Nashville Tennesseean Magazine 1955
Night Lights
Which set Nashville a-glitter
By Guyla Moreland, Cairo, Ill.
I LOVE NASHVILLE at nighttime . . . from the time it is a red glow on the skyline. . . four hours away from Cairo by the highway. Down curving hill by winking red lighted tan tower. . . down and down and around past sheer limerock banks . . . the road winds through tree-clad hills with a thin wedge of moon on high. . . White lined highway weaving. . . on and on . . . the sky glow beckons . . . hills like humps on a crouching dinosaur guard a long low valley . . . Shades of Andrew Jackson. . . did he, once walk by this way? White criss-crossed fences enclose endless acres like lace on square paper valentines. . . Look at the street lights glisten. . . on the far-away skyline. Uphill. . . downhill. . . cross valleys . . . below, city lights like myriad earthbound stars. . . now we cross the Cumberland.. .
FOUR LANE highway. . . No Vacancy . . . open air fruit market . . . Beer with Million Dollar Flavor . . . stoplight at the cemetery. . . to the left around the city of the dead-Stone walled fence of St. Cecelia academy. . . arc lights on divided highway. . . arching in a beckoning curve ahead. . . down hill . . . uphill. . . then on the level. . .
Werthan Bag, Corp. . . . hulking brick factory-41-A. Newsboy on the corner at 11:30 p.m. TENNESSEAN? . . . Beneath the Tennessee Central and then the L&N-NC&St.L . . . Up Capitol Hill the back way . . . glimpse of the pristine beauty of a new square building facing the capitol . . . Gaping lots left by the razing of tenements. . . Clarkston hotel. . . St. John's church erected in 1890 . . . Where is the one Jackson went to that is to be torn down? . . .
NASHVILLE. . . an earthbound Milky Way pinned in place by lamp posts. . . Eagles Aerie. . . the Pepper Pot . . . Hotel Tulane. . . Sears & Roebuck. . . Memphis 224 miles . . Hertz Rent-A-Car . . . lighted clock tower . . . Hank's Hot Donuts. . . the federal building. . . . First Lutheran church. . . erected 1949 . . . the Parthenon Press. . . How many Lutherans does it take to build such a beautiful modern church? Star hotel. . . Royal Crown. . . Swing to the left. . . colored signs . . . four lanes. . . tower of church . . . Beaman-Dodge, Plymouth. . . department of employment security. Commerce Union bank. . . Save one-half day to Fla. . . short route - Shelbyville, Fayetteville, Huntsville. Filling stations. . . used car lots . . . each ringed by a strand of lights . . . continuously changing pattern in neon. . . red and blue and green and orange . . . WILSON Truck Co. . . . Palmer. Hooper Used Cars . . . Doc Wallace. . . Pat Ballinger. . . Never A Bum Steer Here. . . five miles to Colony hotel. . . Mercury . . . the Drake court.. TV... Bar B Cutie . .'. Bozeman's court. . . Alamo plaza . . . no vacancy. . . turn around. . . no vacancy. . . everything filled up early. . .
Purity Dairies. . . Club Plantation . . . surrounded by pastel cars . . . Farm & Ranch Publishing Co. . . . Give Old Fitzgerald. . . Stork club . . . Third National bank. . . The Trend is to Third. . . Lonely church . . . Old 'Crow . . . Greatest Name in Bourbon; . . Smoke Model Tobacco . . . Back down Capitol hill . . . Chicago 457 miles. . . Bordeaux . . . a vacancy sign; Hot water . . . clean towels . . . sample soap tightly wrapped . . . ice water. . . clean cold sheets. . . good firm mattress . . . soon to sleep. There's no place like Nashville.
