On a whim, while running an errand at The Factory at Franklin, I saw a sign for Fort Granger at the intersection of Liberty Pike and Eddy Lane, and I decided to go exploring. Fort Granger was a Civil War fort built in 1862 by Union troops and refugee “contraband” slaves. After the Union Army captured Nashville in early 1862, Union Troops led by Major General Gordon Granger occupied Franklin shortly thereafter. Fort Granger sits on Figuer’s Bluff, north of the Harpeth River and parallel to a railroad that leads into Nashville. I tried to recall what a bluff is defined as, and I remembered that a bluff was a broad, rounded cliff, and usually bordering a river, beach, or other coastal area.
Fort Granger served as a Union command post during the Second Battle of Franklin where Union General John M. Schofield commanded his troops against Confederate General John Bell Hood’s army. The fighting lasted for 5 hours and resulted in 10,000 casualties.
I pulled into a barren dirt parking lot replete with the tire tracks of someone having fun doing donuts. There were no other cars, and it was difficult to know where to park because of a lack of painted lines. There was a large wooden walking trail with rails and stairs that led to the top of the bluff.
As I walked along the walking trail for one hundred meters or so, there was a small group of stairs that led to a grass walking path that was difficult to distinguish from the slow winter vegetation growth. The path was only distinguishable by the slightly lower grass from the last Autumn mow and a line of three informational signs along the route. These signs described the construction of the fort by solders and self-emancipated former slaves.
Looking out from the top of the bluff across the Harpeth River towards downtown Franklin, the most noticeable protuberance was the large Franklin Cotton Factory and Foundry on 1st Ave S. The building was constructed in 1825 and contained Tennessee’s first steam powered loom.
Walking along the grass trail atop the bluff, I noticed a very small path next to a memorial bench leading into the surrounding woods. The path led down the northwestern side of Figuer’s Bluff and terminated at the same CSX railway that ran directly behind my apartment complex and had an intersection at Columbia, TN as well as a terminal off Harding Pl. This was, interestingly, the same track system that annoyed my kids and me on rushed mornings to their school years ago.
To the left of the clearing at the end of the path was a small train bridge with a lot of graffiti. I had an affinity for graffiti after one of my best friend’s, who went by the graffiti name Bers 3, introduced me to the inside world of graffiti years ago. There was an interesting connection between the train system and graffiti artists, so much so that Bers 3 had an L&N (Louisville and Nashville Railroad) tattooed on his calf. I supposed tagging a train is a good way to get wide exposure to your art, and what more did an artist want than to have his work seen?
None of the graffiti stood out as particularly great art, but it did remind me of Bers 3 and the fun these kids must have had coming here at night practicing their art and adventurously tagging hard-to-reach places. There were remnants of a fire under the bridge where the artists gathered and talked and tagged. Surprisingly, there wasn’t a lot of litter or broken bottles. This vacant graffiti den was a highlight of my exploring.
I went back up the trail to the wooden walking trail and followed the trail south. There was an overlook next to a flight of stairs down to a larger, wider dirt trail. After following the trail for a short distance, there was a beautiful, small clearing on the left with a few scattered trees.
Near the end of the trail was an overhang that overlooked a small tributary that fed into the Harpeth River. The trail opened up onto a greenway in the back of Pinkerton Park. As I walked along the greenway, I was amazed at all of the interesting amenities of the park. All along the greenway were calisthenics and hammock stations. Along with multiple exciting playgrounds were a stone ping pong table with a family playing and stone cornhole setups. There was a large group of kids playing ultimate frisbee in a field inside the greenway track. They reminded me how much fun it was being younger and getting friends together at the park to play a physical game. I missed that. I wished that for our future generations.
As I walked around Pinkerton Park, I enjoyed fond memories of taking my children there when we were younger to see all of the interesting vehicles at the annual Touch a Truck event. I would push them on the swings as they laughed and giggled. “Push me higher, Daddy!” they’d scream.
