Lillie Mill & Bucket of Blood ca. 1950

Wiley Memorial Methodist Episcopal Church ca.1910

Courage, Faith, and Commitment

Flem and Malinda Otey

Franklin’s African American Heritage Tour

For over two hundred years, For over two hundred years, the experiences and contributions of African Americans have formed the backbone of Franklin’s development. The city’s

landscape reflects the efforts and skill of the African American community, from rich fields first cultivated by back-breaking slave labor to the stone- and brick-masonry that supports many of Franklin’s most historic buildings.

Before the Civil War, African Americans made up more than half of Franklin’s population, including slaves and a small free black community that included a barber and a baker. During the war and after emancipation, several men joined United States Colored Troop units and fought for their freedom. After the war, Franklin experienced racial tension as residents struggled with the tumultuous social changes sweeping across the country. The Franklin Riot of 1867 started as a political event but ended in gunfire, injury or death to 39 people.

African Americans persevered through these tough years to create close-knit and thriving neighborhoods. Living in a small town rather than on a farm or plantation allowed African Americans to learn skilled trades, including carpentry, stonemasonry, brick-laying, teaching, and chair making. Making the most of their new opportunities, many African Americans became entrepreneurs, operating businesses, farms, stores, and funeral homes. Segregation severely limited housing choices; African Americans, regardless of income or profession, lived right next door to each other. Their neighborhoods mixed homes, churches, industries, and businesses, creating separate, self-sufficient areas within Franklin.

Spirituality played an important role in these neighborhoods. Churches, including the African Methodist Episcopal, Methodist Episcopal, and the Missionary Baptist denominations, provided religious and social community centers. Many of these early congregations still have active churches in Franklin.

Schools were also places for new opportunities. Franklin’s African American schools served as educational and social landmarks. Students and residents took great pride in school curriculum, sports teams, bands, talent events, and dedicated staff.

The civil rights movement brought significant changes to Franklin. In the 1950s and 1960s, residents in the local chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) created an organization named “Citizens for Human Dignity” to promote integration and civil rights in Franklin. These activists and social reformers actively supported the civil rights movement that ended segregation.

The effects of the civil rights movement, integration, and urban renewal changed Franklin’s historic African American neighborhoods, as new opportunities lured residents to other places. Fortunately, neighborhood revitalization and recognition are bringing new life to these historic communities that made such necessary and important contributions to Franklin’s growth and prosperity.

The 20 sites on this tour provide an opportunity to experience the diversity of Franklin’s history. Some sites are publicly accessible during posted visited hours or are available by appointment. Several remain in private ownership and can only be viewed from the public thoroughfares. Please respect the rights of property owners and only enter the properties that are open and accessible to the public.

The Green House ca.1906

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gravestone for Harvey Otey

Old City Cemetery 1818-1863

The NeighborhoodsFrom the 1870s to the 1900s, most of Franklin’s African American population settled in four distinct areas. A small working-class neighborhood developed along present-day South Margin, First Avenue and Second Avenue downtown, while another working and middle-class neighborhood called Hardbargain developed along 11th Avenue North. The Natchez Street neighborhood, parallel to Columbia Avenue, soon developed as the largest and most populated neighborhood. Belltown stretches from 5 Points to Fowlkes Street east of Columbia Pike and centered along Cummins and Evans Streets.Most of the buildings are a folk vernacular style, built using local materials, styles, and craftspeople. Historic housing styles include gable and wing cottages, bungalows, shotgun houses, company housing, and gable front homes. Note the decorative stone porch detailing and stone walls that still stand in several front yards.

Old City Cemetery4th Avenue North

The Old City Cemetery is located along 4th Avenue North. Before the establishment of Toussaint L’Overture Cemetery, many of Franklin’s African American citizens were buried in the Old City Cemetery’s eastern quadrant.

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Lillie Mills Silos and L&N Railroad ComplexesFirst Avenue South between East Main and South Margin Streets

Along First Avenue, the silos of the former Lillie Mills flour plant and the railroad depot still mark the landscape. Lillie Mills and the railroad were key downtown industries that employed many African Americans, and contributed to the development of the downtown African American community in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.

Downtown and the “Bucket of Blood”Area bordered by the Harpeth River, the tracks of the L&N railroad, Main and Church Streets

The downtown area bordered by the Harpeth River, the tracks of the Louisville and Nashville railroad, and historic Main and Church Streets, currently houses restored homes, shops and offices. However, between 1870 and 1960, this same area housed a vital working class African-American neighborhood.

