Franklin is 21 miles south of Nashville, about 30 minutes on I-65. It sits in Williamson County, the wealthiest county in Tennessee and one of the wealthiest in the Southeast, which explains why its downtown has been maintained rather than redeveloped. A half-day here rewards people who want history, independent retail, and a meal without crowds.
The Civil War Sites
The Battle of Franklin on November 30, 1864, was among the bloodiest hours of the entire Civil War. In about five hours, roughly 10,000 men were killed, wounded, or captured across both armies. Two sites interpret this history directly.
Carnton Plantation (1345 Carnton Lane, $15 adults for guided tours) is a 193-year-old house that served as the largest Confederate field hospital after the battle. The porch and grounds still show the scale of what happened. The adjacent Confederate cemetery holds nearly 1,500 soldiers. The house tour is specific and not sanitized about what took place there.
The Carter House (1140 Columbia Avenue, $15 adults) is where Union troops established their command post while the Carter family hid in the basement during the battle. One family member, Tod Carter, was mortally wounded near his own home. The bullet holes in the outbuildings are visible and unreconstructed.
Between these two sites, Franklin offers some of the most direct encounter with Civil War reality available in Tennessee.
The Downtown Square
Franklin’s downtown square (Main Street and surrounding blocks) is a legitimate historic district with independent businesses that have persisted despite the area’s rapid growth. Landmark Booksellers has anchored the square for years and carries a well-curated selection with Civil War and Tennessee history sections worth time. The antique stores on Main Street carry actual merchandise rather than decorative nostalgia, particularly for Civil War-era items.
For coffee, Honest Coffee Roasters has a location on the square with an independent roasting program. For food, Puckett’s Grocery (120 Fourth Ave S) does lunch with live music that is not a tourist gimmick but an actual music venue operated by a local restaurant group.
Leiper’s Fork
Fifteen minutes west of downtown Franklin on Highway 46, Leiper’s Fork is a village of maybe 650 residents that somehow absorbed the zeitgeist of what Nashville’s countryside used to feel like. There is a general store, a handful of antique dealers, and a Saturday presence of artists and musicians who left Nashville to live somewhere that still has a county road feel.
Puckett’s has an outpost here too. The drive on Leiper’s Creek Road from the main village into the surrounding hills is worth doing just for the visual, particularly in fall.
What to Skip
Factory at Franklin is a large outdoor mall built in a former stove manufacturing facility. It is fine but it is a mall. The Civil War sites and the downtown square are more specific to what Franklin actually offers.
Timing
Franklin’s downtown is most accessible on weekdays. Weekend foot traffic from Nashville day-trippers has increased substantially. The Civil War sites require planning around tour times, both Carnton and Carter House require advance reservation, especially for guided tours.
A reasonable half-day sequence: arrive at 10 a.m., do Carnton (90 minutes), drive to Carter House (45 minutes), walk the downtown square for lunch and browsing (90 minutes), and drive back to Nashville by mid-afternoon. Leiper’s Fork adds another hour if the schedule allows.
Sources:
- Carnton Plantation: official site, tour pricing and hours
- Carter House: official site, Battle of Franklin Trust
- Landmark Booksellers: Franklin, TN
- Tennessee Historical Commission: Franklin Civil War history
- Honest Coffee Roasters: Franklin location