Attractions in Middle Tennessee

Bell Witch Cave

• Even Andrew Jackson was intrigued by the supernatural Bell Witch ghost story. The versions differ, but the Bell Witch Cave website said the ghost is "the spirit of Kate Betts, a mean old neighbor of John Bell." Betts swore to haunt Bell and his descendants because she thought he had cheated her in a land purchase, according to the Bell Witch Cave website. The 1933 "Guidebook for Tennessee" published the story, keeping it alive. Visitors can tour the Bell farm and the Bell Witch Cave, as well as canoe on the Red River. Brave people can take a candlelight tour at night.

  Bell Witch Cave
  430 Keysburg Road
  Adams, TN 37010-4759
  (615) 696-3055
  bellwitchcave.com

General Jackson Showboat

• The General Jackson Showboat has afternoon and evening cruises that include country music and comedy shows. The 300-foot paddlewheel riverboat is named after the first steamboat on the Cumberland River in 1817. The cruises, which last from 2 ½ to 3 hours, stop by historical points such as Fort Nashborough, the site where Nashville's first settlers arrived in 1780.

  General Jackson Showboat
  2800 Opryland Drive
  Nashville, TN 37214-1297
  (615) 889-1000
  generaljackson.com/site

Loretta Lynn's Ranch

• Famous country singer Loretta Lynn offers several attractions at her ranch. The grounds include tours of her plantation home, the Coal Miner's Daughter Museum honoring Lynn and displaying memorabilia from her career, a Native American Artifact Museum and a simulated coal mine. Other activities include canoeing, fishing, swimming and tubing. Additionally, there is an RV park and primitive camping on the grounds.

  Loretta Lynn's Ranch
  44 Hurricane Mills Road
  Hurricane Mills, TN 37078
  (931) 296-7700
  lorettalynn.com/images/ranch/2010/LL_RANCH_2010.pdf

Stones River National Battlefield

• Visitors can walk the grounds of the bloody Civil War Battle of Stones River, which started Dec. 31, 1862. The Union emerged with an important victory. The venue includes a museum, the Stones River National Cemetery--where over 6,100 Union soldiers are buried--and the Fortress Rosecrans, a fortification built by the Union in 1863 to protect a railroad and supply warehouses.

  Stones River National Battlefield
  3501 Old Nashville Highway
  Murfreesboro, TN 37129
  (615) 893-9501
  nps.gov/stri/index.htm