Major Eugene Castner Lewis (June 21, 1845 – February 13, 1917) was an American engineer and businessman. He served as the chairman of the

Nashville, Chattanooga and St. Louis Railway The Nashville, Chattanooga and St. Louis Railway was a railway company that operated in the U.S. states of Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama, and Georgia. It began as the Nashville and Chattanooga Railroad, chartered in Nashville on December 11, 1845, ...

from 1900 to 1917. As a civic leader, he helped develop Shelby Park and Centennial Park, including the Parthenon, as well as Union Station.

Early life

Eugene C. Lewis was born on June 21, 1845. His father was the manager of the

Cumberland Iron Works Cumberland Furnace is an unincorporated community in Dickson County, Tennessee, United States. Cumberland Furnace is served by a U.S. Post Office, ZIP Code 37051. History General James Robertson purchased the land now known as Cumberland Furnac ...

. Lewis was educated at the

Pennsylvania Military Academy Widener University is a private university in Chester, Pennsylvania. The university has three other campuses: two in Pennsylvania (Harrisburg and Exton) and one in Wilmington, Delaware. Founded as The Bullock School for Boys in 1821, the school ...

, enrolling in 1862, during the American Civil War.

Business career

Lewis began his career as the president of Sycamore Mills in Cheatham County, Tennessee. He also designed at least two bridges over Sycamore Creek in Nashville. Additionally, he was the honorary president of the

American Association of Engineers American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

. Lewis joined the

as an industrial engineer. He was elected to its board of directors in 1896, and he served as its chairman from 1900 to 1917.

Civic activities

Lewis was appointed as director-general of the Tennessee Centennial Exposition, held a year late in 1897. In particular, he was known to have suggested that a reproduction of the Greek Parthenon be constructed as the centerpiece of Nashville's exhibit and the Exposition. Nashville was nicknamed the "Athens of the South." Its rival Memphis constructed a reproduction of a pyramid. Both exhibits were lit at night and were next to each other on the shore of

Lake Watauga Watauga Lake, located east of Elizabethton, Tennessee, is the local name of the Watauga Reservoir created by the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) with the 1948 completion of the TVA Watauga Dam. The Cherokee National Forest surrounds both the Te ...

. Lewis supported the retention of the popular Parthenon after the exposition closed. (In the 1920s, it was reconstructed in permanent materials and adapted for use as an art museum in the park.) The exposition grounds were adapted as Centennial Park, which Lewis helped develop, along with Shelby Park. Additionally, Lewis helped develop Union Station. On April 19, 1909, Lewis conducted the dedication of the

Sam Davis Statue The Sam Davis Statue is a historic bronze statue of Sam Davis, the "Boy Hero of the Confederacy," outside the Tennessee State Capitol in Nashville, Tennessee. History Its commission was first suggested by Sumner Archibald Cunningham, the found ...

outside the Tennessee State Capitol. Grave of Eugene C Lewis

Marker on Masonic Crypt of Major Eugene C

Lewis was the first vice president of the Nashville Art Association. He was a member of the Park Commission for the City of Nashville from 1910-1912. In 1916, a lawsuit against city government called him as a witness. His and other testimony showed he had hired his son, his brother, his niece, his second nephew and the latter's son to the park commission while he served on it. This was considered illegal nepotism and patronage. He said some appointments were made by others and he had not been aware.

Death

Lewis died on February 13, 1917, in Nashville. He was buried at Mount Olivet Cemetery, in a

mausoleum A mausoleum is an external free-standing building constructed as a monument enclosing the interment space or burial chamber of a deceased person or people. A mausoleum without the person's remains is called a cenotaph. A mausoleum may be consid ...

shaped like an Egyptian pyramid, guarded by two sphinxes.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lewis, Eugene C. 1845 births 1917 deaths People from Nashville, Tennessee Widener University alumni Burials at Mount Olivet Cemetery (Nashville) American engineers Businesspeople from Tennessee 19th-century American businesspeople