The initial task of this book was to identify those buildings thought by architects worthy of inclusion. This was done by a survey of Nashville architects in the summer of 1987. These architects were asked to name, without priority, the 20 Nashville buildings dating from the period 1930-1980 which exemplify, in their most objective judgment, the best in architecture. They were asked to refrain from naming any of their own works. All told 147 eligible buildings were named. The next phase was to enlist writers to write the articles, many of whom were architects themselves. The guidelines included a brief history of the buildings as well as the architects’ design intentions. The buildings have been included in chronological order.