Nashville Scholars 2026

The history of the Nashville Scholars,
from 1979 to the present…

Established February 19, 1979, by John Shanks, the Nashville Scholars is a convivial group of men and women who gather once a month to celebrate the stories of Sherlock Holmes as well as other writings of Watson’s literary agent, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (1859-1930).
Read about our beginnings.

We are readers, collectors, and authors of essays and books about the 60 canonical stories relating to the adventures of “the world’s first consulting detective,” published between 1887 and 1927. As individuals, we come from widely varied backgrounds.
Meet our members.

At our monthly meetings, we discuss one story chosen from the canon. Members volunteer to lead the discussion, bringing insights they have gleaned from their studies, occasionally preparing a quiz, and following a long-honored tradition of challenging the other members on their scholarship. Meetings sometimes include reading a document that explains our existence, similar to other traditions of Sherlockian societies.
See the Meeting and Story Schedule for 2026.

Occasionally, a special gathering replaces the scheduled monthly meeting. These have become annual events, with others added as our scion society evolves.
Look back at some of our Special Events.

UNDERSHAW: A Significant Chapter in the Nashville Scholars Story

One of the most significant events in our history is the story of our involvement with and connection to the Stepping Stones School, housed in the former home of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Undershaw, in Surrey. Nashville Scholars who assisted in the movement to restore the residence and gave financial assistance to bring about its emergence as a school for challenged students are Dr. Marino Alvarez, Shannon Carlisle, and David Marcum.

In 2012, Dr. Alvarez and his wife, Dr. Vicki Risko, visited Undershaw in Surrey, England, and found the place a shambles. They shared their findings with members of the Nashville Scholars and decided to do all they could to preserve Conan Doyle’s historic home. Dr. Alvarez sent a petition signed by 19 Nashville Scholars to The Undershaw Preservation Trust at Hindhead, England. Here is the complete story of their visit: Undershaw’s Conversion to Stepping Stones School, 2012.

By 2016 when they returned to see the newly completed Stepping Stones School, they found a completely renovated Undershaw and a new school built with money raised literally around the world by devoted Conan Doyle and Sherlock Holmes fans. Here are some of the images they shared.

The work of these three individuals with Undershaw / Stepping Stones School was reported in our 2018, Second Quarter newsletter. This newsletter particularly highlights the connection between Stepping Stone students and the students at
Franklin Special District taught by Shannon Carlisle.

David Marcum, author and collector of New Sherlockian Holmes stories has helped raise over $100,000 for Stepping Stones School through MX Publishing (London). Marcum’s story is quite remarkable. He wrote about his work for the school and recounted his pilgrimage to Undershaw in 2013 in his blog: A 17-Step Program - How I Came to Appreciate Undershaw.

In 2013, Mark Gattis made a video about Undershaw that was published by Telegraph UK. It was the beginning of the drive to save Doyle’s home. Gattis and Steven Moffitt were the co-creators of Sherlock (2010), the television series starring Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman. See it here: Mark Gattis speaks about Undershaw.

Our newsletter, Plugs and Dottles, has been published irregularly since the early days of our scion society. Originally it was a mimeographed paper issue, edited by Gael Stahl and later by Kay Blocker, and mailed to the membership.

To the right is the November 2011 edition. (Click to enlarge it.) Plugs and Dottles newsletter has been copyedited by Dean Richardson since Kay Blocker became editor. Recently, when Jim Hawkins retired from Southwest Airlines in 2017, he joined Dean in co-editing the publication, published only online these days. See the Plugs and Dottles Page.

Members of the Nashville Scholars are active in other scion societies, on occasion visiting their meetings as a featured speaker. Several members of our group have addressed Sherlockian groups in the USA and Canada. In these pandemic times, Zoom meetings have given Sherlockians from other states and countries an opportunity to be “present” at our meetings and we at theirs.

One event several of us have attended over the years is the BSI Weekend in New York City. Billy Fields and Jim Hawkins were frequent guests at the Gaslight Gala, the alternative dinner held in conjunction with the BSI Dinner, which is by invitation only. More about the BSI Weekend celebrating Sherlock Holmes’ birthday, generally conceded to be January 6.

Four of our Nashville members have received their BSI investitures in recent years: Marino Alvarez and Bill Mason in 2015, Shannon Carlisle in 2018, and Jim Hawkins in 2022. Joanne Zahorsky-Reeves, who also received her BSI investiture in 2022, was active in Nashville events until 1999 when she moved to California.

Dr. Alvarez’s summary of the BSI Weekend / 2022

The Nashville Scholars gathered on the back porch and lawn of Marino Alvarez and Vicki Risko
for our annual May meeting of food, fun, and fellowship.