Member-only story
The rushed 1997 closure of Opryland USA
The story of how Gaylord Entertainment shuttered an iconic Nashville attraction for “no compelling reason.”
These days, it’s a Nashville joke that it’s rare to meet someone who grew up here. In 2014, the New York Times called us “America’s new ‘IT’ city” and that was that. We got our own primetime network show, starring Connie Britton and Hayden Panettiere. Suddenly, everyone wanted to vacation here, if not move here. The city has grown over 25% since 2000.
This story isn’t about that Nashville.
This is a story about Nashville in the late 1990s. Before the internet, before 9/11, before the bachelorettes descended on Broadway, and Nashville found its sea legs as a destination for live music and partying, the biggest tourist attraction in the area was an incredible music-themed park called Opryland USA.
Opryland USA was a massively popular theme park that featured rides, roller coasters, and a plethora of live shows that highlighted the local performing arts talent in…
