26 Things to Do in Middle Tennessee This Weekend: Sept 11-13, 2026
This weekend in Middle Tennessee (September 11 to 13, 2026), the biggest events are Uncle Dave Macon Days at Hop Springs in Murfreesboro, the 23rd annual Sherry's Run 5K in Lebanon Saturday morning, and Lebanon's 25th anniversary September 11 remembrance ceremony at City Hall. Twenty-six events span Wilson, Davidson, Rutherford, and Williamson counties.
Friday is the 25th anniversary of September 11, and Lebanon is marking it twice: a ceremony outside City Hall at nine in the morning, and an evening gathering for military and first responders out on West Main. Saturday belongs to Sherry's Run, which closes a stretch of West Main and pulls a few thousand people downtown before most of the county is up. If you have a whole weekend to give away, Uncle Dave Macon Days runs Friday through Sunday at Hop Springs. t things to do in Middle Tennessee this weekend
hings to do in Middle Tennessee this weekend
Wilson County: Lebanon, Mt. Juliet & Watertown things to do in Middle Tennessee this weekend
Everything happening in Wilson this weekend traces back to one of two things, the September 11 anniversary or Sherry's Run.
City of Lebanon September 11th Remembrance Ceremony
Friday, September 11 · 9:00 AM · Lebanon City Hall, Lebanon · Check listing for pricing
Held outside City Hall on Castle Heights, running about ninety minutes. Twenty-five years is the kind of anniversary that draws a bigger crowd than usual, so park on the street a block or two out rather than circling the City Hall lot.
Bad Ash Stogies Military, First Responders, and 9/11 25th Anniversary Remembrance Event
Friday, September 11 · 5:00 PM · Bad Ash Stogies, Lebanon · Check listing for pricing
Evening remembrance out at 1400 West Main, five to eight. The listing is thin on detail, so call ahead if you want specifics. Adults only, given the venue.
Kids Night In at Hope Baptist Church
Friday, September 11 · 6:00 PM · Hope Baptist Church, Lebanon · $10 for the first 2 children, additional children free
Two hours of supervised childcare for toddlers through fifth grade while you go do something else. Ten dollars for the first two kids and capped at twenty is about as cheap as a Friday night sitter gets in this county. It runs the second Friday of most months and you register ahead at hopelebanon.com.
Sherry's Run 5K Run/Walk
Saturday, September 12 · 8:00 AM · 623 West Main Street, Lebanon · $35 to $55
This is the one Lebanon event I tell people to plan around. Twenty-third year, thousands of participants, and it benefits Sherry's Hope, which helps Wilson County families going through cancer treatment. Registration opens at 6:30 and the shotgun start is at 8:00 sharp. Online registration closes Saturday morning at 8:00, so sign up before then if you want the shirt. Expect West Main to be closed and plan your Saturday errands around it either way.
Roughly half the folks I work with moved here from somewhere else, and almost all of them started by visiting on a weekend like this one. If you're in that stage, let's talk, no obligation, just answers.
Davidson County: Nashville
Metro Parks is carrying Nashville this weekend, and nearly all of it is outdoors and low cost.
Fort Negley Park Guided Walking Tour
Friday, September 11 · 10:00 AM · Fort Negley, Nashville · Check listing for pricing
Ninety minutes walking the fort site with a guide. There is a second tour Saturday at the same hour if Friday morning does not work.
Writing in the Wild
Friday, September 11 · 10:00 AM · Shelby Bottoms Nature Center, Nashville · Check listing for pricing
An hour of guided writing outdoors at Shelby Bottoms. Quiet, small, and not the sort of thing that shows up on the big Nashville event lists.
Early Morning Bird Hike
Saturday, September 12 · 7:30 AM · Shelby Bottoms Nature Center, Nashville · Check listing for pricing
Fall migration is on, which is the whole reason to be out there at 7:30 on a Saturday. Bring binoculars if you have them.
Archery Session #1 with Outdoor Nashville
Saturday, September 12 · 9:00 AM · Bells Bend Park, Nashville · Check listing for pricing
Two hours of archery at Bells Bend. A second session runs 1:00 to 3:00 the same afternoon, so if the morning fills up there is a backup.
Fossil Finders
Saturday, September 12 · 10:00 AM · Fort Negley Park, Nashville · Check listing for pricing
Kids hunting fossils on the hillside at Fort Negley for two hours. Good one to pair with the walking tour at the same site.
Nature Tent: Bats
Saturday, September 12 · 10:00 AM · Alvin G. Beaman Park, Nashville · Check listing for pricing
Drop-in tent program about bats, so you can show up whenever between ten and noon instead of committing to a start time.
Autumn Porch Jam
Saturday, September 12 · 1:00 PM · Shelby Bottoms Nature Center, Nashville · Check listing for pricing
Acoustic players on the nature center porch for a couple of hours. Low key, no stage, bring a chair.
Fall Star Party
Saturday, September 12 · 8:00 PM · Warner Park Nature Center, Nashville · Check listing for pricing
My pick of the Nashville list. Local astronomers set up telescopes out at Warner Park for the Andromeda Galaxy, the Hercules Star Cluster, and maybe Saturn. All ages, but registration is required by email, so do that before Saturday rather than showing up cold.
Rutherford County: Murfreesboro, Smyrna & La Vergne
Uncle Dave Macon Days takes up most of the oxygen down here, and it has earned it.
