During a recent trip to Tennessee, FFZ and family visited both Knoxville and Nashville.
Knoxville, a small city three hours east of larger Nashville, once had “hundreds” of shelters, according to this 2018 news story from NBC affiliate WBIR, which aired shortly after the Hawaii ballistic missile scare.
However, during this visit, not one active shelter sign was seen in the city; only shadows where former signs once hung.
East Tennessee History Center, S. Gay Street & Clinch Avenue
YMCA Building, Locust and West Clinch Sts
YWCA, West Clinch avenue
Studio Four Design, 414 Clinch Avenue
BMA Architects, 505 Market Street
Residential Building, 531 South Gay Street
Former Bank Building, 612 South Gay Street
Residential Building, Clinch Avenue and Worlds Fair Park Drive
Although this is only a small sampling of buildings within the downtown area, these shadows show what was once a decent shelter system in Knoxville. The news story mentioned above even shows a Community Shelter Plan from Knoxville in 1969, and part of the story takes place in the news station’s former shelter, which was in the basement of their building.
As for Nashville, many older buildings were seen that were the right size and architecture for having possibly been shelters, but not one sign was seen within that city either, and only one lone shadow on this building on Chestnut Street near the Nashville guitar billboard.
However, a family member visited Nashville in September 2025, and found one more building (The Waverly Belmont School) that had a prominent sign shadow, and was kind enough to send photos
When it comes to remembering the civil defense program, the public fallout shelter was a very large part of that history. As signs have and continue to come down, these shadows offer a small glimpse into the program’s past and offer a sometimes ugly but prominent reminder of where these shelters once were.
There’s likely a good country music lyric to end with, but we won’t.
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All photos above taken and owned by Fallout Five Zero
Photos of Waverly Belmont School taken and sent by family member and now owned by Fallout Five Zero
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