows into Cheatham County.
The course of the river in Cheatham County is very meandering. A few miles into Cheatham County it is joined by another major tributary, the South Harpeth, which drains some of the southwestern portion of Davidson County, southeastern Cheatham County, and a small portion of northwesternmost Williamson County.
In Cheatham County is a remarkable civil engineering feat of the early 19th century. At a place known as the "Narrows of the Harpeth", near a prehistoric site known as Mound Bottom
—an area dotted with Native American
ceremonial and burial mound
s of the Mississippian culture
—ironmaster Montgomery Bell
built an iron mill, largely through the use of slave labor. At a 7 miles (11.3 km) horseshoe bend, Bell's slaves under his direction cut a tunnel through approximately 200 yards (180 m) of solid rock, assisted only by black-powder blasting techniques, to build a diversion tunnel to power the mill, which Bell called "Pattison Forge" (often spelled, incorrectly, "Patterson") after his mother's maiden name. Bell was so pleased with this feat that he curtailed some of his other area operations and even built a home near the site. Today, the tunnel and some "slag" are about all that remains of the operation. The Montgomery Bell Tunnel
is a Historic Civil Engineering Landmark. The tunnel and the sheer bluffs along the Narrows are now part of the Narrows of the Harpeth section of Harpeth River State Park
, a linear park connecting several natural, historic, and archaeological sites along the lower Harpeth.
From this historic site, the flow becomes generally more northerly, but still greatly meandering. The Harpeth soon forms the line between Dickson County and Cheatham County for the last part of its course. A few miles above the mouth are what are known as the Three Islands; the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
proposed siting a dam
near this location on several occasions and even did some preliminary study toward one, but a favorable cost-benefit ratio could never be satisfactorily shown, and the project was never built. Partially because of this fact, the lower portion of the Harpeth is very popular with canoe
ists and canoe outfitting businesses exist to rent canoes to them, which is a popular summertime activity with youth groups especially.
The mouth of the Harpeth into the Cumberland is near Ashland City
, the Cheatham County seat. Near the mouth is a bridge on State Route 49 named in Montgomery Bell's honor. The mouth is just below the Cumberland's Harpeth Island, and is somewhat submerged by the backwaters of the Corps' Cheatham Dam.
With the planned removal of a lowhead dam in the city of Franklin, the Harpeth will be Middle Tennessee's second longest unimpounded stream (the longest being the Buffalo
). The lower portion of the Harpeth is designated as a "scenic river" under the Tennessee Scenic Rivers Act.
, purportedly shows the steam as the "Fairpath"; there is some dissension about whether the name is of Native American
origin or perhaps a corruption of the rather common English
name "Harper". There is no dispute that the title of the song "Harper Valley PTA
" by Tom T. Hall
is derived from this stream, indirectly. Hall, long an area resident, says that the song's name derives from Harpeth Valley Elementary School in Davidson County near Bellevue, but he also states that the song was definitely not based on any occurrence there; rather, he simply liked the sound of it.
Kingston Springs, TN - The most canoe friendly area in Nashville
Franklin, TN
Middle Tennessee
Middle Tennessee is a distinct portion of the state of Tennessee, delineated according to state law as the 41 counties in the Middle Grand Division of Tennessee....
Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
and one of the major tributaries of the Cumberland River
Cumberland River
The Cumberland River is a waterway in the Southern United States. It is long. It starts in Harlan County in far southeastern Kentucky between Pine and Cumberland mountains, flows through southern Kentucky, crosses into northern Tennessee, and then curves back up into western Kentucky before...
. Via the Cumberland and the Ohio
Ohio River
The Ohio River is the largest tributary, by volume, of the Mississippi River. At the confluence, the Ohio is even bigger than the Mississippi and, thus, is hydrologically the main stream of the whole river system, including the Allegheny River further upstream...
rivers, it is part of the Mississippi River
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...
watershed.
Course
The Harpeth rises in the westernmost part of Rutherford County, TennesseeRutherford County, Tennessee
Rutherford County is a county located in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2010 census, it is the state's fifth-largest county by population with 262,604 people, an increase of 44.3 percent over the 2000 population of 182,023. Its county seat is Murfreesboro, which is also the geographic...
, just to the east of the community of College Grove
College Grove, Tennessee
College Grove is an unincorporated town near Franklin and Murfreesboro in Williamson County, Tennessee, United States. College Grove is predominantly rural....
in eastern Williamson County
Williamson County, Tennessee
Williamson County is a county in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of 2010 US Census, the population was 183,182. The County's seat is Franklin, and it is part of the Nashville-Davidson–Murfreesboro–Franklin Metropolitan Statistical Area. The county is named after Hugh Williamson, a...
