Award-winning Franklin, TN

When a town is recognized as one of the most beautiful cities in the South, with honors that include “Best Small Town in Tennessee,” “America’s Most Romantic Main Street,” “Best Southern Town” by Garden & Gun magazine and Southern Living's #5 “Best Small Town in the South” AND it's just minutes from Nashville, we just have to visit this town.

Welcome to Franklin, Tennessee. And its town square.

The red brick building with the pitched roof to the left of the statue of the Confederate soldier is the Maury Darby Building (1815-17), the oldest on the square.

Although the Daughters of the Confederacy was formed shortly after the Civil War, it took 17 years to raise money for this monument. It was to be dedicated on November 30, 1899, the 35th anniversary of the Battle of Franklin. A few days before the dedication, the statue slipped from the ropes as it was being raised to its place on the column, breaking off a piece of the hat's brim. The statue was unveiled, and the locals named this Confederate infantryman "Chip."

The building on the far right in the photo above is the Fifth Third Bank (also shown below).

Old Williamson County Courthouse, 1899

Classic in appearance with a triangular pediment and four cast-iron columns, the courthouse served in this capacity until 2004.

In the 1920s, the Rotary Club named Franklin "Tennessee's Most Handsome Town" to encourage business expansion. Given these views of Main Street today, it is hard to imagine that at one time Franklin was in a sad state of disrepair. Sidewalks were cracked and broken and metal sheeting covered the facades of some of the Victorian buildings.

It was the foresight of a few visionaries who brought Franklin back from the brink. Since the 1960s, Franklin preservations have made a successful and sustained effort to preserve the history of the original square and surrounding businesses and homes.

In 1972, the 16-block Historic District of the original, downtown area was listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It was created to preserve historic commercial and residential architecture of downtown Franklin.

An early 1990s Streetscape project complemented architecture with period lighting, plantings, and public improvements.

The result of these efforts? In 1995, the National Trust for Historic Preservation awarded Franklin one of five "Great American Main Street" awards in the first year of an annual national competition for its outstanding downtown revitalization.

Historic Franklin Presbyterian Church, 1908

The first of three sanctuaries built on this site was built in 1842. It was badly damaged after the Union Army used it as a field hospital after the Battle of Franklin. By 1887, a new church was built, but it burned to the ground in 1905. The third church was soon built and is shown above. A new Presbyterian Church was built in 1995 north of Franklin, hence the name "Historic" Franklin Presbyterian Church for the church above.

Walking along the brick sidewalks and feeling a part of the activity of the other shoppers, visitors, and strollers is an experience that every town hopes to achieve.

Franklin has mastered that quality of shared enjoyment without any airs. Its a genuine welcome and an invitation to join the life of the town.

When we came to the Savory Spice Shop, the simple message on its awning "Taste what you want, buy what you need," in some way, seemed to reflect the town's welcome: "Come look around, join in where you want."

We looked, we sampled, we bought.

Descriptive material taken from the brochure Historic Downtown Franklin Walking Tour.