Carter House

The Battle of Franklin Trust offers guided tours that cover the plantation, its grounds, the battlefield, the people who were enslaved here, and the houses that are stationed within its borders, including Carnton, Rippa Villa, and Carter House. Here, you’ll see hundreds of bullet holes that pierced the building and its furniture during the battle and visit locations where crucial portions of the battle unfolded. There are also all-day tours from Nashville that explore Civil War sites, including Carter House.

• Food, drink, and chewing gum are prohibited in the historic houses.

• The visitor center at the Carter House and Rippa Villa and the Fleming Center at Carnton is wheelchair accessible; standard wheelchairs are free of charge inside the visitor centers.

• Walk-in traffic is welcome, but visitors should purchase any specialty tours in advance.

The Carter House is located in Franklin, Tennessee, south of Nashville, roughly 30 minutes away by car via I-65. Some guided tours from Nashville include roundtrip transportation. From Chattanooga, it’s about a 2-hour drive. The historic district of Franklin is pedestrian-friendly, with walking tours available that include stops at landmarks like the Lotz House Museum and Carter House.

The Carter House is open from 9am until 5pm Monday through Saturday and on Sundays from 11am until 5pm. Guided tours are available daily with a wait time of 30–40 minutes. The house is closed on New Year’s Day, Easter, Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve, and Christmas Day. The Battle of Franklin is commemorated here on or around Nov. 30 each year.

Often combined with a tour of the Carter House, the Lotz House served as a hospital for wounded soldiers on both sides of the Civil War. Even today, visitors can still see numerous blood stains and where a cannonball had landed. The site offers specialty tours on women’s history, the battlefield, and the house’s unexplained ghostly phenomenon.