Home | Mission | Upcoming Events | Recent Events | Newsletter | Store | Contact

DrivingTour

Battle of Franklin 143rd Anniversary

November 30, 2007

Click for photos

STFB Annual Meeting

November 8, 2007

Ferguson Hall, Spring Hill Tennessee

where Maj. Gen. Earl Van Dorn, Confederate cavalry commander was murdered by a jealous husband.

STFB Triune Earthworks Tour

November 3, 2007

On a beautiful Fall morning, a crowd of more than 50 gathered for a tour of the Triune Earthworks. 

Click for the full article and photos

"Why Franklin Matters" Symposium

June 21-23, 2007

A recent symposium titled “Why Franklin Matters” was sponsored by several local preservation groups including Save the Franklin Battlefield (STFB).  The weekend event included lectures from several local historians and experts on the November 1864 battle with a central theme being heritage tourism and Franklin’s overall significance in the war. 

Click for the full article and photos

Battle of Franklin 142nd Anniversary

 November 30, 2006

Color guards led "Confederate" and "Union" bands to the Confederate monument for the 142nd Battle of Franklin Anniversary Ceremony. 

On November 30, the Battle of Franklin's 142nd anniversary, STFB volunteers and many others worked with one eye on the weather while placing 10,000 candle luminaries around the town square in honor of the dead, wounded, and missing resulting from the 1864 carnage.  Wind, cold, and rain were forecasted, but Franklin residents were determined the event would take place regardless.

Click for the full article and photos

STFB Annual Meeting

November 14, 2006

White Hall, Spring Hill Tennessee, headquarters of General Earl Van Dorn.

Forty-one intrepid souls braved a cold drizzle the evening of November 14 to assemble at White Hall in Spring Hill for the STFB Annual Meeting. This historic home was the headquarters of General Earl Van Dorn the spring of 1863. As is well known, Van Dorn was requested to move his offices elsewhere after he was visited in his quarters by Jessie Peters, wife of then absent Dr. Peters, who later returned to town to confront and murder Van Dorn.  But that’s another story, more later.

STFB Eastern Flank Battlefield Tour

 August 19, 2006

The photo above documents most of the crowd of 185 gathered for the Eastern Flank Tour on August 19, 2006 sponsored by STFB.

Click for the full article and photos

STFB Triune Earthworks Tour

 April 1, 2006

Director of Programs for the Tennessee Wars Commission, Fred Prouty explains the significance of the Triune Earthworks during the tour on Saturday April 1, 2006.

April 1 in Triune, Tennessee saw 50 brave souls tramping the low ridge north-east of the town's crossroad. They were following and listening to Fred Prouty, Director of Programs for the Tennessee Wars Commission explain the construction and Civil War events related to these extensive earthworks.

Eastern Flank Park Celebration

 February 7, 2006

On February 7th, the City of Franklin hosted an event on the Eastern Flank property to celebrate the acquisition of 112 acres of core Franklin battlefield, and to publicly thank the many individuals and organizations that brought the project from dream to reality.

Battle of Franklin 141st Anniversary

 November 30, 2005

Mayor Miller begins the demolition of the Pizza Hut located near where General Patrick Cleburne fell.

At 10:30 Wednesday morning, November 30, 2005, Franklin Mayor Tom Miller hosted a special event to demolish the Pizza Hut on Columbia Avenue in Franklin near the Carter House.  The City had recently purchased the corner lot for $300,000 which is near the main Federal trench line and near the place where Patrick Cleburne fell during the 1864 battle.

Click for the full article and photos

Mayor Miller and Rod Heller at the signing of the contract for the purchase of the former Country Club of Franklin.

As November 30 approached, it appeared the contract between the seller and the City of Franklin was bogged in details and wordsmithing that might delay the signing until late December.  But early Wednesday morning, prior to the Pizza Hut celebration, Rod Heller, the seller from Washington DC, and the city officials got all the final contract details settled, after much hard work, and both parties signed the contract in presence of the Pizza Hut crowd.  What a stunning surprise... truly unbelievable. 

At the close of his comments, Mayor Tom Miller said that this day marked just the beginning of battlefield reclamation efforts in Franklin.  He gave no details - but stay tuned - watch this space. 

Much of the crowed gathered at 6:30 Wednesday evening at Carnton Plantation for a candlelight reception to thank and recognize Rod Heller, the many private donors, CWPT guests, and city officials.  Carnton Plantation Executive Director Angela Calhoun, Jim Lighthizer, Ed Bearss, and 'Widow of the South' author Robert Hicks all spoke briefly with their observations of the day's events, and the hard work leading up to this day.  It was truly a day to remember.  Everyone there understood that we weren't just preserving history, together we were making preservation history.

STFB Annual Meeting

 November 13, 2005

Historian Rick Warwick spoke on "The Eastern Flank of the Battle of Franklin" at the 2005 STFB Annual Meeting.

fast, Arbor Day Federal encampment at Pinkerton Park-Ft. Granger, Carnton/Franklin's Charge celebration, the October 21 Preservation March, Collins' Farm winterization, monthly Newsletter publication, an average of one group workday per month with many individuals working additional days, and the November 30 Pizza Hut and Country Club transfer.

Click for the full article and photos

2005 STFB Preservation March for Franklin

 October 22, 2005

In the predawn darkness of Saturday Oct 22, a small group of dedicated volunteer re-enactors huddled around a truck tailgate for donuts and hot coffee.  They were preparing for the 15 mile march from Spring Hill into Franklin retracing the steps of both armies just before the bloody Battle of Franklin on November 30, 1864. Their goal was to raise funds from their per-mile sponsors for the repair of the Collins Farm house located on the Franklin battlefield on Lewisburg Pike at the CSX railroad crossing.

Click for the full article and photos