AN OPRY STATE OF MIND
CENTERVILLE
Centerville is the seat of Hickman County, perfectly situated in the beautiful Duck River valley 60 miles southwest of Nashville. It’s the only incorporated town in the county, with 11 square miles of small-town living, a music heritage heartbeat, and an abundance of surrounding acreage and farm land.
Opry Inspiration
The town of Centerville is best known for its famous daughter, Sarah Cannon, AKA Minnie Pearl. The legendary Grand Ole Opry member was one of the most popular comics of her time and one of the first leading ladies of comedy. Centerville’s spirit is baked into the Opry’s story, as Minnie’s character hailed from the town of Grinder’s Switch, a fictional version of Centerville.
Sarah famously said “Grinder's Switch is a state of mind – a place where there is no illness, no war, no unhappiness, no political unrest, no tears. It's a place where there's only happiness – where all you worry about is what you are going to wear to the church social, and if your feller is going to kiss you in the moonlight on the way home. I wish for all of you a Grinder's Switch.”
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