Derived from first-hand accounts and oral histories collected and stored at Vanderbilt University as well as newspapers and other local history sources, this collection is an invaluable look at the “Gay Nineties” in Nashvillians’ own words.
 
It is, however, not a complete insight into Nashville in the 1890s. Readers should take note that the book focuses almost exclusively on the experiences and worldviews of white Nashvillians. These stories have incredible value for local historians and anyone interested in Nashville history, but the book’s failure to deal with race—as evidenced by Waller’s belief that “the social order was thought to be providential,” which was clearly not true for Nashville’s Black residents who struggled against the unjust systems designed to oppress them—is a grave shortcoming.
 

William Waller (1898-1995) was a senior attorney at the Waller, Lansden, & Dortch law firm in Nashville. He received degrees from Vanderbilt University and Yale University. He was a lecturer at the Vanderbilt School of Law and served on the boards of Vanderbilt University and the Ladies Hermitage Association, among other organization. According to a note in the file for this book at Vanderbilt University Press, Waller refused to sign a contract for the book, believing a handshake between gentlemen carried more weight.