Authored by Laura Sylvester
Conversations around land conservation often, inevitably, wander their way into statistics at some point, with total conserved acreage usually at the top of the statistics pile. The numbers can be dizzying at times, making it easy to equate impact with total acres.
North American Land Trust (NALT) knows all too well that sometimes, small projects with fewer acres can hold incredible historic and natural significance, making them just as impactful to conservation. In November 2025, NALT had the opportunity to work on one such project, located in Davidson County, Tennessee, where the Battle of Nashville was fought on December 15-16, 1864.
The Battle of Nashville was a decisive battle for the Union Army that effectively ended the Confederate resistance in Tennessee during the American Civil War. Over an undulating landscape, through mercurial weather bringing misty mornings followed by frigid days, the armies clashed in battle. During this battle, on Compton Hill totaling 2.23-acres, Confederate Lieutenant Colonel William L. Shy made his last stand. Lt. Col. Shy refused to surrender the hill to an overwhelming attack by the Union Army, even though his forces were significantly outnumbered. For his efforts, Lt. Col. William L. Shy, aged 26, was shot at close range in the head and was killed. After his death and the subsequent end of the Civil War, in commemoration of his bravery, this hill was named Shy’s Hill.
Lt. Col. Shy was not the only person brutally killed that day. Minnesotan soldiers were on the front lines of the Union Army that day and suffered the State’s largest loss of life during this battle than during any other battle throughout the Civil War. The total loss of life during this bloody engagement is estimated to be 9,061 people, according to the American Battlefield Trust.
“The Battle of Nashville was arguably the most strategic battle in Tennessee, leading to the culmination of the Civil War in the Western Theater. The Army of Tennessee had lost nearly 75 percent of its fighting force and ceased to be a serious threat to the Federals,” said Tennessee Wars Commission Program Director Scall.
The battle, and indeed the hill upon which it was fought, was memorialized by illustrator, painter, and author, Howard Pyle. The painting, which now hangs in the Minnesota State Capitol Building, shows the brutality and chaos of the battle as well as accurately depicting the landscape Pyle visited and documented prior to creating this work of art. Pyle is also widely known for his deep ties to Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania, which has been home to North American Land Trust’s headquarters since 1992, creating a subtle but meaningful geographic connection between the artist who preserved the battle in paint and the organization now helping preserve the land itself.
Working together with The Battle of Nashville Trust, the Tennessee Wars Commission, a division of the Tennessee Historical Commission, the State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO), and the Historical Society of Tennessee, North American Land Trust agreed to serve as the temporary holder of a conservation easement for the 2.27-acre Shy’s Hill property, with the intention of assigning this conservation easement to the Tennessee Historical and Wars Commissions in the future. “The Wars Commission is grateful for this budding partnership. Collaboration with likeminded preservation and conservation organizations allows the Wars Commission to expand our efforts, making a greater impact preserving our nations rapidly disappearing Civil War battlefields,” said Wars Commission Program Director. The effort reflects a strong and growing partnership among these organizations and marks the second time North American Land Trust has worked directly in concert with the Tennessee Wars Commission to protect historically significant land in the state, following a prior collaborative preservation effort at the well-known Reflection Riding Arboretum & Nature Center in Chattanooga.
The preservation and permanent protection of Shy’s Hill represent more than the conservation of a small but meaningful parcel of land. It reflects the power of collaboration among mission aligned organizations working toward a shared goal of honoring history while safeguarding natural and cultural resources for future generations. Through the combined efforts of North American Land Trust, The Battle of Nashville Trust, the Tennessee Wars and Historical Commissions, and the Historical Society of Tennessee, this project stands as an example of how thoughtful partnerships, historical stewardship, and conservation values can come together to ensure that even modest landscapes with profound stories continue to endure.
