Nashville is the capital of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. The city is also the second most populous city in the state, following Memphis. In 1806, Nashville was incorporated as a city and by 1843; the city was named the permanent capital of the state of Tennessee. The city of Nashville was originally called Fort Nashborough, after the American Revolutionary War hero Francis Nash. Nashville quickly expanded because of its key location, attainability as a river port, and later years as a major railroad center.
Nashville is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. Nashville is a major hub for the music, health care, banking, publishing, and transportation industries. Many businesses profiting from these fields are listed in the Tennessee business directory. Much of the city's cultural life has centered on its large university community. Specifically significant in this respect were two groups of critics and writers who were linked with Vanderbilt University in the early twentieth century; they are the Fugitives and the Agrarians. Many attractions, along with the city’s newest, The Nashville Zoo, can be found in the yellow pages.
Many popular tourist sites involve country music, for example the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum and the Grand Ole Opry House. The Opry plays there several times a week. Every year, the CMA Music Festival brings thousands of country fans storming in to the city. Along with country, the Christian pop and rock music industry is based along Nashville's Music Row.