Printers Alley in Nashville, Tennessee was named after the printing and publishing businesses that once operated there. It was also associated with entertainment and is now a nightclub district with live music venues. The area was home to many firsts in Nashville, including the first parking lot and skyscraper.
Located in Nashville, Tennessee, Printers Alley got its name from its association with the printing and publishing businesses that once lived in the area. Newspapers and printing houses, as well as more than a dozen publishers, at one point called Printers Alley home from the early 1800s through the late 1900s. A three-block area located in downtown Nashville, Printers Alley was also associated with entertainment during its history.
Printers Alley is a real street showcasing Victorian architecture. However, the phrase also refers to nearby streets. Nearby streets include Church Street, Union Street, Third Avenue, Fourth Avenue and Bank Alley.
Printers congregated in the alley when their machines weren’t running. During its heyday as a hub for the printing industry in the late 1800s, businesses began popping up to meet the needs of printers. Known as the ‘men’s quarters’, hotels, cafes, gambling halls and saloons have set up shop. During Prohibition, the neighborhood was home to many speakeasies.
Slowly, the printing companies began to drift away, and during the 1940s nightclubs began to spring up, turning the cobblestone alley into a showcase for musical artists. Nightclubs that have opened in the alley since include Bourbon Street Blues and Boogie Bar, known for its live blues music, Fiddle and Steel Guitar Bar, a country music club, and Ms. Kelli’s, a karaoke bar that holds more than 50,000 songs to choose from. Since transforming into a nightclub district, Hank Williams Sr., Chet Atkins, Roger Miller, Jimmy Dean, Hank Williams Jr., Andy Griffith and Connie Frances have all performed in Printers Alley at some point. During the 1970s, Paul McCartney toured Printers Alley, and it is said that during that time McCartney was inspired to write the song “Sally G” for his band Wings.
A former bar in the district included the Rainbow Room, owned by David “Skull” Schullman. Schullman was so popular that the Nashville City Council once named him “Mayor of Printers Alley.” Schullman ran an adult entertainment establishment. The club was the only establishment of its kind to have live music for its artists. During the 1990s, the club was transformed into a country music bar.
The district is also home to many firsts in Nashville. The alley housed the first parking lot in Nashville. Also, the first skyscraper in the Tennessee capital was located in the alley. The Nashville Life and Casualty Tower opened in 1957 at the intersection of 4th Avenue North and Church Street.
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