. The upper portion of the river has been contaminated to some extent by the operation of a lead
Lead
Lead is a main-group element in the carbon group with the symbol Pb and atomic number 82. Lead is a soft, malleable poor metal. It is also counted as one of the heavy metals. Metallic lead has a bluish-white color after being freshly cut, but it soon tarnishes to a dull grayish color when exposed...
smelting plant located near the Kirkland community which smelted recycled automobile
Automobile
An automobile, autocar, motor car or car is a wheeled motor vehicle used for transporting passengers, which also carries its own engine or motor...
batteries from the 1950s until the 1990s.
The stream flows generally westerly into the county seat of Williamson County, Franklin
Franklin, Tennessee
Franklin is a city within and the county seat of Williamson County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 62,487 as of the 2010 census Franklin is located approximately south of downtown Nashville.-History:...
, which has become a suburb of Nashville
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
since the 1960s. The Harpeth is both the source of the area's drinking water supply and the main site of its sewage disposal.
At Franklin, the course of the river turns more northwesterly; a few miles northwest of Franklin is the mouth of one of the Harpeth's main tributaries, the West Harpeth, which drains much of the southern portion of Williamson County. Near this site is an antebellum plantation
Plantation
A plantation is a long artificially established forest, farm or estate, where crops are grown for sale, often in distant markets rather than for local on-site consumption...
home called "Meeting of the Waters". The river in this area flows quite near the Natchez Trace
Natchez Trace
The Natchez Trace, also known as the "Old Natchez Trace", is a historical path that extends roughly from Natchez, Mississippi to Nashville, Tennessee, linking the Cumberland, Tennessee and Mississippi rivers...
(the original road of that name, not the modern Parkway named for it, which is several miles distant). The river shortly crosses into Davidson County
Davidson County, Tennessee
Davidson County is a county located in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of 2010, the population was 626,681. Its county seat is Nashville.In 1963, the City of Nashville and the Davidson County government merged, so the county government is now known as the "Metropolitan Government of Nashville and...
and receives the flow of the Little Harpeth River
Little Harpeth River
The Little Harpeth River is a tributary of the Harpeth River in Tennessee, just south of Nashville. Via the Harpeth, Cumberland, and Ohio rivers, it is part of the Mississippi River watershed....
, another important tributary. The stream flows near the unincorporated Nashville suburb of Bellevue
Bellevue, Tennessee
Bellevue is a neighborhood of Nashville, located roughly 13 miles southwest of the downtown area via I-40. It is incorporated as part of the Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County....
and shortly after this flows into Cheatham County.
The course of the river in Cheatham County is very meandering. A few miles into Cheatham County it is joined by another major tributary, the South Harpeth, which drains some of the southwestern portion of Davidson County, southeastern Cheatham County, and a small portion of northwesternmost Williamson County.
In Cheatham County is a remarkable civil engineering feat of the early 19th century. At a place known as the "Narrows of the Harpeth", near a prehistoric site known as Mound Bottom
Mound Bottom
Mound Bottom is a prehistoric Native American complex in Cheatham County, Tennessee, located in the Southeastern United States. The complex, which consists of platform and burial mounds, a central plaza, and habitation areas, was built between 950 and 1300 AD, during the Mississippian period.The...
—an area dotted with Native American
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
ceremonial and burial mound
Mound
A mound is a general term for an artificial heaped pile of earth, gravel, sand, rocks, or debris. The most common use is in reference to natural earthen formation such as hills and mountains, particularly if they appear artificial. The term may also be applied to any rounded area of topographically...
s of the Mississippian culture
Mississippian culture
The Mississippian culture was a mound-building Native American culture that flourished in what is now the Midwestern, Eastern, and Southeastern United States from approximately 800 CE to 1500 CE, varying regionally....
—ironmaster Montgomery Bell
Montgomery Bell
Montgomery Bell was a manufacturing entrepreneur who was crucial to the economic development of early Middle Tennessee...
built an iron mill, largely through the use of slave labor. At a 7 miles (11.3 km) horseshoe bend, Bell's slaves under his direction cut a tunnel through approximately 200 yards (180 m) of solid rock, assisted only by black-powder blasting techniques, to build a diversion tunnel to power the mill, which Bell called "Pattison Forge" (often spelled, incorrectly, "Patterson") after his mother's maiden name. Bell was so pleased with this feat that he curtailed some of his other area operations and even built a home near the site. Today, the tunnel and some "slag" are about all that remains of the operation. The Montgomery Bell Tunnel
Montgomery Bell Tunnel
The Montgomery Bell Tunnel, also known as the Patterson Forge Tunnel, in Cheatham County, Tennessee, is a long tunnel through limestone rock which was the first "full-scale" water diversion tunnel built in the United States. It is also apparently the first "full-scale" tunnel of any type in the...
is a Historic Civil Engineering Landmark. The tunnel and the sheer bluffs along the Narrows are now part of the Narrows of the Harpeth section of Harpeth River State Park
Harpeth River State Park
Harpeth River State Park is a state park in Cheatham County, Tennessee, in the southeastern United States. The park is a linear park that was created to connect several state historic, natural, and archaeological sites along the lower Harpeth River...
