War re-enactors today use the same recipe for fried biscuits that fed hungry patrons from the Nashville House from that era.
The property was purchased and remodeled by co-founders Jack Rogers and Fred Johnson in 1927. In 1943, a tragic fire consumed the business. But Jack Rogers, with his devotion to Brown County and the community of Nashville, rebuilt on the same location, this time without guest lodging, focusing on home-style cooking and adding a general store.
Andy Rogers took over the business from his father in 1959, making updates to the restaurant but keeping a menu of mouth-watering, hearty homecooked meals in a comfortable, casual dining atmosphere. Dillon Bustin, folklorist and author of If You Don’ t Outdie Me, recalled family drives to Nashville from Indianapolis for Sunday dinner at the Nashville House. A boy of eight or nine years old, he was allowed to stand on the counter so he could
scrutinize the photos by Frank Hohenberger that were in the lobby. It was almost like a museum. The general store had local handicrafts like walking sticks, baskets, and wooden toys; as well as apple butter, local honey, jams and jellies, candies, and baked goods.
Andy and his wife, Fran, were on-site continuously, making it a true family-owned and run restaurant. Andi and her sister, Gina, grew up in the business. From the time Andi was seven years old, dressed in smaller versions of the wait staff’ s dresses, she bused tables, helped the hostess by seating guests, and made change from the cash drawer— no cash register! She recalls that commercial soft drinks were added to the menu after she left home for college. Until then, all beverages were homemade in-house: coffee, tea, iced tea, lemonade, and chocolate milk.
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Frank Hohenberger’ s photos of the Nashville House( left to right) 1927 and 1950.
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