Carnton facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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Carnton
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Carnton
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 Location in Tennessee
Location in the United States
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| Location | 1345 Eastern Flank Circle, Franklin, Tennessee |
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| Area | 48 acres (19 ha) |
| Built | 1826 |
| Architectural style | Federal; Greek Revival |
| NRHP reference No. | 73001857 |
| Added to NRHP | January 18, 1973 |
Carnton is a historic plantation home built in 1826 in Franklin, Tennessee. It is located in Williamson County, Tennessee, United States. This property was very important during and right after the Battle of Franklin in the American Civil War.
Carnton was less than one mile (1.6 km) from where the 1864 battle happened. It became the main temporary hospital for wounded soldiers. More than 1,750 Confederate soldiers died at Franklin. The story of Carrie McGavock, who lived at Carnton during the Civil War, was told in a popular book in 2005. The book, The Widow of the South, was written by Robert Hicks. Carnton was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1973. Today, it is a museum run by The Battle of Franklin Trust.
Contents
Carnton's Design and Gardens
The Mansion's Look
Carnton is a large red brick house with 11 rooms. It was finished in 1826 by Randal McGavock. People who were enslaved built the house. It sits on a strong limestone foundation. The front of the house faces south and has two stories. It has a sloped roof covered in tin.
In 1847, Randal McGavock's son, John McGavock, added a fancy front porch. This porch has a Greek Revival style. It has four tall, square columns and a railing on the second floor. The back of the house also has a two-story porch with many columns. This porch runs along the whole back of the house. It was designed to catch cool breezes.
Inside the House
The inside of Carnton also shows changes made by John McGavock in 1847. He added stylish wallpapers, painted designs, and carpets. Three different wallpaper patterns have been found on the third floor. The main hallway downstairs looks much like it did during the Civil War in 1864. The wallpaper there is a copy of a popular design from that time.
The parlor, or living room, also got a Greek Revival update. It received a new fireplace mantel, wallpaper, and carpet. Some items in the house belonged to the McGavock family. These include a working clock, a 200-piece china set, and a rocking chair given by President Andrew Jackson. Many of the floors in Carnton are stained. This is because the house was used as a Confederate hospital after the Battle of Franklin. The darkest stains are in a bedroom that was used for operations. Blood soaked through the carpets and into the wooden floors.
The Gardens and Land
Randal McGavock planted cedar trees along the driveway. His son, John, added more cedars and boxwood plants. He also put in a brick walkway between the house and the driveway. For his wedding in 1847, John McGavock created a large garden. It was about 1 acre (0.4 hectares) and was based on ideas from Andrew Jackson Downing. He is known as the "father of American landscape architecture."
The garden was a working garden with areas for vegetables. These areas were surrounded by pretty borders. A large Osage orange tree in one part of the garden suggests that vegetables were later grown further from the house. A white picket fence and a tall board fence surrounded the garden. This protected the plants from animals and bad weather. It also gave privacy to the family from the many enslaved people working outside.
The garden was not cared for during the 1900s. But enough clues remained to help rebuild it. These clues included old photos, letters, and research. The garden was recreated in 1996–97 to look like it did in 1869. The daffodils, hostas, and peonies are all types that were available in Tennessee before 1869. Carnton is thought to have the largest collection of historic daffodils in the South. It has 40 types that were used before 1869.
McGavock Confederate Cemetery
To the northwest of the house is the McGavock Confederate Cemetery. This cemetery is about 2 acres (0.8 hectares). It is the largest privately owned military cemetery in the United States. The McGavock family gave this land for the soldiers killed in the Battle of Franklin to be buried. The cemetery is set up by state, with 13 sections. The Franklin Chapter of the United Daughters of the Confederacy takes care of the cemetery.
Carnton's Story
The 1800s
Randal McGavock (1768-1843) moved from Virginia to Nashville, Tennessee. He became an important local leader. He was the Mayor of Nashville in 1824. He knew President James K. Polk and was good friends with President Andrew Jackson. Jackson lived nearby at The Hermitage and visited the McGavocks many times. Randal McGavock named his property "Carnton" after his father's birthplace in County Antrim, Ireland. The name comes from a word meaning "a pile of stones," which sometimes marks a burial site.
The first building at Carnton was a smokehouse built in 1815. It was connected to the main house, built in 1826, by a two-story kitchen wing. The mansion sat on 1,400 acres (5.7 km²). About 500 acres (2 km²) were used for farming. In the mid-1800s, the McGavocks grew crops like wheat, corn, oats, hay, and potatoes. They also raised animals and thoroughbred horses. Randal McGavock's daughter, Elizabeth, married William Giles Harding. He owned Belle Meade Plantation, which became a famous horse farm.
