Explore the Warner Parks

Spectacular Sites and Park Features

The Majestic Allée Steps and Belle Meade Entrance

A focal point of the Warner Parks experience, the Belle Meade Entrance to Percy Warner Park features beautiful Sewanee sandstone gates and a cascade of limestone steps dating back to the 1930s. Thousands of Nashville locals and visitors flock to this entrance to start their day walking, hiking, cycling, and running, to get lost in the natural landscape that is our Warner Parks.

A WW1 Monument to the First Tennessee Infantry

At the direction of Colonel Harry S. Berry, the WPA constructed a 10-foot granite monument in 1936 overlooking the field where Berry’s regiment mobilized at Camp Andrew Jackson in 1917

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Over 200-Year-Old Stone Walls

Stone walls lining the roads in both Percy and Edwin Warner Parks—often mossy covered and etched with dates—as well as the stone gates at the Belle Meade, Deep Well, and Chickering Road entrances to the Parks– were all built by the Works Progress Administration (WPA) in the 1930s and 40s. Some of the rock was even quarried from Edwin Warner Park.

Some of the oldest walls in the Parks includes a stacked-stone wall that follows Old Hickory Boulevard near the Steeplechase. It pre-dates the Parks and was most likely built during antebellum times by African-American enslaved people. The other most notable wall can be observed at the Northern-Hodge-Walden-Crawford Cemetery behind Harpeth Hills Golf Course.

Learn about our historic site restorations

Explore the Views

7 Scenic Overlooks With Gorgeous Scenery Year Round

The best known scenic overlook is at the recently restored Allée with unique views at different elevations as you ascend the stairs. You can find six other overlooks throughout the Parks offering unique, picturesque views: Steeplechase, Luke Lea Heights, St. Henry’s Catholic Church, Christ Presbyterian Church, Sharp View, and another nearby historic stone wall that was built in the 1930s.

The Majestic Iroquois Steeplechase Grounds

Constructed in 1936 as part of a parks improvement project through the WPA, the picturesque grounds are home to the famous Iroquois Steeplechase—a time honored tradition and rite of spring for Nashville since 1941. The Iroquois Steeplechase draws an average crowd of 25,000 on race day, while the racetrack and grandstands can be reserved for athletic events and large-scale celebrations throughout the year.

Old photo of Steeplechase horses running at the camera

Burch Reserve and Old Growth Hill Forest

Continuing the legacy of our founding visionaries, Friends of Warner Parks embraced the opportunity in 2004 to acquire additional land and ensure nearly 500 acres—including an old growth forest—were forever safe from the threat of commercial development.

In partnership with Metro Parks, and thanks to the generosity of the Lucius E. Burch III family and others, a total of $15 million was raised for the acquisition. The Burch Reserve and Hill Forest were brought into the fold of Warner Parks, boasting natural habitats, undisturbed vistas, and recreation opportunities.

The old growth nature of the Hill Forest requires a delicate approach to its accessibility, but opportunity exists to experience this special aspect of Warner Parks. Keep an eye on the program schedule for upcoming guided tours, and contact the Warner Park Nature Center if you’d like to request one of your own.

Upcoming guided tours

Historic Picnic Shelters

Built with limestone and harvested cedar from Warner Parks and the surrounding areas, the Works Progress Administration (WPA) built several park shelters in the 1930s and 40s. Today, there are 23 historic shelters found throughout Edwin Warner Park and Beech Woods, Deep Well, and Indian Springs areas in Percy Warner Park.

One can only imagine what our beloved picnic shelters represented to local families amidst the height of the Great Depression—an environmental oasis, a momentary respite from stress of economic uncertainty, and a gift to the wellbeing of the Nashville community.

With over $500,000 in funding, Friends of Warner Parks restored all historic shelters in 2013, honoring the ethos from which they were built and ensuring they remain for generations of park visitors to come.