My mother grew up in Nashville and she would often tell me about a place that all the teenagers would go to every weekend near downtown. It was called the Hippodrome and it was the place to be. The nerve center of the Nashville youth.
Then one day, she got word that they were tearing the Hippodrome down and said it was just an awful feeling in her stomach. So many memories had been made there and in an instant, the building was gone. She drove by a few days later and there was no trace the building ever existed.
Years later, there would be another building that would hold memories for a lot of people in Nashville. This one though was for those over 21, unless you had a fake I.D. It was mix of young and middle aged, black and white and everyone got along. On any given night you would see famous people inside, and many of your best friends. It was as if NYC moved to town because you didn’t feel as if you were in Nashville. There were no fights, no problems and everyone just had a great time.
It was simply called The Ace of Clubs.
Located downtown on 2nd avenue in a building that was built at least 100 years ago, it closed it’s doors back in the late 90’s. Other clubs would come and occupy the space but it was never the same because Nashville changed.
Then came word last week that the building would be torn down and something else would go there. I understand it because the city is growing so much and no one 30 years ago could have ever imagined all of this. Progress, life, development, you name it, got that beloved building that meant so much to so many.
As a friend said to me, “memories aren’t inside that building. They are inside of you. And no one can tear that down.”
Amen.