After the Civil War, former slave Rev. William Perkins became the first freedman to purchase a home in the neighborhood. African American residents representing a variety of professions and skills worked as carpenters, railroad workers, gardeners, shoemakers, cooks, nurses and washwomen called this their home.

On First Avenue, the Lillie Mills flour plant operated for several decades. The mill provided jobs for many African-Americans, and established the area along East Margin Street as an industrial center. In the early 1900s, two rows of company houses for African American mill workers were built around the plant, nicknamed “Bucket of Blood.” Although many stories abound about the neighborhood’s name, local lore suggests that a man was killed in the rough area, and bled a “bucket of blood,”

The downtown neighborhood experienced significant changes as the mill closed, government offices expanded beyond the square, and neighborhood revitalization brought more retail to the area and a few of the historic African American structures remain part of the landscape.

A.N.C. Williams’ store 428 W. Main Street

Perhaps Franklin’s most prominent early African American merchant and entrepreneur, A.N.C. Williams opened one of the first African American businesses in downtown Franklin in 1863, operating a shoe repair business on the square. After purchasing a lot between 4th and 5th Avenue, Williams constructed a building and opened a general merchandise store. Williams operated his store for sixty-four years, openly catering to both black and white patrons despite Jim Crow laws and segregation. Due to failing health, he retired in 1928 as the oldest continually operating merchant on Main Street, having owned and managed his successful store for over sixty years.

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Green HouseCorner of Second Avenue & Church Street

The “Green House” is the oldest remaining African American house in downtown Franklin. William “Munch” and Docia House purchased the corned lot on 2nd Avenue and Church Street in 1906 and their home remained in the family for over ninety years. In 2001, preservationists Thelma Battle and Pearl Bransford persuaded City Hall not to tear down the house for a parking lot.

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Wiley Memorial Chapel Methodist Episcopal 112 2nd Avenue South (presently Pull-Tight Players)

The Methodist Episcopal Church, USA was built ca. 1869, and served as a vital community institution through the mid-twentieth century. A dwindling congregation caused the church to close in the 1945. The former church currently houses the Pull-Tight Players, Franklin’s popular community theater group.

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Courthouse SquareAfter the Civil War, on July 6, 1867, the courthouse square was the site of the infamous Franklin Riot when Franklin’s Colored League marched through Franklin’s square to protest speeches by two congressional candidates. A.N.C. Williams attempted to avoid violence by communicating the League’s desire to march peaceably to the assembled white attendees. Events escalated and shots were fired on both sides, but Williams’ proved instrumental in calming tensions between blacks and whites and working for a peaceful solution to the conflict on the square.

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A.N.C. Williams’ store ca.920

Natchez Community Center and The Talking Walls

233 Natchez Street

The Natchez Community Center facility has long been a pillar of the neighborhood. Formerly a neighborhood grocery, a pentecostal church, funeral home and other businesses of necessity. The Natchez Community Center continues to empower the community by servicing diverse needs.It is the home of the Talking Walls a pictoral history of the African American journey. Tours are available on request at talkingwall08@gmail.com

For more information about African American History in Franklin contact the Talking Walls at www.talkingwallsfranklin.org.

For additional visitor information go to visitwilliamson.com or call 866-253-9207

Step-on guides are available by appointment.

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Flem Otey family ca. 1890

For more information about African American History in Franklin contact the Talking Walls at www.talkingwallsfranklin.org.

For additional visitor information Williamson County Convention and Visitors Bureau 320 Main Street, Suite 210 Franklin, TN 37064

Phone: (615) 791-7554 Toll-free: (866) 253-9207 visitwilliamson.com

Step-on guides are available by appointment.

This brochure was made possible through funding from:

The tour begins at the Lillie Mills silos on First Avenue. From I-65 take Hwy 96 (Exit 65) West to Historic Downtown Franklin (approx. 2 miles). Turn right on Margin Street which curves into First Avenue. The silos are on your right. This driving tour takes about 2 hours to complete.

Touissant L’Ouverture Cemetery on the Hill.

