Franklin captivates visitors with Civil War stories and an idyllic Main Street lined with enticing shops and restaurants. A sense of well-being prevails.
When asked about my favorite kind of food, I often answer, “Southern.” By that, I mean hearty fare like biscuits and gravy, slow-cooked barbecue, shrimp & grits, fried catfish, fried chicken and fried pimento cheese.
So, on a recent group trip to Franklin, Tennessee, I found myself in paradise during our lunch stop at Puckett’s Restaurant, a combination eatery/grocery with a menu listing all my Southern favorites.
Franklin itself, located 22 miles south of Nashville via I-65, bursts with down-home warmth mixed with upscale flair. Its 16-block downtown historic district abounds with boutiques, art galleries, restaurants and bars.
A relaxed ambience flavors historic Main Street in downtown Franklin, Tennessee. (Photo credit: Visit Franklin)
Despite the cozy, small-town feel you get when strolling along Main Street, this fast-growing community of about 90,000 is not that small and really quite sophisticated. It is the seat of the wealthiest county in Tennessee and home to many country music celebrities.
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Franklin Teems with Tales of the Civil War
In addition to its slew of shopping and dining opportunities, Franklin offers eye-opening lessons in Civil War history. Several attractions, with the help of remaining bloodstains and bullet holes, tell the story of the 1864 Battle of Franklin, the war’s last major conflict and one of its deadliest. More than 2,000 soldiers died, with 7,000 wounded and 1,000 missing.
A guided tour of Carter House, a Federal-style farmhouse built by F. B. Carter in 1830, includes the brick-floor cellar, where the family huddled as the battle raged. When they came up to see the destruction, they soon realized their whole world had changed forever. The grounds were littered with bodies of the dead and dying. Screaming and crying wounded were found pinned beneath other bodies.
Bullet holes in the farm office building at Carter House shine light on the horrors of war. (Photo credit: Visit Franklin)
The Carters’ clapboard farm office building evokes wows from visitors who go inside and witness the hundreds of bullet holes in the walls. It is believed to be the most battle-scarred building still standing from the Civil War.
Tours of Carnton, another home caught up in the Battle of Franklin, served as a field hospital for the wounded, and bloodstains from a century-and-a-half ago are still visible on the bedroom floors. There were some 300 wounded soldiers inside the estate’s Greek Revival-style house and hundreds more spread across the grounds and in outbuildings. At least 44 buildings in Franklin were turned into hospitals housing men from both sides.
One Confederate officer described the scene at Carnton in a letter to his wife: “Every room was filled, every bed had two poor bleeding fellows, every spare space, nick and corner, under the stairs, in the hall, everywhere…and when the noble old house could hold no more, the yard was appropriated until the wounded and dead filled that.”
The home at Carnton estate was the largest field hospital treating Civil War soldiers wounded in the 1864 Battle of Franklin. (Randy Mink Photo)
McGavock Confederate Cemetery, a plot donated by Carnton owner John McGavock, is the final resting place for 1,500 men. It is maintained largely through the efforts of the United Daughters of the Confederacy.
Besides touring the family home at Carnton, visitors can go inside the farm’s one remaining slave house, which may have been occupied by house slaves or skilled laborers. The 1860 Federal census showed that McGavock owned 44 slaves who lived in 11 dwellings. At the time, half the population of Williamson County was enslaved, or more than 12,000 out of 22,000. A quarter of white Tennessee families owned at least one slave. One of Carnton’s specialty tours is the 90-minute “Slavery and the Enslaved.”
Both Carnton and Carter House are managed by the Battle of Franklin Trust, a private, non-profit organization.
Lunchtime Euphoria, Southern Style
After a morning of touring against a backdrop of slavery and war, we lightened the mood with lunch at Puckett’s, where I ordered a Meat & 3 Special, choosing white cheddar grits, smashed sweet potatoes and smoked baked beans to go with the daily special, a crock of chicken pot pie. For starters, we shared Fried Pickles with BBQ chipotle ranch, Fried Green Beans and deep-fried Pimento Cheese Bites with pepper jelly.
Puckett’s, a restaurant and grocery in downtown Franklin, dishes up lip-smacking Southern specialties. (Photo credit: Visit Franklin)
Also tempting me were the Chicken Fried Chicken smothered in white pepper gravy and Shrimp & Grits—blackened jumbo shrimp over Cajun-seasoned white cheddar grits drizzled with BBQ sauce and topped with collard greens. Other stick-to-the-ribs Tennessee favorites include Country Fried Steak, Southern Fried Chicken and Fried Catfish. Puckett’s BBQ Platter is a heaping helping of cherry wood-smoked pulled pork and beef brisket with sweet potato fries, smoked baked beans and homemade slaw.
The menu’s sandwich section lists items like Music City Hot Chicken Sandwich; Smoked Bologna Sandwich, thick-cut and served on white bread; Puckett’s BBQ (pulled pork or beef brisket); and Redneck Burrito, a medley of pulled pork, baked beans and slaw wrapped in a flour tortilla.
Puckett’s is definitely my kind of place. Other Tennessee locations include downtown Nashville, Hendersonville, Columbia, Chattanooga, Pigeon Forge and Murfreesboro. All feature live music on select dates.
Next time in Franklin I might try Gray’s on Main for its upscale Southern dining, innovative cocktails and memorabilia from the pharmacy that occupied the building for 72 years. I’d like to try their Fried Pimento Cheese Balls and Sweet Tea Banana Pudding. The iconic “Gray’s” neon sign bolsters Main Street’s retro ambience.
Another neon notable on Main is the Franklin Theatre sign. Opened in 1937 and refurbished in 2011, the Art Deco auditorium presents classic movies and live performances.
Landmark Booksellers occupies an 1808 Greek Revival building on Main Street in downtown Franklin, Tennessee. Photo credit: Visit Franklin
More Things to See and Do on Main Street in Franklin, Tennessee
Main Street is a treasure chest of building facades in a variety of styles, and many have fascinating historic details inside, like bloodstains and cannon ball indentations from the Battle of Franklin. A Greek Revival gem dating back to 1808, the oldest commercial structure in town, houses Landmark Booksellers, an eclectic independent bookstore. The place has everything from classic titles and new releases to rare limited editions, vintage children’s books and collectible magazines and sheet music. It’s a great place to pick up works on Southern Americana and Tennessee history.
Franklin on Foot offers a variety of walking tours that start at Landmark Booksellers. Its three-hour “Franklin Food Tour” visits seven restaurants and food shops, including Gray’s on Main and Puckett’s. “Haunted Franklin” is an after-dark ghost tour.
Markers on Franklin’s Public Square chronicle the slave markets, lynchings and other challenges faced by the local African American community. The March to Freedom Statue depicts a soldier who served in the Civil War as part of the local branch of the U.S. Colored Troops. The project has become known as “The Fuller Story,” a recent effort to recognize a painful history that previously had been overlooked.
Gray Line TN’s Franklin Hop, a hop-on, hop-off trolley tour, offers live narration and takes you past 50 points of interest, including Main Street, Carnton, Carter House and The Factory at Franklin, a restored 1929 stove factory that’s been transformed into a shopping/dining/entertainment hub.
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By Randy Mink, Senior Editor
Lead photo – Gray Line’s Franklin Hop trolley tour provides an easy way to see the highlights in Franklin, Tennessee. (Photo credit: Visit Franklin)
