About this property
The Church of the Assumption is a historic Catholic church of the Diocese of Nashville located in the Germantown neighborhood of Nashville, Tennessee. The church building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1977; both the church and the neighboring parochial school building and Buddeke-Byrne House form an integral part of the Germantown Historic District, also listed on the National Register of Historic Places. A full-page advertisement in the Nashville Tennessean (now The Tennessean) describes what was then known as North Nashville as "away out in the country" with "cow paths and lanes" that went through "woods and fields." German immigrants arrived in Nashville in the 1830s and 40s, owing to increased political turmoil. Assumption's future benefactors the Buddekes, the Rattermans (relatives of the Buddekes), and the Wessels arrived in Nashville ca. 1835, then in 1842 and 1843 respectively. J.H. Buddeke moved to North Nashville after operating a successful grocery, whiskey, and real estate business. German Catholics felt alienated from the Irish at Saint Mary’s, then the cathedral, and they gathered in the Buddeke family mansion for Mass, eventually drawing Germans from all across the city to form a major community in the same neighborhood. David McGavock sold a parcel with the requirement that the church be built within eighteen months, taking advantage of his own desire to sell land; this put the church at the forefront of growth north of downtown. The church was built in 1858 using in part reclaimed bricks from Nashville's first Catholic church, Holy Rosary Cathedral, itself built in 1830 to replace an earlier timber structure. The cathedral was replaced in 1847 when Saint Mary of the Seven Sorrows was built on nearby 5th Avenue; at that time, it was converted to a hospital and orphanage before being sold to the state in 1857 for the construction of the Tennessee State Capitol. The former cathedral turned hospital was subsequently demolished, allowing for the bricks to be used for the construction of the new church. Father Ivo Schacht served as the first pastor. A mechanic's lien for $2,000 was placed on the church, but George Wessel, a parishioner, intervened at the auction, thereby saving the property. The Church of the Assumption was dedicated with the rite of solemn blessing, as opposed to consecration, in 1859. For most of the following year, Father Innocent Bergrath, who was born in Rhenish Prussia, served as pastor following his ordination on 1860. Father Emmeran Bliemel, also a German immigrant, came from Saint Vincent's Archabbey to serve the German immigrants of Nashville as the church's pastor, responding in the fall of 1860 to an invitation for priests from Bishop James Whelan, second bishop of Nashville, at some point replacing Father Bergrath. The outbreak of the Civil War and the secession of Tennessee in June 1861 led to the dispersal of parishioners, including of men for service in the Confederate forces, caused financial difficulties for the remaining parishioners. Father Bliemel continued to minister not only to his own dwindling congregation but to Federal troops in Nashville, arriving after the city was captured in 1862, despite his open support of the Confederate cause; he was accused of smuggling medical supplies to the Confederates and was finally caught with morphine in his possession. Bishop Whelan requested that Father Bliemel move to Saint Mary's, then the cathedral. He lived with the bishop at the residence located at Cedar and Somer Streets from where he could also serve Assumption.
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Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).
Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
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Questions about this property
When was Church of the Assumption listed on the National Register?
Church of the Assumption was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on August 21, 1977.
What type of historic resource is Church of the Assumption?
Church of the Assumption is classified as a building in the National Register of Historic Places.
What is the period of significance for Church of the Assumption?
The period of significance for Church of the Assumption is recorded as the civil_war era.
Can I research the history near Church of the Assumption?
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