Home of Harvey McLemore ca.1920

Natchez High School 1949-1967

Shorter Chapel A.M.E was built in 1925 on Fowlkes St and Natchez St

Home of Munch and Docia House ca.1920(currently the Green House

Natchez High School335 Natchez Street (presently the Claiborne Hughes Health Center)

In 1888, the Ninth Neighborhood School Committee purchased the lot on Natchez Street. The first school on this site was called the Claiborne Institute in honor of first principal Willis Claiborne. The school was rebuilt in 1907 as the Franklin Colored School, and expanded in 1925 as the Franklin Training School. The present building was built in 1949. In 1962, teachers at Franklin Training School worked with the Williamson County Board of Education to change the school’s name to Natchez High School to reflect the desire for equality in education and recognition that the school had evolved beyond industrial training programs. Extra-curricular activities included outstanding football and women’s basketball teams, a marching band, and elaborate Homecoming events. After integration, the school graduated its last class in 1967.

Shorter Chapel A.M.E. Church152 W. Fowlkes Street (corner of Natchez and W. Fowlkes)

The Shorter Chapel African Methodist Episcopal (A.M.E.) Church congregation purchased the Franklin

Methodist Episcopal Church, South building on Second Ave & Church Street in 1873. In 1925, the congregation erected its present Victorian-inspired building on the corner of Natchez and West Fowlkes Streets.

Natchez Street (Listed on the National Register of Historic Places)

In the early 1900s, the Natchez Street community was demonstrative of the courage, faith, and commitment of African Americans in Franklin. Prominent African American entrepenuers, doctors, lawyers, and educators lived and worked in the self contained community. Working-class citizens literally built portions of Franklin by digging wells, laying brick, stonemasonry and working in neighborhood businesses. Although the buildings no longer stand, several twentieth century Natchez Street industries included the American Syrup and Preserves Company; Southall Brothers Lumber, Planing, and Woodworking Mill; and the J.W. Beasley Planing, Sawing and Lumber Mill. Beasley also built company houses along the bordering streets

of Carter and Strahl, which housed both black and white mill workers.Franklin’s African American school was located on Natchez Street, demonstrating the neighborhood’s deep commitment

to education. First known as the Claiborne Institute, later the Franklin Training School and finally Natchez High School, residents took great pride in the students, sports teams, bands and staff. Schools in Franklin implemented an integration policy in 1964, and Natchez High School graduated its last class in 1967.

Nicknamed “Baptist Neck” because it extends between several historic active churches (Providence U.P.B. and First Missionary Church), this neighborhood is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Providence United Primitive Baptist Church

Touissant L’Ouverture Cemeterycorner of Hillsboro Road and Del Rio Pike

Located at the corner of Hillsboro Road and Del Rio Pike, the cemetery borders the historically white Mount Hope Cemetery and served as Franklin’s primary resting place for African Americans. Formally established in 1884, the cemetery was named for the slave leader who led the 1812 revolution ending French colonial rule in Haiti. With headstones dating to the late 1800s, the cemetery also houses veterans from both World Wars, the Korean Conflict, and the Vietnam War as well as members of the many African American Masonic and social organizations. Prominent citizens buried here include A.N.C. Williams and former Carnton slave Mariah Reddick, one of the central characters in the novel The Widow of the South, The cemetery is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Charles Johnson Elementary historical marker11th Ave. North & Mt. Hope Street

The Charles Johnson Elementary School was named for Dr. Charles C. Johnson, a prominent local African American physician who operated the first hospital for African Americans in Franklin. The school was built in 1956 to teach the growing numbers of Franklin’s African American children, and served grades K-8. Under significant pressure by federal lawmakers and the black community, Franklin’s schools began limited desegregation in 1962, and Johnson Elementary was finally fully integrated in 1971. Hardbargain

Bordered by 11th Avenue North, Mount Hope Street, 9th Avenue North, and Green Street

Bordered by 11th Avenue North, Mount Hope Street, 9th Avenue North, and Green Street, this area is first mentioned in the 1866 county road book. Hardbargain developed from a series of lots originally purchased by Judge W.S. McLemore in 1873. Local lore suggests the neighborhood received its name from the difficult bargain he struck for the land. Although a few of the lots were purchased by white families, the area quickly became an African American neighborhood comprised of skilled trades people and domestic servants.

The residents of Hardbargain worked hard to put down roots in the area. In 1880, former slave Harvey McLemore built one of the neighborhood’s earliest homes, which remained in his family for five generations. This home, located on 11th Avenue North, now houses the McLemore House African American Museum.

