There is no shortage of opportunities to enjoy live entertainment in Music City, but few venues put on a show quite like Nashville’s historic Ryman Auditorium. As a National Historic Landmark, it is abundantly clear the moment you step inside that the Ryman is not just another music venue or tourist destination— it is hallowed ground.
Built by Captain Thomas G. Ryman in 1892 as the Union Gospel Tabernacle, the venue was originally a church where all people could gather and worship. Since its inception, the Ryman has gone through many changes, hosted some of the world’s greatest talent, and earned its rightful spot as one of the best performance halls in the world. This year, the Ryman celebrates its 130th anniversary, and in honor of this monumental milestone we’re looking back at some of the venue’s most historic moments.
MAY 4 – 7, 1892
May Music Festival with The Theodore Thomas Orchestra was the first concert at the Ryman. It was the idea of The Ladies Hermitage Association, who started their group to save Andrew Jackson’s home. While the concert was a musical success, it lost money.
JUNE 5, 1943
The Grand Ole Opry moved to its most famous former home, Ryman Auditorium, where it stayed for the next 31 years. The formative years of the Opry were spent on the Ryman stage. The music made on those well-worn planks changed music history, and Nashville, forever.
1969 – 1971
The Johnny Cash Show ran and when ABC asked Johnny where he would like to film the show, he insisted it be at Ryman Auditorium.
MARCH 14, 1974
Grand Ole Opry has its final show at the Ryman before moving to the new Grand Ole Opry House. The entire cast joins Johnny Cash on stage as he leads “May The Circle Be Unbroken” as the last song.
JUNE 1994
Nashville’s “Mother Church of Country Music” re-opens as a premier performance hall and museum. The first public performance in the newly renovated building was Garrison Keillor’s A Prairie Home Companion. The National Public Radio hit was originally inspired by the Grand Ole Opry when Keillor covered the last Opry show at the Ryman in 1974.
JANUARY 1999
The Grand Ole Opry returns to the Ryman stage for the first time in 25 years.
JANUARY 2001
The Ryman Auditorium is declared a National Historic Landmark—one of only 28 National Historic Landmarks in Tennessee at that time.
2017
Little Big Town became the Ryman’s first artists-in-residence, performing six shows throughout the year.
JUNE 9, 2019
Wu-Tang Clan becomes the first ever hip-hop act to headline the legendary country music venue.
2022
The Ryman celebrates its 130th anniversary with more concerts and residencies than any other year in its history.
The Ryman is renowned for celebrating an array of entertainment acts and all genres of music. Many you may know (or have even been lucky enough to see firsthand), but these 10 famous faces who have graced the Ryman’s notorious stage may surprise you:
1. Martin Luther King Jr. (1961)
2. Harry Houdini (1924)
3. Nat King Cole (1951, 1953, 1955)
4. Eleanor Roosevelt (1938)
5. Katharine Hepburn (1941)
6. Eric Clapton (1971)
7. Theodore Roosevelt (1907)
8. Les Paul (1955)
9. Orson Welles (1934)
10. Etta James (1955)