Nolensville Then & Now: A View from the Trail

My! My! My! How the years have gone by! Settled in the Nolensville community in the last century. It was June of ’81 back in the 1900s. There wasn’t much here back then, 55 new homes in Stonebrook taking land that was one of the last dairy farms in the area. And, with each new development, more family farms disappear with these new subdivisions bearing family farm names like Scales, Brittain, and Sherwood Green.

Long before “The Pig”, there was Thomas Bi-Rite where Stillwater is now open for business. Wabash was the Williams General Store and the original location for Campo Azul. The Feed Mill across the road actually sold livestock feed, farm seeds and fertilizer. Behind NAPA was the Nolensville Volunteer Fire Department. We didn’t have an “Historic District”, we just had Nolensville.

There weren’t parks – plural. Then we had a single ball field behind the old school house where summers not only included baseball games, but also family gatherings and even an annual Tennessee Walking Horse Show complete with organ music. The present day Rec. Center was the Nolensville Elementary School, which after two additions grew to a whopping 350 students and the Principal Mr. Wells knew every student by name.

There were trails, so to speak. Beyond the first couple of blocks of Stonebrook Boulevard, an adventurous youth could pick up the remains of an overgrown road that lead up to the peak of what is now Countryside Lane. From there they could follow old fence post rows and game trails.

Enter the 21st Century with a newly incorporated Town of Nolensville, a new sewer line from Nashville, water from Smyrna, and Town leadership committed to a unified trail system. Growth was on the way, and it was “Civilization Ho!” With this growth has come an elaborate trail system and parks – plural.

Sure, there have been growing pains, but all in all, we are a vibrant community that is linked with an amazing trail system. As a leisure bike rider, I have no interest in getting out on highways and country roads. However, I love the many opportunities to travel around town on my trusty two-wheeled steed with only the necessary crossings of main roads like Rocky Fork and Nolensville Roads at designated crosswalks. I can travel to my eye doctor at the Hillside Center, make a quick run to Publix, get a warmup on the way to workout, or meet a friend at one of our breakfast and lunch locations.

And let’s not forget the abundance of wildlife along our trails. So many times, I regularly pass deer leisurely grazing or tending to their babies. There are many rabbits, squirrels and chipmunks playing “chicken” with me across the trail as I pass. I am still looking for the beavers that live in the pound behind the high school. Then there are the many flowers blooming throughout spring and summer and blackberries to pick for a quick snack on a morning ride. You have to love the bridges crossing Mill Creek that are framed with the many colors of passing seasons.

Folks probably don’t realize this, but starting at the Rec Center you can bike/walk using trails, sidewalks and neighborhood streets from Pasadena in our farthest northwest corner all the way to Willow Ridge in our farthest southwest corner or from Annecy in the east to Bent Creek in the west.

Whether you are a retiree like me looking for easy access while getting the old blood flowing, to the moms and dads I pass taking the baby for a stroller ride, the Nolensville runners, to the speedster kids trying to get to school or showing off their “wheelies” (Hey, kid! Slow down! Ha!) Our trails are the life arteries for unifying our community.