downtown, take TN 6 South/US 31 South/8th Avenue South/US 70 Scenic East, and continue to follow this road for the next 18 miles. When you reach the traffic circle, continue straight onto Main Street and then turn left onto 5th Avenue South. Follow 5th Avenue slightly to the right as it becomes Lewisburg Avenue. A little more than half a mile down the road, turn right onto Carnton Lane. The plantation and house will be on your left.
history
Important people from across the country would come to Carnton after it was built in 1826. A former mayor of Nashville named Randal McGavock built the house as an important social destination for politicians of the time, including President Andrew Jackson. However, tragedy and heartache would eventually seep into the once idyllic ambience of the plantation and completely change its atmosphere.
When Randal died in 1843, Carnton passed to his son, John. John and his wife, Carrie, had five children, but three of those children died in the house at a young age, a tragedy that would forever affect John, Carrie, and the entire atmosphere of the house.
Eventually, death would enter this household in a much more dramatic way. On November 30, 1864, the Battle of Franklin raged throughout the night. The dying and wounded were moved to local buildings for medical care, and since Carnton was such a large house so close to the epicenter of the battle (see Carter House chapter), Carnton became the largest field hospital in the area. Estimates suggest that at least 300 Confederate wounded and dying were in the house at any given time. Beyond this, the grounds and slave quarters were also used to tend to the dead. Hundreds of Confederate soldiers died on this property in the aftermath of the battle. Today, you can still see the bloodstains on the floors throughout the house, most markedly within the children’s bedroom, which was used as an operating room.
Land adjacent to the family cemetery on the property was used to bury nearly 1,500 Confederate dead in the aftermath of the battle (see McGavock Confederate Cemetery chapter). Within the next few decades, the house and the Confederate cemetery would both fall somewhat into disrepair. It wasn’t until relatively recently that the house and cemetery were restored and turned into the museum that it is today.
ghost story
Nearly every corner of this property is said to contain ghosts, most likely because of the somewhat dark history here. The first ghost that is often seen and heard within the house itself has been named by those who witness her “the Weeping Maiden.” People will see a woman dressed in Civil War–era clothing crying in different areas of the house. The bottom quarter of her dress is always soaked with blood. Sometimes, this weeping maiden is not seen but is simply heard, her sobs echoing through the house without any discernible source.
Another ghost that resides in this house is a fiddler that haunts the front parlor. Again, this ghost is both seen and heard by employees and visitors alike.
Once, the final group tour of the day was visiting the upstairs of the building after the house had been locked up for the night. To their surprise, they saw a woman and a small boy in Civil War clothing walking back and forth across the balcony. Suddenly these two figures vanished. On another occasion, a boy tried to climb the railing on the same balcony but was noticeably pushed off by some unseen force.
Finally, there are many ghostly remnants here from the Battle of Franklin. Voices of dying soldiers can be heard throughout the property. Also, the sounds of battle itself can often be detected in the distance by visitors to Carnton Plantation.
visiting
For normal tours, the building is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. every day of the week except Sunday, when it’s open from 1 to 5 p.m. These tours are a good time to experience many of the ghosts at the plantation because this is when many of the sightings occur. Tours last for an hour and cost $12 per person. The last tour starts at 4 p.m.
During the Halloween season, Carnton also offers ghost tours of the property at night. The cost of the tour is $20, and the tour times and dates are subject to change. For further information about the ghost tours, visit the building’s website at www.carnton.org.
CARTER HOUSE
1140 Columbia Ave., Franklin, TN 37064
directions
From downtown Nashville, take I-65 South to Exit 74B, merging onto TN 254 West/Old Hickory Boulevard toward Brentwood. Turn left at Franklin Pike and continue onto TN 6 South/US 31 South/Franklin Road. Continue straight at the traffic circle onto Main Street/Public Square, continuing to follow Main Street. Take a left onto Columbia Avenue, and the Carter House is on the right.
history
Essentially, the Carter House was the epicenter of one of the bloodiest battles of the entire Civil War. The house itself was built in 1829 by a man named Fountain Carter, and for many years his family lived in the house in relative happiness. Eventually, Fountain’s wife died in the house along with 4 of his 12 children. When the Civil War broke out, three of Fountain’s sons joined the Confederate army.
One of these sons, Tod Carter, became captain. He was captured at Missionary Ridge but escaped, returning to his unit to continue the fight. Since he had gone through the hardships of being a prisoner of war, his unit allowed him to go visit his family in Franklin.
On the night of November 29, Tod stayed the night at a friend’s house, which was only a couple miles from his family home. He planned to reunite with his family the next day. History would have other plans. Union forces had planned to sneak past the Confederate forces in Franklin by crossing the Harpeth River during the night. Unfortunately, the river level was too high and the Union forces could not cross. They set up defenses at the Carter home and braced for the next day’s attack.
It wasn’t until around 4 p.m. the next day that the Confederate forces were finally organized enough to mount an attack. The battle raged through most of the night. Tod Carter, knowing that his family was trapped inside the house that stood at the center of the battle, organized a charge toward the Union center and his family home. He was hit by several bullets and fell in his own yard.
The Confederate army won the battle but lost almost three times as many men as the Union. Tod, wounded, was carried into the Carter House, where he was laid on the bed in his sister Annie’s room. He died from his wounds only a couple feet from the place where he was born.
ghost story
Nearly 150 years has passed since the Battle of Franklin, but the ghosts of that night are still prevalent within the home. While there are, of course, ghostly remnants of soldiers here who died during the battle, either manifested through phantom footsteps or inexplicable shadows, the most often experienced casualty of the battle is that of Tod Carter himself. Tod can be seen throughout the house, most often sitting on the side of the bed in Annie’s room where he died or in the hallway in the downstairs of the house. It seems as if Tod finally made it home and nothing—not even death—is going to take him away.
Much of the other phenomena that occur here are attributed to Annie Carter, Tod’s sister. Items will suddenly move by themselves, falling inexplicably from a dresser or simply flying as if tossed across the room. Other times, a ball will roll down the hallway without anyone having pushed it, or an unsuspecting tourist will feel a tug on his or her sleeve, only to look down and find no one there.
Occasionally,
