More than 400 people gathered on a sweltering, sunny morning Aug. 9 to see the results of a two-year, $5 million renovation of the historic Two Rivers Mansion in Donelson.
The celebration at the majestic 146-year-old mansion is the latest in a string of major improvements in the working-class section of Nashville that runs from the airport to the Grand Ole Opry House, Nashville Mayor Freddie O’Connell noted after the ceremony.
“This is pretty amazing,” O’Connell told The Tennessean. “It brings together the community.
“We’ve made a series of investments in Donelson, including a new library in Donelson. We’re trying to upgrade Donelson (commuter train) station. So all these pieces fit together in a way that not only connect people within Donelson but also are connecting Donelson more effectively to the rest of the city.”
Guests gather during the reopening at Two Rivers Mansion in Nashville, Tenn., Saturday, Aug. 9, 2025.
Though owned by Metro Parks, the 10,000-square-foot mansion — operated by nonprofit The Friends of Two Rivers — is used mostly for weddings, corporate events and other private events and rentals.
The mansion was shut down two years after operators discovered extensive water damage and rot that had most of the facade pulling away from the house. Metro government representatives and The Friends of Two Rivers found $4.5 million in grant money to fix the mansion.
An Ohio-based, employee-owned historic restoration company, The Tradesmen Group, restored the exterior, put on a new roof, installed four new HVAC units and a new veranda and made some improvements inside, said Jeff Syracuse, president-elect of The Friends of Two Rivers and a former Metro Council Member representing Donelson.
“It has never looked so good,” Syracuse said.
The mansion, on 11 acres, is one of Nashville’s earliest Italianate houses. The style is villa-like design that is inspired by the Italian Renaissance and Tuscan farm houses. It was completed in 1879 by an affluent businessman named David McGavock, and three generations of McGavocks lived there until 1965. Metro government bought it the next year.
Right now, the public can only tour the mansion, for $15 each, fewer than 20 times a year. Syracuse said he hopes to make the site more available to the public by adding concerts and movie events next year.
Nashville Metro Council Member Jeff Gregg, who represents Donelson, said he will continue to ask for city money to open a separate event center on the mansion’s grounds. Such a center could be used for meetings for community groups.
“We need that event center to further open the grounds to the public,” Gregg said.
Reach Brad Schmitt at brad@tennessean.com.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Historic Two Rivers Mansion in Donelson reopens. See inside