Belair

The mansion at 2250 Lebanon Pike (Rt. 70) in Donelson, just west of the Briley Parkway (Rt. 156), is an antebellum house named Belair. The mansion was built in 1832 as a wedding present from John Harding of Belle Meade Plantation, the bride's father. The next owner in 1838 was a Nashville merchant and mayor, William Nichol; the house stayed in the family for the rest of his life. Belair became a National Register-listed property in 1971 but was on the list of most endangered historic buildings in Nashville by 2014. New owners purchased Belair in 2016 on five acres and saved the property from being developed. The house was restored and turned into a 15-room bed and breakfast called Belle Air Mansion. It has been the scene of music videos and is popular for corporate retreats.

Belair mansion was on a thousand-acre tract of land in the 1830s when it was gifted to Elizabeth Harding (1812-1836) and her new husband, Joseph W. Clay. She only lived there for a few years before dying in 1836.

William Nichol (1800-1878) purchased the plantation in 1838. William was born in Virginia and moved to Tennessee as a child. He was married to Julia Margaret Lyttle (1808-1890). Besides owning a commercial steamboat and being a Nashville merchant, Nichol served as Mayor of Nashville from 1835 to 1837. Nichol and his business partners purchased Capitol Hill and offered the land to the State of Tennessee for a new Capitol building.

By 1850, 73 enslaved persons toiled on the plantation. William Nichol was a 60-year-old farmer in 1860 and owned $180,000 in real estate plus $120,000 in personal property. He shared Belair with his wife, Julia M. (50) and seven children: Alexander (22), Margaret (23), Julia (17), Edgar (15), James F. (13), Harry D. (11), and Elizabeth (9). Another son, William L., became a physician in Nashville and may have no longer lived with his parents. The 1860 census listed 71 enslaved persons on William Nichol's plantation in 12 "slave houses." By 1870, William was a farmer and a banker; his real estate holdings were valued at $350,000 and he owned $60,000 in personal property. Julia M. and six of the children lived at Belair (Margaret, Julia, Edgar, James, Harry, and Elizabeth). It appears that some of the formerly enslaved workers remained on the plantation after the Civil War. Listed after William's house in the 1870 census were eight households in eight dwellings of Black or Mulatto residents with the surname Nichols. The adult males usually listed their occupation as farm hand and some of the women worked as dairy maids or milkwomen. In November 1878, the elderly "William Nichol, Esquire" fell down the steps of his residence and fractured his skull on the stone pavement below. His son, Dr. William L. Nichol did not expect him to regain consciousness; he soon passed away. Mrs. Nichol sold Belair after her husband's death to Major E.A. Burr of New York.

The original portion of the brick house was L-shaped in plan but had a number of additions. The house is mainly Federal style with Greek Revival elements seen in the front columns. The first additions were end wings built for William Nichol after his 1838 purchase. Nichol is credited with adding the winding wooden staircase and rosewood doors. There was a "secret room" on the second floor of the ell that was reached by stepping down through a window.

R.D. Stanford owned and resided at Belair in 1940 when the house was documented as part of the Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS). The Briley Parkway was constructed less than 50 feet west of the mansion in 1999. Lewis and Connie James purchased Belair in 2016 for $1.5 million and carefully restored the house on its remaining five acres while transforming it into a multi-room bed and breakfast. They were especially careful to preserve the mansion's eight handcrafted fireplaces, the ceiling frescoes, and the wooden trim.

Anonymous. "Frightful Accident." Memphis Daily Appeal (Memphis) November 24th, 1878. 4-4.

Belle Air Mansion. Our Restoration, Belle Air Mansion. January 1st, 2022. Accessed October 24th, 2022. https://belleairmansion.com/mansion-restoration/.

Harper, Herbert L. NRHP Nomination of Belair, Nashville, Tennessee. National Register. Washington, DC. National Park Service, 1971.

Historic Nashville Inc. Belair Mansion, Historic Nashville Inc. July 26th, 2016. Accessed October 24th, 2022. https://www.historicnashvilleinc.org/nashville-9/belair-mansion/.

Peterson, Charles E. Historic American Buildings Survey of Belair, Nashville vicinity, Tennessee. Volume HABS TN-134. St. Louis, MO. U.S. Government, 1940.

U.S. Census Bureau. Household of William Nichol in Nashville Ward 5, Davidson County, Tennessee, dwelling 1049, family 1208. Washington, DC. U.S. Government, 1860.

U.S. Census Bureau. Slave Schedule, William Nichol in District 3, Davidson County, Tennessee, page 4. Washington, DC. U.S. Government, 1860.

U.S. Census Bureau. Household of William Nichol in District 2, Davidson County, Tennessee, dwelling 244, family 244. Washington, DC. U.S. Government, 1870.

Ward, Getahn. "Bed and breakfast planned for historic Belair mansion in Donelson." The Tennessean (Nashville) August 18th, 2017. Real estate sec.