Country music has deep roots in Nashville, but few realize that the genre is said to originate in what might be called “The Bristols.” Bristol, VA, and its companion city of the same name, Bristol, TN, straddle the Virginia-Tennessee border and share the distinction of being the birthplace of country music. That fact recently produced the Birthplace of Country Music Museum (situated in Bristol, VA, but “claimed” by both cities).
The new museum showcases what is sometimes referred to as the “Big Bang” of country music: the 1927 Bristol Sessions, the first commercially successful recordings of country music.
They introduced several prominent country music artists to the world, including the Carter Family, Jimmie Rodgers and Ernest Stoneman. The Library of Congress formally recognized the Bristol Sessions as one of the 50 most significant recording events of all time.
Hope’s University Series custom, handcrafted solid steel windows and Hope’s 5000 Series steel swing doors helped update the building, without sacrificing its early 20th-century aesthetic. Hope’s 5000 Series steel doors are formed from heavy-gauge steel and offer the greatest latitude for customization. Hope’s helps country music celebrate its legacy at the Birthplace of Country Music Museum’s historic home.
The museum’s director and head curator, Jessica Turner, describes the Hope’s products as “stunning” and says they restored the two-level, 24,000-square foot building to its “former glory.”
Architects Peyton Boyd and Michael Haslam of Peyton Boyd Architect PC (located in Abingdon, VA) worked with Hope’s to specify the Hope’s University Series solid steel windows – steel window profiles designed specifically for projects requiring historic replication of exterior putty glazed steel windows.
The Birthplace of Country Music Museum, an affiliate of the Smithsonian Institution, features a wide variety of technology-infused experiences, including multiple theaters, interactive displays, listening stations and music programs – as well as artifacts, educational programs and traveling exhibits from the Smithsonian.
Located in Historic Downtown Bristol, the building has been home to a few different businesses, starting with a car dealership in 1920. The planning, fundraising, and restoration work required to turn the building into a museum took more than a decade.