Franklin Primitive Baptist church, established in 1867, was the first church in the area, followed by several others including the St. John’s Episcopal Church “Negro Mission” and the Green Street Church of God, which stands with an active congregation.

In addition to schools, businesses and churches, cemeteries were revered places in newly established African American communities. In 1884, a group of African American residents purchased four acres and created their neighborhood cemetery. The Toussaint L’Ouverture Cemetery is a prominent landmark in the Hardbargain neighborhood.

McLemore HouseCorner of Glass St. and 11th Avenue

Built in 1880 by former slave Harvey McLemore, this was one of Hardbargain’s earliest homes and reflected its emergence as a stable, middle class African American neighborhood. The house stayed in the McLemore family for 117 years, and was sold through a joint purchase by the Heritage Foundation of Franklin and Williamson County, Williamson County Habitat for Humanity, and the African American Historical Society. The building currently houses the McLemore House Museum and is open for tours by appointment (615-794-6024).

Providence United Primitive Baptist Church

corner of Natchez and Granbury Streets

Providence United Primitive Baptist Church stands at the corner of Natchez and Granbury

Streets. In 1883, Atha Thomas sold the land for this church to Wallis Bradley, Randal Brown, Harrison Scruggs, Jack Wilburn and Aaron Blakely. It was first called the “Two-Seat” church. In 1904 it became the Providence UPB Church.

Beasley Town historic markerGranbury Street (library parking lot)

Nicknamed “Beasley Town,” these small company homes provided residences for both black and white lumber mill workers and their families, which was very unusual during segregation. Encompassing three acres, the area contained thirty-six houses built by mill owner W.J. Beasley, each of which had a small garden plot. Mr. Beasley collected the rent for these homes each week, and expected families to have money ready at the appointed time when he made his rounds.

First Missionary Baptist org.1871

First Missionary Baptist ChurchThe First Missionary Baptist Church, organized in 1871, holds distinction as the neighborhood’s oldest congregation. In 1901, the First Missionary Baptist hosted the Colored Missionary Baptist Association, when a group of three to four thousand African-Americans gathered for this religious meeting. This type of gathering for African Americans was unusual in a town whose population was only 3,000 total.

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LiLLiE MiLLS AND L&N RAiLROAD COMPLExES

DOWNTOWN AND THE “BUCkET OF BLOOD”

GREEN HOUSE

WiLEy MEMORiAL CHAPEL METHODiST EPiSCOPAL

COURTHOUSE SqUARE

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A.N.C. WiLLiAMS’ STORE

OLD CiTy CEMETERy

TOUiSSANT L’OUvERTURE CEMETERy

CHARLES JOHNSON ELEMENTARy HiSTORiCAL MARkER

HARDBARGAiN

MCLEMORE HOUSE

NATCHEz STREET

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PROviDENCE UNiTED PRiMiTivE BAPTiST CHURCH

BEASLEy TOWN HiSTORiC MARkER

NATCHEz HiGH SCHOOL

SHORTER CHAPEL A.M.E. CHURCH

NATCHEz COMMUNiTy CENTER

FiRST MiSSiONARy BAPTiST CHURCH

BELL TOWN HiSTORiC MARkER

CARNTON SLAvE HOUSE

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A.N.C. Williams family ca.1890s

19 Bell Town Cummins and Evans Street

Bell Town, along Cummins and Evans Street, housed several black businesses, churches, and a Lodge of black Freemasons. A historic marker in the Cummins Street Church of Christ parking lot stands as a testament to the neighborhood and founding church member A.N.C. Williams.

Natchez Street

Bucket of Blood

Hardbargain

BellTown

rr RESTROOMS located at the main entrance of City Hall on Third Avenue

v viSiTORS’ CENTER

Carnton Plantation ends the tour

Carnton slave house1345 Carnton Lane (Listed on the National Register of Historic Places)

Historic Carnton Plantation reflects the intense toil and skilled craftsmanship of the slaves that built and sustained it before emancipation. By 1860, Carnton owner John McGavock owned 44 slaves that worked the fields and in the home. Carnton has one remaining slave cabin, an unusual two-story brick structure, believed to be used for both living quarters and a location for weaving, spinning and sewing. The building was restored in 1982. Open daily. More info at www.carnton.org or call 615-794-0903.