Davidson County · 37138
Old Hickory
Old Hickory is an east Davidson County community on Hadley's Bend of the Cumberland River, bordered by Old Hickory Lake to the east and the Old Hickory Lock and Dam to the north, roughly 13 miles from downtown. It originated in 1918 as a DuPont company town built around a World War I smokeless-powder plant, and its historic Village core — worker bungalows and larger management homes, several on the National Register — remains a defining feature alongside strong lake and river recreation. It sits in the 37138 ZIP, with an unusually high owner-occupancy rate.
Map
Lifestyle
Old Hickory's texture is a historic company-town Village plus river-and-lake recreation: planned early-20th-century streets of bungalows and larger homes, the Cumberland River and Old Hickory Lake, and the Old Hickory Lock and Dam. It is a settled residential community with deep, distinctive history.
Historic Old Hickory Village
The planned company-town core built by DuPont beginning in 1918, with worker bungalows and larger management homes, several listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Old Hickory Lake & Lock and Dam
Old Hickory Lake to the east and the Old Hickory Lock and Dam to the north give the community boating, fishing, and waterfront recreation along the Cumberland River.
Honest read
Old Hickory's strength is a distinctive historic identity paired with water recreation: a planned DuPont-era Village of bungalows and larger homes, several on the National Register, with the Cumberland River and Old Hickory Lake at its edges. Owner-occupancy is unusually high for Davidson County, reflecting a settled, established community.
The tradeoffs are distance and an older housing stock. At roughly 13 miles and about 20 minutes off-peak from downtown, it is one of the farther-out Davidson communities, and much of the Village housing is early-20th-century, so condition, systems, and any historic-district considerations vary by property. Waterfront and river-edge parcels carry their own access and flood factors to verify.
The market picture is ZIP-level for 37138, so it is broad context rather than a block-level measurement. The honest read: Old Hickory offers historic character, water recreation, and a settled community feel, with the tradeoffs of greater distance from the core and an older housing stock that rewards parcel-level due diligence.
Micro-geography
Old Hickory occupies Hadley's Bend of the Cumberland River in east Davidson County, with the river on the north and west, Old Hickory Lake to the east, and a historic planned Village at its core.
Company-town Village core
The historic Village is a planned early-20th-century layout of DuPont-built bungalows and larger management homes, several on the National Register, giving Old Hickory a distinctive built form.
Source: Tennessee Encyclopedia, DuPont Village Historic District, and Historic Old Hickory Village resources.
River and lake geography
The Cumberland River bounds the north and west and Old Hickory Lake the east, with the Old Hickory Lock and Dam to the north shaping the community's recreation and edges.
Source: Tennessee Encyclopedia; USACE Old Hickory Lake; Metro/USGS maps.
37138 caveat
37138 covers the broader Old Hickory area, so ZIP-level data is context rather than a block-level measure.
Source: Census Reporter ACS 2024 5-year, ZCTA 37138.
Getting around
Old Hickory is a farther-out, car-oriented community: Old Hickory Boulevard and river crossings connect it to the rest of east Davidson and the interstate system.
Downtown access
Off-peak baseline routing to downtown Nashville is about 12.9 miles and roughly 20 minutes; peak traffic runs longer.
Source: OSRM driving route, run 2026-06-12 (off-peak engine, no live traffic).
Airport access
Off-peak baseline routing to Nashville International Airport (BNA) is about 13.6 miles and roughly 22 minutes.
Source: OSRM driving route, run 2026-06-12.
River-shaped routing
The Cumberland River and Old Hickory Lake shape travel, so crossings and Old Hickory Boulevard are the main connectors out of the community.
Source: Metro/USGS maps; OSRM routing, run 2026-06-12.
Schools
Old Hickory is served by Metro Nashville Public Schools with address-specific assignment; verify the exact parcel with MNPS.
Metro Nashville Public Schools zone finder
Use the official MNPS tools for any Old Hickory address; confirm by exact parcel.
Address-specific verification
Confirm elementary, middle, and high-school assignment by exact address rather than by neighborhood name.
Market read
Figures are ZIP-level for 37138, broad context rather than a block-level measurement. The ACS values are verified; a ZIP-level Redfin sale-price tracker figure (sibling-page method) is a pending addition.
- 37138 population
- 22,575
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACS 2024 5-year via Census Reporter, ZCTA 37138
- 37138 median household income
- 85,149
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACS 2024 5-year via Census Reporter, ZCTA 37138
- 37138 median home value (owner-occupied)
- 363,000
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACS 2024 5-year via Census Reporter, table B25077, ZCTA 37138
- 37138 owner-occupied housing share
- 77.2%
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACS 2024 5-year via Census Reporter, table B25003, ZCTA 37138
Development
Old Hickory is an established, historic community where change is mostly renovation and infill rather than large projects.
Historic-stock renovation
Change in Old Hickory is largely renovation of its early-20th-century Village housing and occasional infill, with historic-district considerations applying in parts of the Village.
Frequently asked questions
Where is Old Hickory?
In east Davidson County on Hadley's Bend of the Cumberland River, with Old Hickory Lake to the east and the Old Hickory Lock and Dam to the north, roughly 13 miles from downtown Nashville.
Why is Old Hickory historic?
It originated in 1918 as a DuPont company town built around a World War I smokeless-powder plant; its planned Village of worker bungalows and larger management homes remains, with several on the National Register of Historic Places.
Are the market stats Old Hickory-only?
No. They are ZIP-level for 37138. Rely on property-specific comps, especially given the older and historic housing stock.
What is there to do in Old Hickory?
Old Hickory Lake and the Cumberland River provide boating, fishing, and waterfront recreation, and the historic Village offers a distinctive walkable core.
What schools serve Old Hickory?
Metro Nashville Public Schools, with assignment by exact address. Verify with MNPS for any specific parcel.
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