The Hermitage Hotel’s world-famous bar was originally opened as a private gentleman’s club in 1910. However, the most infamous chapter of its history began during the onset of Tennessee’s prohibition era. The hotel bar achieved notoriety when it was caught serving teapots filled with bourbon to guests! Their cleverly clandestine delivery methods were uncovered during a police raid, in which legislators, travelers and locals alike got swept up by law enforcement for their illegal behavior.

During the women’s suffrage campaign at The Hermitage in the summer of 1920, anti-suffragists set up an illicit speak easy on the 8th floor to bribe legislators with Tennessee whiskey, earning its moniker the “Jack Daniel’s Suite.” The causes of prohibition and women’s suffrage had long been linked, and thus the state’s liquor interests strongly opposed women voting. In the Jack Daniel’s Suite, lobbyists poured free whiskey and bourbon for pro- and anti-suffrage legislators. As the men imbibed, the arguments against the 19th amendment grew more and more persuasive. Ultimately, the suffragists prevailed.

Today, The Hermitage Hotel still boasts an extensive 208-bottle Bourbon Library, one of the largest collection of bourbons in Nashville.