MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — Cannonsburgh Village will receive a $50,000 grant from the Tennessee State Museum to support maintenance efforts on the Haynes Museum/Cotton Warehouse, one of several historical structures on the city-owned property.

The Cotton Warehouse is one of the oldest structures at Cannonsburgh Village. Built around the 1870s, it originally served as a cotton warehouse—a nod to the region’s agricultural and industrial roots during the post-Civil War era.

Today, the building houses exhibits that trace life in the Southern U.S. from 1776 to 1876, covering a century of local and regional history. It’s part of the broader Cannonsburgh Village experience, which recreates a 19th-century Tennessee town with such buildings as a schoolhouse, blacksmith shop, general store, doctor’s office, grist mill, village operator for “party line” telephone system, rural church and more.

The Haynes Museum stands out not just for its age, but for its role in preserving the economic and cultural story of Rutherford County. Its inclusion in the recent state grant for capital improvements underscores its continued relevance as a historical asset.

The funding comes from a $5 million allocation approved by the Tennessee General Assembly in the state’s 2024–25 budget for the Capital Maintenance and Improvement program, which supports infrastructure upgrades at local cultural institutions.

Cannonsburgh Village—originally built in 1976 as part of Murfreesboro’s bicentennial celebration—is a reconstructed 19th-century pioneer settlement. It includes a collection of historic-style buildings such as a schoolhouse, blacksmith shop, gristmill, and general store. Though promoted as a tourist site, upkeep and modernization remain ongoing concerns.

The village occupies a unique position in the city’s identity, partly due to its name—Cannonsburgh. The Tennessee General Assembly initially named the town “Cannonsburgh” after Newton Cannon, a rising political figure. However, at Captain William Lytle’s request, the name was changed just a month later to Murfreesboro to honor his friend Colonel Hardy Murfree. Capt. Lytle was the local landowner who donated 60 acres of land for the establishment of a new county seat for Rutherford County. Colonel Hardy Murfree, a Revolutionary War hero known for his leadership during the Battle of Stony Point in 1779.

Over the years, the village has seen both attention and neglect. While it once boasted the “World’s Largest Cedar Bucket” as a quirky roadside attraction, that feature was lost to arson in 2005. Other structures, including a historic iron bridge, have been relocated to the site, contributing to its patchwork sense of heritage.

The grant program awards between $5,000 and $100,000 to support preservation work on existing facilities. City officials have not specified a timeline for the Haynes Museum/Cotton Warehouse project, but the $50,000 grant will help with that effort.