This Saturday my mother and I drove to Frankilin, Tennesse, to see a few of the civil war sites. Franklin is a site of a huge battle which killed over 10,000 troops. It is not one of the most famous battles because Franklin has not done a good job of preserving the land. But they are now in the process of trying to reclaim areas of the battlefield.
The main place we went to see was the Lotz House. Let me tell you a little about the poor Lotz family. Mr. Lotz came all the way to Franklin, Tennessee, from Germany to bring his master wood crafting skills to America. He built a beautiful house with the finest furnishings, that also served as a show room for his business.
On the day of the battle, Union troops knocked on Mr. Lotz house and told him they were going to do some landscaping, and by landscaping they meant "demolish his property." He took his family across the street to a brick basement to wait out the battle. They stayed there for 17 hours. When they emerged, bodies were everywhere, their house was severely damaged, and being used for a war hospital (the red flag outside the house is how you know it was a hospital). On the inside the house, you can even see blood stains on the floor.
It took Lotz quite a bit of time and effort to repair the house. When he was done, he made a carving of an American Eagle tearing up an Confederate Flag to decorate his house. The Ku Kux Klan got wind of this art piece, were not happy, and planned to tar and feather him in his front yard. For Lotz, this was the last straw, and he packed up his family and moved to San Jose, California.
The house was beautiful inside and out. I wish I could have taken pictures on the inside, the 150 year old antiques were just amazing.
After we left the house, we went to downtown Franklin to grab some lunch and do a little shopping. We ate at Puckett's groceries. It is a delicious Southern style restaurant. And that picture there is the Southern Comfort Burger, which is nothing short of amazing!
I love little old Franklin, Tennessee, and I can't wait to go back and see a few more sites.
What a fun day! I wish my mom lived closer and we could do stuff like this. Love looking at museums and old historical sites.
ReplyDeleteYou are awesome. I love how you explained everything in a couple paragraphs to simply understand something. I'll have to tell Trav about this place.
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