Randal McGavock died in 1843. His son, John (1815–1893), inherited Carnton. In 1848, John married his cousin, Carrie Winder (1829–1905). She was from Ducros Plantation in Thibodaux, Louisiana. Carrie Winder McGavock's life became the subject of the 2005 book "The Widow of the South" by Robert Hicks. This book became a bestseller. Carrie brought an enslaved woman named Mariah Reddick with her. John and Carrie had five children, but only two lived to be adults. After they married, the McGavocks began to update the house. They liked the popular Greek Revival style.
The Battle of Franklin
John McGavock was 46 when the Civil War started. He was too old to join the army. But he helped prepare and organize groups of Southern soldiers. Carrie helped by sewing uniforms for family and friends. As the war came closer, John McGavock moved many of the enslaved people to Louisiana. This was to prevent them from being taken by Federal authorities. When Federal troops took control of Middle Tennessee, they learned that the McGavocks were helping the South. They took thousands of dollars worth of grain, horses, cattle, and wood from the plantation.
On November 30, 1864, Carnton became the largest temporary hospital. It cared for the wounded and dying after the Battle of Franklin. The home was less than one mile (1.6 km) from where the battle happened. More than 1,750 Confederate soldiers died at Franklin. On Carnton's back porch, the bodies of four Confederate generals were laid out. These were Patrick Cleburne, John Adams, Otho F. Strahl, and Hiram B. Granbury.
The McGavocks cared for about 300 soldiers inside Carnton. At least 150 of them died the first night. Hundreds more were spread across the property, including in the cabins where enslaved people lived. Carrie McGavock gave food, clothes, and supplies to help the wounded. Carrie's two children, Hattie (age nine) and Winder (age seven), helped the surgeons.
After the battle, on December 1, Union forces left for Nashville. They left behind all the dead soldiers, including hundreds of Union soldiers, and the wounded who could not walk. The people of Franklin then had to bury over 2,500 soldiers. Most of them were Confederates. According to a history book, "All of the Confederate dead were buried as nearly as possible by states. They were buried close to where they fell. Wooden markers were placed at each grave with the name, company, and regiment written on them." Many Union soldiers were later reburied in 1865 at the Stones River National Cemetery in Murfreesboro, Tennessee.
Over the next year and a half, many of the wooden markers rotted or were used for firewood. The writing on them disappeared. To save the graves, John and Carrie McGavock gave 2 acres (0.8 hectares) of their land. This area was set aside for the Confederate dead to be reburied. The people of Franklin raised money. The soldiers were dug up and reburied in the McGavock Confederate Cemetery. This cost $5.00 per soldier.
A team led by George Cuppett reburied 1,481 soldiers and one civilian in the spring of 1866. The civilian was Marcellus Cuppett, George's brother, who died during the reburial work. George Cuppett wrote down the names and details of the soldiers in a record book. This book was later given to Carrie McGavock.
After the war, John McGavock continued to farm Carnton. He made agreements with former enslaved people to work the land. He farmed until he died in 1893.
The 1900s
Carrie McGavock managed the cemetery for 41 years. She worked with African-American workers until she died in 1905. A prayer in a magazine called Confederate Veteran spoke about Carrie McGavock in 1905:
We thank thee for the . . . feeble knees she lifted up, for the many hearts she comforted, the needy ones she supplied, the sick she ministered unto, and the boys she found in abject want and mothered and reared into worthy manhood. In the last day they will rise up and call her blessed. Today she is not, because thou hast taken her; and we are left to sorrow for the Good Samaritan of Williamson County, a name richly merited by her.
The McGavocks' son, Winder, inherited the home after his mother died. But he died only two years later in 1907. His wife and children then left Carnton and moved into Franklin. In 1909, a tornado destroyed the eastern kitchen part of the house. You can still see where the roofline met the main house. Winder's wife sold the house in 1911. This ended a hundred years of the family owning Carnton.
Carnton was then owned by several different people. By the late 1960s and 1970s, the property was in bad shape. In 1977, the Carnton Association was formed. This group raised money to buy, restore, and care for the mansion. The next year, the house and ten acres were given to the association. Dr. and Mrs. W.D. Sugg had owned the property since the 1950s. Later, the Association bought another 38 acres (15 hectares). They began to restore the house and grounds. This work was finished by the late 1990s.
The 2000s
Carnton was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1973. It has never received money or help from local, state, or federal governments. The site is cared for and managed by The Battle of Franklin Trust. This is a non-profit group that also manages another historic home from the Battle of Franklin, the Carter House. Today, people from all over the world visit Carnton. Many come to learn the true story of Carrie McGavock, "the Widow of the South."
More to Explore
- Winstead Hill, also listed on the National Register of Historic Places in the Franklin Battlefield area
- Fountain Carter House, also listed on the National Register of Historic Places in the battlefield
- Fort Granger, also listed on the National Register of Historic Places in the battlefield
- Claiborne Kinnard House listed on the National Register of Historic Places in the battlefield
