The City of Murfreesboro's Bicentennial Celebration Committee met for a final time Tuesday (1/15/2013) at the Wilderness Station in Barfield Crescent Park.
L-R above photo ID: Murfreesboro Mayor Tommy Bragg and Eric Sewell, the artist who created a montage of our city's history.
For over a year, Murfreesboro celebrated its two-hundredth anniversary. Mayor Tommy Bragg thanked committee heads and other participants for their work which saluted a different aspect of local history each month.
Above L-R photo ID: Former Murfreesboro Mayor Richard Reeves, Murfreesboro Parks and Recreation Director Lanny Goodwin, former State Representative John Hood, Eric Sewell, former State Senator Andy Womack, and Murfreesboro Mayor Tommy Bragg.
The festivities began October, 2011 and continued for a year. Each month a different aspect of the Heart of Tennessee's history was spotlighted:
- Our Heritage in October, 2011 a time to reflect on the naming of a county seat in Rutherford County called Cannonsburgh, a settlement that would eventually become Murfreesboro
- Our Beginnings in November, 2011 a time to recognize local legislation such as the official name change to Murfreesborough and finally Murfreesboro early the following year
- Our Teachers in December, 2011 a time to remember the history of our schools, including Middle Tennessee State University, which now boasts the largest undergraduate population in the state
- Our Healers in January of 2012, the doctors, nurses and other medical persons who laid the groundwork for developing the medical services hub Murfreesboro has become, including its flagship facility, the new Middle Tennessee Medical Center (MTMC).
- Our People, February 2012, a time to recognize the influences our multi-cultural society have had on the way of life we now enjoy.
- Our Military, March 2012, a recognition of the military leaders our community has produced as well as the role our own Stones River National Battlefield played in the Civil War.
- Our Faith, April 2012, highlighting the role our churches of all faiths played during the early, hardscrabble years and the role they continue to play in the hearts and minds of our citizens. For example, and coincidentally, Murfreesboro First Presbyterian Church was the first organized church in the town so is celebrating its Bicentennial at the same time.
- Our Arts and Architecture, May 2012, the architecture of our public square, our courthouse and Oaklands antebellum home are but two of many decidedly distinctive structures throughout the community.
- Our Rivers, Roads and Rails, June 2012, the importance of these early transportation systems that carried vital supplies to a growing but still fragile community.
- Our Music, July 2012, an event-filled month showcasing the role music played in our early development and the local, but mostly unknown, talent that continues to prove second to none in the country.
- Our Stories, August 2012, how newcomers -- we were all newcomers once -- were attracted to build their homes in our area and provide the backbone that supported a growing community.
- Our Work, September 2012, the commerce and century businesses that helped the fledgling community build its economic engine into one of the premier development sites in the state.
- and Our Future, October 2012, where the community is headed and what role it will play in the region's future.