, a linear park connecting several natural, historic, and archaeological sites along the lower Harpeth.
From this historic site, the flow becomes generally more northerly, but still greatly meandering. The Harpeth soon forms the line between Dickson County and Cheatham County for the last part of its course. A few miles above the mouth are what are known as the Three Islands; the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
United States Army Corps of Engineers
The United States Army Corps of Engineers is a federal agency and a major Army command made up of some 38,000 civilian and military personnel, making it the world's largest public engineering, design and construction management agency...
proposed siting a dam
Dam
A dam is a barrier that impounds water or underground streams. Dams generally serve the primary purpose of retaining water, while other structures such as floodgates or levees are used to manage or prevent water flow into specific land regions. Hydropower and pumped-storage hydroelectricity are...
near this location on several occasions and even did some preliminary study toward one, but a favorable cost-benefit ratio could never be satisfactorily shown, and the project was never built. Partially because of this fact, the lower portion of the Harpeth is very popular with canoe
Canoe
A canoe or Canadian canoe is a small narrow boat, typically human-powered, though it may also be powered by sails or small electric or gas motors. Canoes are usually pointed at both bow and stern and are normally open on top, but can be decked over A canoe (North American English) or Canadian...
ists and canoe outfitting businesses exist to rent canoes to them, which is a popular summertime activity with youth groups especially.
The mouth of the Harpeth into the Cumberland is near Ashland City
Ashland City, Tennessee
Ashland City is a town in Cheatham County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 3,641 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Cheatham County.-History:Ashland City was created in 1856 as a county seat for the newly-established Cheatham County...
, the Cheatham County seat. Near the mouth is a bridge on State Route 49 named in Montgomery Bell's honor. The mouth is just below the Cumberland's Harpeth Island, and is somewhat submerged by the backwaters of the Corps' Cheatham Dam.
With the planned removal of a lowhead dam in the city of Franklin, the Harpeth will be Middle Tennessee's second longest unimpounded stream (the longest being the Buffalo
Buffalo River (Tennessee)
The Buffalo River is the longest unimpounded river in Middle Tennessee in the United States, flowing through the southern and western portions of that region. It is the largest tributary of the Duck River and is used for canoeing, especially in its middle section...
). The lower portion of the Harpeth is designated as a "scenic river" under the Tennessee Scenic Rivers Act.
Name
The origin of the name "Harpeth" is controversial. It is often cited in the area that it is named for the legendary outlaw brothers of the early 19th century in the area, the Harp Brothers, "Big Harp" and "Little Harp"; this is erroneous, as the name exists on maps and documents predating their fame. A late 18th century map, published in LondonLondon
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, purportedly shows the steam as the "Fairpath"; there is some dissension about whether the name is of Native American
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
origin or perhaps a corruption of the rather common English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
name "Harper". There is no dispute that the title of the song "Harper Valley PTA
Harper Valley PTA
"Harper Valley PTA" is a country song written by Tom T. Hall that was a major international hit single for country singer Jeannie C. Riley in 1968. Riley's record sold over six million copies as a single. The song made Riley the first woman to top both Billboard's Hot 100 and the U.S...
" by Tom T. Hall
Tom T. Hall
Thomas "Tom T." Hall is an American country music singer-songwriter. He has written 11 #1 hit songs, with 26 more that reached the Top 10, including the pop crossover hit "I Love", which reached #12 on the Billboard Hot 100...
is derived from this stream, indirectly. Hall, long an area resident, says that the song's name derives from Harpeth Valley Elementary School in Davidson County near Bellevue, but he also states that the song was definitely not based on any occurrence there; rather, he simply liked the sound of it.
River access
Common put-ins/take-outs:Kingston Springs, TN - The most canoe friendly area in Nashville
- Turkey Creek - approx. 438 E. Kingston Springs Rd.
- Kingston Springs City Park - 548 Old Pinnacle Hill Rd.
- Gossett Tract - approx 1240 Cedar Hill Rd.
- The Narrows of the Harpeth - plenty of signs/info
- Cedar Hill Rd - approx. 1692 Cedar Hill Rd.
Franklin, TN
- Fieldstone Park - approx. 2194 Fieldstone Pkwy.
- Meeting of the Waters - approx. 3176 Del Rio Pike
- The Rope Swing - Old Natchez Trace
- Moran Rd - Moran Rd
- Hwy 100 - approx. 7610 Hwy 100