The current home of the Grand Ole Opry franchise has been added to the National Register of Historic Place. It might come as a shock to country music fans that the Grand Ole Opry is juts now being added to the Register but relax: This is actually the sixth home that the foundation has had in its nearly 90-year run in Nashville, and the Opry House has served as the host longer than most, having now operated for 41 years (from Billboard).
Prior to moving to the new Opry House during 1974, the Grand Ole Opry's weekly performance took place at Ryman Auditorium, from 1943 up until the new venue. That venue still stands, and was in fact added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1971, just three years before the program switched venues. However Grand Ole Opry fans probably shouldn't expect it to switch venues again in the near future. After all, it survived the 2010 flooding from the Cumberland River and, if anything, came out of the event stronger thanks to the refurbishment it received.
The Opry House is the only venue that has been built specifically for housing the Grand Ole Opry.
The addition to the Register was organized by Carroll Van West, director of the Center for Historic Preservation at Middle Tennessee State University.
The announcement comes just in time, as the Grand Ole Opry is set to begin a nine-month celebration of the program's 90th anniversary on March 24. The largest event of which will be a "Birthday Bash Weekend" to take place on October 2-3.
Current members of the Grand Ole Opry include Dolly Parton, Carrie Underwood, Dierks Bentley, Martina McBride and the Old Crow Medicine Show.
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