Most people do not realize that Middle Tennessee was once the far western reaches of America.  In the late 1700s, if someone had mentioned the “Wild West,” they would have been referring to the area that is now Tennessee and Kentucky.  Even more surprising, this area used to be filled with buffalo!  So, while some may think of Yellowstone when they hear about the “Wild West,” you could be justified in imagining this area instead.

One of the first Europeans who established a lasting settlement in the Middle Tennessee area was Kasper Mansker, a long hunter, a profession which Daniel Boone also claimed.  In fact, not only were Mansker and Boone contemporaries, but they also knew each other and on more than one occasion participated in hunting expeditions together. 

Mansker first came to this area with a group of long hunters like himself in the year 1769.  What he found here was a lush wilderness, full of vibrant vegetation, ample aquatic resources, and several salt licks.  Because of these details, wild animals were attracted to this area in droves, so naturally the long hunters were in their turn attracted to this area. 

Mansker built his first station in 1779, the same year that James Robertson established the settlement at Fort Nashborough which would develop into present-day Nashville.  This first station was located near the current location of Kroger in Goodlettsville.  Originally it was roughly the size of a football field, with cabins lining the inner walls, all protected by a palisade that encircled the entire perimeter of the fort.  At the four corners of the fort would have been defensive buildings known as blockhouses, two-story structures with holes in the upper and lower walls which functioned as gun ports, out of which the settlers could fire their muskets in case of attacks. This was the typical construction of forts in this area, and it was a pattern that would remain virtually unchanged for a hundred years as the westward migration continued all the way to California.

This first station was not invincible, though, as Mansker was soon to find out.  Only one year after he established his fort, a hostile Indian force attacked and burned Mansker’s Station.  However, Kasper Mansker and his companions had already abandoned the fort several days earlier, thanks to a warning they had received about the impending attack.  The settlers realized they did not have enough numbers to defend the fort, so they left it to the Indians. It was burned to the ground.

But the undaunted Mansker would not be dismayed so easily.  After regrouping at Fort Nashborough, Mansker returned to the Goodlettsville area in 1783 and built a second fort, about a mile and a half from his first fort, near the present-day location of Publix (isn’t that ironic).  While we don’t know the exact dimensions or construction of this second fort, it seems likely that it was larger and more defendable than the first fort, if only for the fact that it was never burned down.  This could have been due also to a larger group of people coming with Kasper to establish this fort. 

Whatever the reason, this is the Mansker’s Station that would ultimately become a landmark to travelers, the Mansker’s Station that would become a mainstay on the first established road through the Cumberland country.  It is also the Mansker’s Station that eventually grew into a village, then a city, and ultimately into what we now know as the city of Goodlettsville.

But where did the name ‘Goodlettsville’ come from?  Well, the settlement was still known as Mansker’s Station until the mid-1800s. That was when a German family moved into the town of Mansker’s Station.  In their native country their name may have been something like ‘Gudelet,’ but here in America it became ‘Goodlett.’  Within a few years, they had gained the respect of the inhabitants.  Therefore, when the decision was made to incorporate the city in 1858, instead of keeping the name Mansker’s Station, they decided to name it after their beloved Goodlett family, and Goodlettsville was the name that was chosen.

Now Goodlettsville has lived through even more history since it was first incorporated.  But its name has not changed since then, and we are proud to live in a city that has a name that no other city has.  It’s true, there’s no place like Goodlettsville.

~ visitgoodlettsville