In 1892, steamboat shipping magnate Thomas Ryman commissioned the construction of the Union Gospel Tabernacle on the same spot where he heard Rev. Sam Jones deliver a fire-and-brimstone speech at a tent revival.

The Victorian tabernacle had no air conditioning or dressing rooms, but once the Opry moved into the Ryman in 1943, the show’s popularity took off at a velocity never before seen. Lines wrapped around the venue to get into the 2,300-seat auditorium. The show broadcast from the downtown venue, which came to be known as the “Mother Church of Country Music,” until March 15, 1974 when it moved into the larger Grand Ole Opry House across the city.

In 1892, steamboat shipping magnate Thomas Ryman commissioned the construction of the Union Gospel Tabernacle on the same spot where he heard Rev. Sam Jones deliver a fire-and-brimstone speech at a tent revival.

The Victorian tabernacle had no air conditioning or dressing rooms, but once the Opry moved into the Ryman in 1943, the show’s popularity took off at a velocity never before seen. Lines wrapped around the venue to get into the 2,300-seat auditorium. The show broadcast from the downtown venue, which came to be known as the “Mother Church of Country Music,” until March 15, 1974 when it moved into the larger Grand Ole Opry House across the city.

In 1892, steamboat shipping magnate Thomas Ryman commissioned the construction of the Union Gospel Tabernacle on the same spot where he heard Rev. Sam Jones deliver a fire-and-brimstone speech at a tent revival.

The Victorian tabernacle had no air conditioning or dressing rooms, but once the Opry moved into the Ryman in 1943, the show’s popularity took off at a velocity never before seen. Lines wrapped around the venue to get into the 2,300-seat auditorium. The show broadcast from the downtown venue, which came to be known as the “Mother Church of Country Music,” until March 15, 1974 when it moved into the larger Grand Ole Opry House across the city.

In 1892, steamboat shipping magnate Thomas Ryman commissioned the construction of the Union Gospel Tabernacle on the same spot where he heard Rev. Sam Jones deliver a fire-and-brimstone speech at a tent revival.

The Victorian tabernacle had no air conditioning or dressing rooms, but once the Opry moved into the Ryman in 1943, the show’s popularity took off at a velocity never before seen. Lines wrapped around the venue to get into the 2,300-seat auditorium. The show broadcast from the downtown venue, which came to be known as the “Mother Church of Country Music,” until March 15, 1974 when it moved into the larger Grand Ole Opry House across the city.

In 1892, steamboat shipping magnate Thomas Ryman commissioned the construction of the Union Gospel Tabernacle on the same spot where he heard Rev. Sam Jones deliver a fire-and-brimstone speech at a tent revival.

The Victorian tabernacle had no air conditioning or dressing rooms, but once the Opry moved into the Ryman in 1943, the show’s popularity took off at a velocity never before seen. Lines wrapped around the venue to get into the 2,300-seat auditorium. The show broadcast from the downtown venue, which came to be known as the “Mother Church of Country Music,” until March 15, 1974 when it moved into the larger Grand Ole Opry House across the city.

In 1892, steamboat shipping magnate Thomas Ryman commissioned the construction of the Union Gospel Tabernacle on the same spot where he heard Rev. Sam Jones deliver a fire-and-brimstone speech at a tent revival.

The Victorian tabernacle had no air conditioning or dressing rooms, but once the Opry moved into the Ryman in 1943, the show’s popularity took off at a velocity never before seen. Lines wrapped around the venue to get into the 2,300-seat auditorium. The show broadcast from the downtown venue, which came to be known as the “Mother Church of Country Music,” until March 15, 1974 when it moved into the larger Grand Ole Opry House across the city.

In 1892, steamboat shipping magnate Thomas Ryman commissioned the construction of the Union Gospel Tabernacle on the same spot where he heard Rev. Sam Jones deliver a fire-and-brimstone speech at a tent revival.

The Victorian tabernacle had no air conditioning or dressing rooms, but once the Opry moved into the Ryman in 1943, the show’s popularity took off at a velocity never before seen. Lines wrapped around the venue to get into the 2,300-seat auditorium. The show broadcast from the downtown venue, which came to be known as the “Mother Church of Country Music,” until March 15, 1974 when it moved into the larger Grand Ole Opry House across the city.

In 1892, steamboat shipping magnate Thomas Ryman commissioned the construction of the Union Gospel Tabernacle on the same spot where he heard Rev. Sam Jones deliver a fire-and-brimstone speech at a tent revival.

The Victorian tabernacle had no air conditioning or dressing rooms, but once the Opry moved into the Ryman in 1943, the show’s popularity took off at a velocity never before seen. Lines wrapped around the venue to get into the 2,300-seat auditorium. The show broadcast from the downtown venue, which came to be known as the “Mother Church of Country Music,” until March 15, 1974 when it moved into the larger Grand Ole Opry House across the city.

In 1892, steamboat shipping magnate Thomas Ryman commissioned the construction of the Union Gospel Tabernacle on the same spot where he heard Rev. Sam Jones deliver a fire-and-brimstone speech at a tent revival.

The Victorian tabernacle had no air conditioning or dressing rooms, but once the Opry moved into the Ryman in 1943, the show’s popularity took off at a velocity never before seen. Lines wrapped around the venue to get into the 2,300-seat auditorium. The show broadcast from the downtown venue, which came to be known as the “Mother Church of Country Music,” until March 15, 1974 when it moved into the larger Grand Ole Opry House across the city.

In 1892, steamboat shipping magnate Thomas Ryman commissioned the construction of the Union Gospel Tabernacle on the same spot where he heard Rev. Sam Jones deliver a fire-and-brimstone speech at a tent revival.

The Victorian tabernacle had no air conditioning or dressing rooms, but once the Opry moved into the Ryman in 1943, the show’s popularity took off at a velocity never before seen. Lines wrapped around the venue to get into the 2,300-seat auditorium. The show broadcast from the downtown venue, which came to be known as the “Mother Church of Country Music,” until March 15, 1974 when it moved into the larger Grand Ole Opry House across the city.