Uncle Dave Macon Days: A Roots Rendezvous
Friday, September 11 through Sunday, September 13 · Doors 4:30 PM Friday · Hop Springs, Murfreesboro · Parking $10 per car
Forty-eight years of this festival and it is still the best old-time music weekend in Middle Tennessee. Friday opens at 4:30 with the MTSU String Band and the Cripple Creek Cloggers. Saturday is the big day, gates at nine and the National Old-Time Banjo Contest at ten, running through Leroy Troy and the Jake Leg Stompers in the evening. Sunday is gospel from one to 5:30. New this year is the Matilda Macon Artisan Village plus mule-drawn wagon rides and a petting zoo, which makes Saturday the day to bring kids. Parking is ten dollars a car, so carpool.
Top Gun Night Run
Friday, September 11 · 7:30 PM · Lee Victory Recreation Park, Smyrna · Check listing for pricing
Evening run at Lee Victory in Smyrna, 7:30 to 9:30. Bring a headlamp.
La Vergne Fall Festival & Parade
Saturday, September 12 · 10:00 AM · La Vergne Parks & Rec, La Vergne · Check listing for pricing
La Vergne's fall festival and parade, ten to three. La Vergne does not get written up much, and this is the weekend it is worth the drive.
Living History: The Confederates Fight for Murfreesboro
Saturday, September 12 · 10:00 AM · Stones River National Battlefield, Murfreesboro · Check listing for pricing
Living history programming at the battlefield running most of the day, ten to 3:30. Wear real shoes, you cover ground.
Hallowed Ground: A Lantern Tour of Stones River National Cemetery
Saturday, September 12 · 6:30 PM · Stones River National Battlefield, Murfreesboro · Check listing for pricing
Lantern tour through the national cemetery after dark. There is a 6:30 and a 7:00 listed, so confirm your slot when you book. Of everything on this weekend's list, this is the one that sticks with people.
Williamson County: Franklin, Brentwood & Nolensville
Franklin is running a market-heavy Saturday, and the Heritage Ball moves out to Harlinsdale this year.
Timeless Tales: Celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month
Friday, September 11 · 9:00 AM · The Franklin Theatre, Franklin · Check listing for pricing
Thirty minutes of bilingual storytelling, music, and dance at the Franklin Theatre with BetterOptionsTN. Short enough that a squirmy three-year-old can make it through.
Farm Market Fridays at the Davis General
Friday, September 11 · 11:00 AM · The Davis General, Brentwood · Free
Friday farm market over on Flagpole Court in Brentwood. Free to walk through.
Craft Continuum
Friday, September 11 and Saturday, September 12 · Williamson County Archives and Museum, Franklin · Free
Craft exhibition at the county archives, up both Friday and Saturday. No posted start time on the listing, so check hours before you drive over.
NewFound Road
Friday, September 11 · 8:00 PM · The Franklin Theatre, Franklin · $40.00
Bluegrass at the Franklin Theatre. Forty dollars, and the Franklin Theatre is a small enough room that it usually goes.
Factory Farmers Market
Saturday, September 12 · 8:00 AM · The Factory at Franklin, Franklin · Free
Eight in the morning at the Factory. Get there early if you want produce rather than what is left of it.
Franklin Flea Market
Saturday, September 12 · 9:00 AM · Williamson County Ag Expo, Franklin · Free
Flea market out at the Ag Expo Park. Free to get in, bring cash for the booths.
Guided Cider Tasting
Saturday, September 12 · 11:00 AM · Morning Glory Orchard, Nolensville · $30
Guided hard cider tasting at Morning Glory in Nolensville. Thirty dollars, adults, and there is a Taste and Tour at two if eleven is early for you.
Family Messitval
Saturday, September 12 · 2:00 PM · John P. Holt Brentwood Library, Brentwood · Free
Hands-on messy play at the Brentwood library. It is free and it is exactly what the name says, so dress the kids accordingly and keep a towel in the car.
53rd Annual Heritage Ball
Saturday, September 12 · 5:00 PM · Harlinsdale Farm, Franklin · Check listing for pricing
Williamson County's longest-running black-tie evening, and this year it moves to Harlinsdale Farm. Fifty-third year, five to eleven, tickets and silent auction handled through GiveSmart. Evening event, so not one for the kids.
Details can change, dates get moved and events get cancelled. I link every event to its source so you can confirm before you drive out.
I post one of these every week because I think the best argument for living in Middle Tennessee is just showing people what a normal weekend looks like. If you want to make it your normal weekend, I can help.
If you drove in for Sherry's Run or the festival and found yourself wondering what it actually costs to live out here, I ran the rent-versus-buy numbers for Lebanon earlier this year. And if the Nashville side of this list is where you keep landing, the new condo loan rules that hit in August are worth reading before you start looking downtown.
Khristian Schlemmer is a REALTOR® and the founder of First Class Real Estate in Lebanon, Tennessee. He lives and works in Wilson County and helps buyers, sellers, and folks relocating to Middle Tennessee find their footing here. Reach him at 615.427.5672 or khristian@nearnashvillehomes.com.
Event details are compiled from public listings and were accurate at the time of publication. Confirm with the organizer before making plans. First Class Real Estate is not affiliated with and does not endorse the events listed.
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