Any tips for a planned Tennessee CW themed trip?

Harris

Private
Joined
Feb 20, 2015
Location
Michigan
I'm planning a Stones River / Franklin / Battle of Nashville visit in May. It will be my first time at these battlefields. I'm looking for advice on must-see CW related sites in the area. Any out of the way cool markers, or little known battle sites? I may do Northern Alabama also as I'm following a CW ancestors regiments footprints.

Thanks in advance.
 
The Nashville sites are a little tricky to locate since most of the battlefield has surrendered to urban development. If you decide to visit Nashville, pick up a copy of Mark Zimmerman's book entitled, "Guide to Civil War Nashville." There are plenty of gold nuggets surrounding this city!

If you visit the sites in Franklin, please start off in the city of Spring Hill. Spring Hill is just south of Franklin. The Civil War Trust has done a wonderful job preserving this hallowed ground. Tour this battlefield and head north towards Franklin. Before you arrive in Franklin, you will pass a small town called Thompson's Station. They have a nice little museum at the reconstructed train depot.

The Stones River National Battlefield is a must see! And please take some time to visit other sites in Murfreesboro. Fortress Rosecrans is a gem!

The Fort Donelson National Battlefield and the Shiloh National Military Park are awesome!

And the Chattanooga / Chickamauga National Battlefields are top-notched!

Bill
 
Just my opinion, but if you're there for 3-4 days, I would set up HQ south of Nashville on I-65. You could take hwy 96 east to Stones River and west to Franklin. To see the sites in Nashville there will be a lot of short driving from one spot to another, Zimmerman's book is an excellent guide for this. Once at each site, there is not a whole lot left to see. Therefore I suggest that you really hit Stones River and Franklin/Spring Hill/Thompson Station/Columbia. You could easily spend the entire time doing nothing but the Franklin Campaign.
 
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You don't want to miss the Carter House or the McGavock Cemetery. After the war ended, the bodies of the Union soldiers were moved to Stone's River National Cemetery in Murfreesboro. However, the federal government would not incur the expense of moving the Confederate dead, so the remains of the Confederate soldiers were moved to a two-acre plot of land donated by the McGavocks. For the rest of her life Carrie McGavock kept watch over that cemetery and kept track of the identity of those buried in it. She eventually developed the nickname "widow of the South."
 
The Henry/Donelson forts can be done in in a morning- see the eagles fly, and dont' forget the Dover Hotel. In my opinion this battlefield is under apreciated. Visit the cemetery and pay your respects. Visitors at the best of times are few and far between, so you have the place to yourselve, and the rangers are not harried and you can spend plenty of time talking to them. Great little visitor center, local people are friendly and do the driving tour. I give this battlefield(s) a thumbs up. Go find Henry it's an interesting walk and hike, all thats left is the earthen walls.
 
At Franklin, I recommend you contact Lotz House and ask Thomas Cartright to give you a tour. Thomas' rendition of Franklin is extremely compelling.
 
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