Hazel Path

History

Hazel Path (Sometimes called Hazelpath) was constructed from 1837 to 1857 by Daniel Smith Donelson on land he inherited from his grandfather Daniel Smith. Daniel Smith lived two miles south at Rock Castle.

General Donelson was a distinguished graduate of the United States Military Academy at West Point. General Donelson was a brigadier general in the Tennessee Militia and after Tennessee joined the Confederacy he became a major general in the Confederate Army.

The old mansion was named Hazel Path by Nannie Smith Berry because hazel trees once lined the drive. Nannie Berry and her husband consolidated other land including that owned by her father to build a plantation containing 3,140 acres.

Hazel Path is on the historic register.