Fernweh, An Ache for Distant Places

FRANKLIN, TN is a small historic town located 20 miles southwest of Nashville. It was founded in 1799 on 640 acres by a surveyor named Abram Maury who wanted to name it Marthasville after his wife, Martha, but she would not let him.

Instead, he named it after Ben Franklin.

Maury’s town plot divided downtown into sixteen blocks with 188 lots around a public square in the middle.

The downtown area and its historic buildings that fill the sixteen blocks surrounding Public Square have been on the National Register of Historic Places since the 1970s. 

Main Street is the primary road through downtown, running between 5th Ave on the west end and 1st Avenue on the eastern end.

One block north of Main is Bridge Street and one block south of Main is Church Street, forming a rectangle around Public Square as they meet 5th and 1st Avenues.

Main Street is also called Hwy 31, which runs over 1,200 miles all the way from Mackinaw City, Michigan down to Mobile, Alabama.

UPON FIRST IMPRESSION
My friends and I had gone to see IDLES in Nashville the previous night and decided to check out Franklin the next day. It is definitely no East Nashville where we usually hang out, with its Y’allternative punk, metalgrass, and rockabilly bands playing in bowling alleys, vegan cafes, oddity boutiques, and pop-up vintage shops.

I will be honest, I was pretty bored in downtown Franklin. Most of its historic cultural sites are located outside of downtown, and many of them have ties to (pro)Confederate history. That definitely is not my thing. Neither is shopping, and Main Street is a tiresome one shop after another, after another. 

To be fair though, it was a Tuesday morning and it was so hot out, and I was really hungry.

FEED MEEEE
The first item on our agenda (mine, anyways) was to find something to eat. 

We had a great meal at Franklin Mercantile & Deli, where you can get the perfect Pick Two combo of a cup of soup or salad with a sandwich. 

This really seems like the place to be on a weekday during lunch, and the prime spot for people watching. 

I was bummed that the Amendment XVIII speakeasy, the place I was most interested in, was closed even though the sign and website said they were open. 

Later on, we stopped by Sweet Cece’s to sample some of their ice cream and take some cold drinks to go. 

CRAFT COFFEE TRAIL
Franklin has a self-guided Craft Coffee Trail and you can pick up your passport for this and other themed-tours in the Visitors Center. 

We did not make it to every single place during our short, hours-long visit to Franklin but we enjoyed each place we visited. 

Merridee’s Breadbasket was my favourite. The founder, Merridee herself, was originally from Minnesota and the bakery is rather Swedish influenced. You will see various things on the menu with Swedish names and some Viking imagery around the interior. 

Merridee’s has been featured on the Food Network, in Southern Living Magazine, on various television shows, and has received loads of “Best Bakery” awards over the years. 

Stable Reserve Distillery & Coffee Bar is the perfect place for someone who can not decide if they want to drink coffee, get drunk, or do both at the same time. 

Whatever you want, even if you do not know yet, they can make it. The Stable Reserve brand itself is pretty on point. 

Other local booze spots include Arrington Vineyards, Company Distilling at Thompson’s Station, Curio Brewing Co., Mill Creek Brewing Co., and the new location of Leiper’s Fork Distillery House of Spirits on Main Street. 

SHOPPING
There number of places to go shopping on Franklin’s Main Street are endless, and I was impressed to learn that most of them are women-owned.

No one seemed to have anything larger than a size 12, though. I am a 6′ tall woman of German, Scott-Irish, and Cherokee ancestry so all the whimsical little paper-thin dresses and country girl crop tees on the market there just do not cut it for me. 

Anyways, I did find several interesting stores like Rooted, Landmark Booksellers, Green Room, and Avec Moi. The sweet older lady who works at Avec Moi is the embodiment of elegance. We enjoyed talking to her so much, and we all ended up buying matching suede gloves with little bows on the wrist. 

Several other places had some cute décor and paper goods, but I forget all the names. 

While my friends were shopping, I wandered to the central square to check out the monuments but again, very (pro)Confederacy there. 

Civil War buffs should check out sites like Carter’s Hill Battlefield Park, Eastern Flank Battlefield Park, or follow one of the Civil War tours like Civil War Trails, Battle of Franklin Driving & Walking Tour, and Winstead Hill Park.

HISTORIC SITES
Most of Franklin’s historic sites are located outside of Main Street or downtown, and we were sadly not able to stay long enough to drive to each one of them.

If I were to return, I would definitely visit Franklin’s History & Culture Center, the Old Jail (now home to the Heritage Foundation) and Old Courthouse, the Lotz House Museum, Carnton House, the Carter House, LeHew Magid Big House for Historic Preservation, Harpeth Hotel, McLemore House Museum, Moore-Morris History & Culture Center, and the Tossaint L’ouverture Cemetery.

Franklin Theatre is known as the “Crown Jewel of Main Street.” This modest Art Deco theatre first opened in 1938 and was a serious hit because it was the first building in town with air conditioning.

The oldest commercial building that is still standing in Franklin is Landmark Booksellers, built in 1808.

Landmark was the inspiration for Karen Kingsbury’s book The Bridge which was later adapted as a Hallmark movie, and I do not think you could find a more suitable place for filming one. 

Franklin’s Visitors Center and Williamson Co. Archives are both located on Main Street.

The Visitors Center is where you can pick up brochures or book your spot in a Franklin Driving / Walking Tour or on the African American Heritage Tour. 

LEIPER’S FORK VILLAGE
You can also take the public shuttle from Franklin to the Leiper’s Fork Village a couple miles away where, brace yourselves, you can do even MORE shopping. 

Leiper’s Fork is really adorable and has an old-fashioned Mayberry vibe to it. 

There are so many beautiful old homes in this village as well, if you are more interested in architecture like me. 

I ended up liking Franklin more after we stayed for a while. It rightfully deserves the title as one of Tennessee’s Great American Main Streets, and would be the perfect spot for a weekend shopping spree. 

In the area for a while? Follow us to my favourite place in the Nashville Metro, East Nash! 

*************
© Fernwehtun, 2015- Current. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this site’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Fernwehtun and Fernwehtun.com with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.