Curious Nashville: the whereabouts of Union Station's original Mercury

This Is Nashville · Jul 21, 2026 · 49m

Union Station has a lot of unique attributes. And no, we're not talking about the fact that it doesn't serve any train lines.

If you look up at the top of the clock tower, you'll see a two-dimensional rendition of Mercury, the Roman Messenger God. That's not the original, though. The first Mercury was 3D and mounted near the turn of the century, where it stood for nearly fifty years until heavy wind gusts knocked it off its fastening.

Listener Christina phoned into Curious Nashville and asked this question:

"It was Mercury, and it was there until the renovation, and until Union Station became…