Country Music Hall of Fame Is Closed

The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum in Nashville, which for 33 years has told the cultural story behind country music, closed its doors for good. A new museum will open in May that tourism officials say will be bigger, better and bolder. Last week, workers began packing up the old museum’s treasures, including Elvis Presley’s gold Cadillac, Dolly Parton’s scribbled lyrics to “Jolene,” Mother Maybelle Carter’s guitar and a Patsy Cline stage costume, hand-sewn by the singer’s mother. The new $37-million home will contain about 40,000 square feet of exhibit space--four times the old museum’s--and will sit in a thriving area of downtown Nashville about a mile from Music Row.