A Week on the Road with Civil War Trails: Part 2

Continued from Part One

Official Records of the Civil War Trails.
The Tennessee Campaign of 2024
A Week on the Road
Day Three

Out team’s third day began in Chattanooga – easily. In fact, we even woke up late, an oddity on these long trips. We began in the hotel lobby, eating cinnamon buns and emailing our partners, sponsors, and members about the work we completed over the last two days. We compiled our notes on directional signs which need updates and how to improve printed and digital maps. A call from our second team that morning confirmed they had already begun their day by repairing a sign about the “Affair at Travisville,” the first documented clash in Tennessee on September 29, 1861. From that site, practically along the Kentucky border, that team wound their way south, reconnecting with us in McMinnville after completing a pile of signs on their own. So, we mounted up and set off on our day.

From Lookout Mountain, we moved towards the former community of Tyner, looking for a welcoming site for a new story idea we are batting around with local stakeholders. We then drove to Red Bank, first inspecting the sign where Sherman’s army came together between November 21 and 23, 1863, and a few short miles away we stopped by the site of a hospital set up to serve the Army of the Cumberland. The Stringer’s Spring hospital treated approximately 2,000 patients that fall. Today, this site is located at 109 Signal Mountain Rd., just outside of Chattanooga.

Leaving Chattanooga, we also updated several orientation signs at welcome centers and rest areas. Tennessee offers these special Civil War Trails signs to help orient visitors to nearby sites, so the next time you are in the state and pop off the interstate for a bathroom break, you’ll find these signs ready and waiting for you. Heading west towards McMinnville, as one member of the team drove the other would work on press releases, check the office email, and respond to phone calls – just as if we were working from an office. It is a headquarters “in the saddle” to use a Gen. John Pope-ism.

We met up with our second team in McMinnville and got to work on two new sites there. The first new Trails site in town tells the story of noted diarist Lucy Virginia French, who left an incredible record of the war in central Tennessee. The second new site tells the story Benjamin Jefferson Hill, who served as colonel of the 5th (later 35th) Tennessee Infantry. Look for a press release coming soon! These are just two of a handful of great stories the town is working on.

That night we ate dinner at one of the now favorite restaurants in Tennessee. Collins River BBQ & Cafe on Main Street in cute downtown McMinnville is worth the stop. The burnt ends and BBQ sampler were tops, and, of course, they served Calfkiller beer, which is an all-time favorite. Under the cover of darkness, we cranked up the radio and made the late-night drive to Murfreesboro.

Day’s Summary:
Miles driven through today: 953
Signs completed: 15
Beers consumed: 5

Day Four

The hotel choice in Murfreesboro wasn’t the worst we’ve experienced, but when we entered the lobby we saw the “water feature” (a steady leak from somewhere in the building draining into the oversized garbage can) that should have tipped us off to the experience yet to come. Soggy carpeting, dirty showers, peeling walls, questionable bedding, spotty internet, noisy neighbors, and nearby highway noise meant day four was off to an inauspicious start. We were crabby, to say the least.

However, our morning quickly rebounded as we pulled up to a beautiful field, an oasis amidst stores, warehouses, highways, and business that defines the sprawling greater metropolitan area. This field, a former industrial site, was saved by the American Battlefield Trust and turned over to the Murfreesboro Parks and Recreation Department, who had us out that morning to establish a new Civil War Trails site! We were spoiled to be the first people to help create the new interpretation there. Besides a Civil War Trails sign, there are two interpretive signs and a walking trail being developed now. Keep your eyes peeled for more information about this site coming soon. We left Murfreesboro close-ish to lunch time, and as we were heading towards Franklin, it was time to call in our fixer, our concierge, our cultural attaché, and director of culinary pursuits.

Battle of Franklin Trust’s Joe Ricci is not only a phenomenal historian and a great tour guide, but the guy you want helping you plan your trip to Franklin, Tennessee. He pointed us to Bishops’s Meat & Three, and we all settled in for some Nashville-style hot chicken accompanied by three tasty sides. Feeling full, we got back to work. The signs won’t fix or install themselves.

Both teams set a course to the historic, if not infamous, Cotton Gin site where we repaired six signs before heading over to Winsted Hill. We suspect both sites will be familiar to those who study the Battle of Franklin, and if you’ve not yet visited, it should be on your tier one list. Ten signs done, we headed to Harlinsdale Farm, where another Civil War Trails sign is waiting to help interpret an action which occurred there during the Confederate retreat from Nashville on December 17,1864. With much excitement both teams headed towards our hotel for the night. It was a much, much nicer hotel where we got a well-deserved night of rest. Two more days to go!

Day’s Summary:
Miles driven through today: 1031
Signs completed: 9
Beers consumed: 6

Stay Tuned for Part Three, which concludes the week’s travels…