Galloway House
The stately house at 401 West 9th Street is noted for its identification with General Nathan Bedford Forrest, the Confederate cavalry genius. Forrest made his quarters here so often that one room is still known as General Forrest’s room.
The house was built about 1846 by William Galloway (1814 – 1887), shortly after his marriage to Amanda Johnson in 1845. Today we think of this place as being almost in the heart of Columbia, but this was not so when Galloway purchased the land. His deed referred to this parcel as “lying near and being near the town of Columbia”, giving us some idea of the growth of Columbia in 132 years.
Antrim
Antrim is located 3 miles south of Columbia, TN. The home has the special distinction of being Maury County’s first brick home south of the Duck River. It was originally two stories stacked atop each other with an entrance hall, and was built by Joseph Brown Porter in 1810. He and his first cousin, Col. Joseph Brown, had ventured into this area in 1806. Both were on hand when the first court met at Col Brown’s Dec. 21 of the following year and elected Joseph Porter as clerk.
Polk Home
The James K. Polk Home is located two blocks west of the county courthouse at 301 W. 7th Street, Columbia. It is the only surviving residence of the 11th President of the United States, not including the White House.
This beautifully preserved American landmark is home to one of the finest Presidential collections in the nation, as well as period artifacts and authentic glimpses of life in the early 1800s in what was then America’s Western Frontier.
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Polk’s presidency represents two remarkable stories: the story of his own unlikely rise from a sickly frontier youth to a powerful U.S. President, and the beginning of America’s westward expansion. During Polk’s single term, the United States grew from a coastal nation nestled between the Atlantic and the Appalachians to a continental country that reached the Pacific.
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Polk lived here from 1818-1824, the time after university until he married Sarah Childress Polk.
Rattle and Snap
Rattle and Snap is located seven miles west of Columbia on State Hwy 243 in Maury County near Mt. Pleasant. It is a fine example of the lavish scale on which many Southern homes were built between 1845-1860.
Rattle and Snap was built for George Polk, a son of William Polk, a North Carolinian who was appointed surveyor-general of the Middle District of Tennessee in 1784. Through land speculation, William became one of the largest landholders in Tennessee.
The tract on which the house stands amounted originally to 5648 acres. William named the property "Rattle and Snap" after having won the land from the governor of North Carolina in a game of chance called "rattle and snap."
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Rattle and Snap is privately owned but tours are available with reservations .