Franklin is famous for its Civil War history – but you might be wondering how to get your children interested in the town’s multifaceted past. Fortunately, we’ve got plenty of guided tours and historic sites that keep kids’ interests and attention spans in mind. Here are ten of our favorite spots to give your kids a history lesson on Franklin – often without them even realizing it!
Guided Walking Tours
One of my favorite ways to teach my kids about the history of a place without them realizing it is to sign up for a ghost tour. A good tour guide will expertly weave the city’s history into the ghostly tales that keep kids mesmerized.
Franklin has two great tour options – Franklin on Foot Tours and Franklin Walking Tours. Both offer highly-rated ghost tours that are also family friendly. You’ll walk through Franklin’s historic district and hear about its most haunted structures, while getting a local history lesson in the process!
The Natchez Trace Parkway
Imagine a national park that’s nearly 450 miles long… It may sound impossible, but it exists! Starting in Nashville, Tennessee, and ending in Natchez, Mississippi, the Natchez Trace Parkway is widely recognized as one of the most beautiful scenic drives in the U.S. The Parkway loosely follows the original Natchez Trace; a path first carved out by prehistoric animals, then nomadic Indians, European explorers, and finally wagon trains — By the early 1800s, it was a major thoroughfare for goods headed to and from the Mississippi River.
Once the steamboat came on the scene, traffic slowed substantially on the Natchez Trace, and eventually, the dirt road returned to nature. The National Park Service made plans to build the parkway in 1938, but it wasn’t until 2005 that the Parkway as we know it was finally completed.
Today, the Natchez Trace Parkway is a winding, two-lane roadway where bicycles are welcome, pulling over to take a look around is encouraged, and speeding is all but impossible. Download a National Park Service map and head out on the Parkway from Franklin; you’ll find all kinds of historic stops along the way, from sections of the original Natchez Trace that you can drive down or hike to historic homes, a tobacco barn, a memorial to the War of 1812, and even Meriwether Lewis’s death and burial site. Spend an hour on the Trace or take it all the way to Mississippi – there’s plenty to see along the way.
The Franklin Theatre
Located in the heart of downtown Franklin, the Franklin Theatre is a wonderful place to feel like you’ve traveled back in time while watching a movie or show. Built in 1937, this sumptuous Art Deco theater is known as the Crown Jewel of Main Street. Check the theater’s schedule before your visit to see what’s playing while you’re in town. Upcoming events include popular movies, live theater, and plenty of concerts. The ticket prices are always reasonable, parking is easy to find, and nearby lunch and dinner options abound – for all of these reasons, I can’t recommend this theater enough.
The Battle of Franklin Walking Tour
Make sure your older kids understand the assignment while in Franklin and start your trip with the definitive Battle of Franklin guided walking tour, which takes guests to at least seven different locations on the battlefield and gives details on why it occurred, the arrival of Federal and Confederate armies, and the full story of what became known as one of the greatest single assaults of the entire Civil War. The tour takes approximately 90 minutes and tickets are available for purchase at The Carter House.
Carnton, Carter House, and Rippa Villa
I always try to work in at least a few educational tours and experiences on our family vacations and Franklin has some excellent options. The Battle of Franklin Trust includes three different historic sites in Franklin and Spring Hill and each home has its own unique Civil War-era story. Carnton and the Carter House both are right next to downtown Franklin – the families who lived there during the Civil War had harrowing experiences during the Battle of Franklin. Rippa Villa in Spring Hill sits on 100 acres of farmland and includes an 1855 mansion, a Civil War battlefield, a Freedmen’s Bureau school, and more. Tour one or all of them with your kids to keep them sharp during the summertime — In addition to the traditional tours, each historic site now offers tours focusing on the enslaved people who once lived there, which adds some much-needed context and perspective on what exactly was going on in Tennessee in the 1860s. Level up by downloading the lesson plans offered on the website ahead of time to help you and your kids get the most out of the visit.
The Lotz House
I particularly love the Lotz House tour for kids (I’d say it’s best for ages 10 and up) because the family who lived inside this downtown Franklin home during the bloody Battle of Franklin had children who heard and saw everything. Their story is riveting, and it’s likely to keep your kids interested a lot longer than most other historic home tours would. I took this tour with my daughter when she was 11 and she could not stop talking about it afterward- Because of the children involved, she was able to put herself in their shoes and really listen and understand the Battle of Franklin in a way she hadn’t before.
Preservation Park
Just a few minutes from Franklin, Thompson’s Station has one of the best-kept secrets in all of Middle Tennessee: Preservation Park. The park was created to preserve the land where the Battle of Thompson’s Station took place during the Civil War, which you can read more about here. Take the trail from the parking lot across a bucolic field and up to the top of a grassy hill with 365-degree panoramic views of the gorgeous Williamson County countryside – It’s an amazing spot for a picnic. After the hill, the trail descends into some woods and then loops back around the base of the hill to return you back to where you started. I recommend taking a picture of the map at the trailhead to help guide you along the way.
Digital Passports
Trust me, I know how hard it is to get kids off their phones – so why not let the phones work in your favor by downloading one of Visit Frankin’s Digital Passports and setting off on a historical scavenger hunt? Two favorites are Historic Homes of Hincheyville, which includes historic details of the gorgeous homes surrounding the downtown area, and Great American Main Street, which shares the history behind each building, church, and home along Franklin’s main thoroughfare. As an added bonus, once you’ve completed these self-guided tours, you can head to the downtown Franklin Visitor Center to collect a prize!
Williamson County Museum
In the heart of downtown Franklin, you’ll find a charming, free museum that even many locals don’t know about – it’s a fun stop for children and adults while you’re sightseeing around town. The Williamson County Museum has a permanent collection of artifacts and exhibits devoted to Williamson County’s fascinating history. Before you start exploring, pick up one of the museum’s activity books at the front desk – There’s a scavenger hunt for tweens, teens and adults, a scavenger hunt for younger children, and an activity book for elementary school-aged kids that encourages them to find answers to the activities within the exhibits.
The Moore-Morris History & Culture Center of Williamson County
New to Franklin is The Moore-Morris History & Culture Center of Williamson County, which opened in January 2024 inside Franklin’s old city jail. The museum uses modern technology to tell the town’s story, offering an immersive experience and rotating exhibits. It includes a 4D version of White’s Tavern, using projections, live photographs, sounds and scents to make you feel like you’ve traveled back in time. In other rooms, paintings come to life and tell their stories. And you’ll learn about much more than Civil War stories here; the museum’s exhibits cover Franklin’s history as far back as 15,000 years ago!
