How many times have you journeyed to take a look at something for yourself, not because of magnificence necessarily, but because of basic oddity? Well, located just north of Highway 70 about 100 yards off the railroad in the town of Hollow Rock is a stone boulder with a chamber of 13 feet running thorough it. The rock itself measures 45 feet long by 13 feet wide and rises 12 feet off the ground. Now, the oddity with this rock is that there is nothing like it to be found for miles around. You have to cross the Tennessee River and approach Nashville, nearly 100 miles away, before any rock seriously breaks the ground. The boulder is the center piece of the town park which was established during the Tennessee Homecoming of 1986 and attracts visitors from miles away. It is the one place the local folks want to take their guests.

Hollow Rock, Tennessee did not exist before the year 1867. The Nashville and Northwestern (now the L&N) was completed during this year along with the opening of station and telegraph offices. Shortly thereafter, a couple of saloons opened, and the town took its name from the large infamous rock nearby.

In the heyday of the hobo on the railroad, the rock was known as a great place to sleep while waiting for the next train. As many as three hobos could squeeze themselves inside to avoid bad weather and yet the sounds of the next train ride were close enough to play as an alarm. As the day of the hobo faded, the rock became more of a place for an intimate encounter for young lovers. The town itself is so proud of its namesake that a previous mayor proposed a plan to relocate the rock closer to the downtown area. Some funds were raised but the project never really took off. Another former mayor, 94 year old Wallace Powley, looking back said, “the entrance to the rock was about shoulder high back when I was a young man. It must have settled some over the years.”

But where could this rock have originated? Has it been there for all time or could it possibly have fallen from the sky many years ago? Nothing written can be found on this subject but there are plenty of opinions to be found in the town of Hollow Rock. Geologists were even hired to find out the rock's origin, but no conclusions have ever been reached. So come see for yourself, hear the opinions of locals and form your own in Hollow Rock, Tennessee.