Most of the contested areas on the three primary battlefields of the Franklin-Nashville Campaign are located on privately owned land:
- Spring Hill
- Franklin II
- Nashville
- Franklin II
Portions of the Spring Hill battlefield are preserved by the Civil War Preservation Trust (CWPT) in partnership with the Maury Heritage Land Trust and Maury County, Tennessee, with assistance from a federal grant from the Land and Water Conservation Fund (administered by the American Battlefield Protection Program of the National Park Service).
Information about the battlefield may be obtained at Rippavilla Plantation, Spring Hill Driving Tour Stop 9. The mailing address is 5700 Main Street, Spring Hill, TN 37174. Telephone: 931-486-9037. Rippavilla Plantation is located just south of Spring Hill, Tennessee, on Highway 31, 1/4 mile south of the Saturn Parkway Exit.
The Rippavilla Mansion, Gift Shop, and Bookstore are open Tuesday through Saturday, 9:00 am to 5:00 pm; Sunday 1:00 pm to 5:00 pm. The last mansion tour begins at 4:00 pm.
A circa 8 mile, self-guided driving tour highlights several important battlefield locations, some on CWPT land and some on private property. Interpretive markers, monuments, and artillery pieces are situated along the driving trail at several Tour Stops.
A primary location on the Franklin II battlefield is the The Carter House, a Registered National Historic Landmark. Its street address is 1140 Columbia Avenue, Franklin, TN 37064. Telephone: 615-791-1861. Fax: 615-794-1327. The mailing address is PO Box 555, Franklin, TN 37065. The Carter House contains a museum of related Civil War artifacts, a video presentation and battlerama, and provides a guided tour of the house and grounds. There is an admission charge. Group rates are available.
Several public and private Battle of Nashville sites are preserved within the greater metropolitan area of Nashville, Tennessee:
- Battle Sites: Shy's Hill (Compton Hill); Granbury's Lunette; Kelley's Point.
- Headquarters: Belmont Mansion; Belle Meade Plantation; Travellers Rest Plantation.
- Fortifications: U.S. Fort Negley; U.S. Blockhouse Casino; Tennessee State Capitol; Confederate Redoubt No. 1.
- Hospital Sites: Metro Planning Department Building; Downtown Presbyterian Church; Sunnyside Mansion.
- Cemeteries: Confederate Circle at Mt. Olivet Cemetery; Nashville City Cemetery; Nashville National Cemetery.
- Monument: Battle of Nashville Peace Monument.
- Headquarters: Belmont Mansion; Belle Meade Plantation; Travellers Rest Plantation.
The Battle of Nashville Preservation Society and Civl War Roundtable, Inc. 615-780-3636. Website: www.bonps.org
The Metropolitan Historical Commission, 209 10th Ave., Suite 414, Nashville, TN, 37203. 615-862-7970. Website: www.nashville.org/hc
TO CONTINUE
start with the three major battles of the Franklin-Nashville Campaign by clicking either Spring Hill, Franklin II, or Nashville
The Last Campaign: The Civil War's Final Epic Struggle
In November of 1864, the 35,000 men of the Army of Tennessee left their encampment in Florence, Alabama, and marched north into the war-parched middle Tennessee in an attempt to retake the state capitol at Nashville. During the ordeal three engagements were fought; first at Spring Hill, then Franklin, and finally on the outskirts of Nashville. In all, the journey would be remembered as the last campaign of the long and bloody Civil War in the west.
(Text Adapted From: The Last Campaign: The Civil War's Final Epic Struggle pamphlet distributed to visitors of the Travellers Rest Plantation and Museum; Carter House; Carnton Plantation; and Rippavilla Plantation.)