We called it ‘The Beacon’ and my parents took us there to eat about once a month in the late 1960s and early 1970s. It was located in the old building next to Fort Donelson National Battlefield in Dover,TN where the Civil War artifacts use to be sold.That was the last use of the building that I know of. One Sunday around noon after church, my family went to ‘The Beacon’ for Sunday lunch. It was a treat. My father loved ‘The Beacon’ and my mother didn’t have to cook.
When we got to the restaurant, the waitress came to our table and started talking about how we had just missed “The Byrds.” The very famous folkd/rock group had just left the little restaurant after they had stopped in for a quick late breakfast. It was believed that took a short tour through Fort Donelson before hitting the road again. They had come into The Beacon and were recognized by some of the waitress staff before they had been seated long.
Several of the members did sign some autographs. They had arrived in a non-descript tour bus that had “The Byrds” plainly stenciled onto the side. It is believed the group made its stop in Dover while on the road after having ust recorded their famous sessions with several Nashville musicians, including Earl Scruggs. Scruggs was in North Carolina when The Byrds paid him a famous recording visit. Others in Dover say the visit was before 1972 when the Scruggs sessions were conducted and recorded and I tend to agree. Based on accounts I have heard, David Crosby was among the players who were here in Dover, so that puts the visit prior to 1972 as he had left the band by then. Has anyone through the years ever heard any more about when The Byrds stopped in Dover, Tennessee for breakfast?
