Museum Visit Booking Required
Mansion and grounds day tour
Self-guided audio tour of the mansion, gardens (including Rachel Jackson's tomb), original 1820s slave cabins, and the broader 1,120-acre property.
- Duration:
- 3 hr
Haunted House / Historic Home
Andrew Jackson's Hermitage
President Andrew Jackson's 1,120-acre Tennessee plantation and National Historic Landmark — where Rachel Jackson's garden tomb is the focus of cigar-smoke smell, self-opening gates, and footsteps among the foliage.
4580 Rachel's Lane, Nashville, TN 37076
Wheelchair Accessible
Research-Backed · 4sources
Age
All Ages
Cost
$$
Day admission to grounds and mansion; ghost tours sold separately as evening programming in season.
Access
Wheelchair OK
Mostly paved or compacted-gravel paths between mansion, garden, and slave-quarter cabins; the mansion's upper floors require stairs. Garden grades are gentle.
Equipment
Photos OK
Est. 1821 · National Historic Landmark and home of seventh U.S. president Andrew Jackson · Burial site of Andrew Jackson, Rachel Donelson Jackson, and Alfred Jackson · Plantation reliant on enslaved labor; ~150 enslaved people at Jackson's death · One of the longest continuously operated presidential museums in the U.S. (since 1889)
Andrew Jackson purchased the original Hermitage tract in 1804. He and Rachel Donelson Jackson initially lived in a log farmhouse; the current Greek Revival mansion was built between 1819 and 1821, with substantial additions and renovations completed by the late 1830s.
The plantation grew cotton as a cash crop and operated entirely on enslaved labor throughout Jackson's tenure. Roughly 150 enslaved people lived at the property at the time of Jackson's death in June 1845. Alfred Jackson, born enslaved at the Hermitage around 1812, lived on the property for nearly his entire life and is buried in the family garden alongside Andrew and Rachel — a placement directed by Alfred himself.
Rachel Jackson died at the Hermitage on December 22, 1828, weeks after her husband's election as president. Andrew commissioned an ornamental pleasure garden enclosing her tomb. Per Hermitage and Ghost City Tours accounts, he visited her monument every day when he was on the property, often smoking a cigar and 'talking to his beloved.' Andrew Jackson died at the Hermitage on June 8, 1845 and is buried beside Rachel in the same garden tomb.
The Ladies' Hermitage Association (now Andrew Jackson Foundation) acquired the property from the state of Tennessee in 1889 and has operated it as a museum continuously since. The Hermitage was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1960 and is one of the most-visited presidential homes in the United States.
Sources
- https://thehermitage.com/
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hermitage_(Nashville,_Tennessee)
- https://ghostcitytours.com/nashville/haunted-nashville/ghosts-hermitage/
- https://www.wkrn.com/special-reports/haunted-tennessee/do-the-spirits-of-andrew-jackson-and-his-wife-still-linger-at-the-hermitage/
Smell of cigar smoke near Rachel Jackson's tomb in the gardenFootsteps in the foliage along garden pathsGarden gate swinging open with no visible causeCold spots and full-body chills in the historic groveApparitions of soldiers wandering through the groveFigures reported near the original slave-quarter cabins
Per Ghost City Tours' Hermitage feature and WKRN's Haunted Tennessee coverage, the property's ghost lore concentrates on the formal garden surrounding Rachel Jackson's tomb. Reports include 'footsteps roaming between the foliage,' the garden gate swinging open on its own with no visible cause, and 'the undeniable smell of cigar smoke near the Jacksons' tomb' — framed in local lore as the residual signature of Andrew's daily mourning visits, when he reportedly sat by Rachel's grave smoking a cigar and talking with her.
The Hermitage itself programs seasonal evening 'Ghost Tours' as a public-facing complement to its standard interpretive offering. Per Nashville Ghosts' feature and WKRN's 2022 ghost-tour coverage, guides also report 'ghostly apparitions of soldiers wandering through the grove' on the broader property, and visitors describe cold spots and full-body chills around the displaced original trees and grove paths.
A second strand of the lore concerns the slave-quarter cabins on the property, where figures have been reported by staff and visitors. Local accounts associate one of these figures with Alfred Jackson, who was born enslaved at the Hermitage around 1812 and lived on the property for nearly his entire life. Interpretation at the Hermitage now explicitly addresses Alfred's life and the lives of others enslaved there as part of the documented site history, and ghost-lore narrators are expected to follow that framing rather than romanticize.
Additional widely circulated lore — a face resembling Rachel reportedly visible in the paint of one of Jackson's carriages — appears in tour-operator coverage but with thinner provenance than the garden-tomb material.
Notable Entities
Andrew Jackson (d. June 8, 1845, buried in the garden)Rachel Donelson Jackson (d. December 22, 1828, buried in the garden)Alfred Jackson (born enslaved at the Hermitage c. 1812, buried in the garden alongside the Jacksons)
Media Appearances
- Ghost City Tours — The Ghosts of the Hermitage feature
- Nashville Ghosts — The Hermitage feature
- WKRN Haunted Tennessee — Hermitage spirits coverage
- WKRN News 2 — Hermitage ghost tour coverage
- Listverse — 10 Spooky Locations Reputedly Haunted by U.S. Presidents (2023)
Plan Your Visit
2 ways to experience Ghost Hunt Booking Required
Hermitage Ghost Tour
Seasonal evening ghost tour programmed directly by Andrew Jackson's Hermitage staff, covering the garden, mansion, and slave-quarter areas.
- Duration:
- 1.5 hr
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#haunted-plantation
#andrew-jackson
#rachel-jackson
#sensitive-history
Sources & Further Reading
Every HauntBound history is researched from documented sources. We clearly separate verified historical fact from paranormal folklore.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Is Andrew Jackson's Hermitage family-friendly?
Educational presidential home covering enslavement, Indian-Removal-era policy, and Civil War context. Suitable for school-age children with adult guidance; the historical interpretation can be heavy. Overall family fit: Moderate.
How much does it cost to visit Andrew Jackson's Hermitage?
Day admission to grounds and mansion; ghost tours sold separately as evening programming in season.
Do I need to book in advance?
Yes, reservations are required.
Is Andrew Jackson's Hermitage wheelchair accessible?
Yes, Andrew Jackson's Hermitage is wheelchair accessible. Terrain: Mostly paved or compacted-gravel paths between mansion, garden, and slave-quarter cabins; the mansion's upper floors require stairs. Garden grades are gentle..