'Tis the Seasoned Bath

As I was walking down Main Street in Franklin, this display in a store window caught my eye. . . holiday packages in a bathtub!

Bathos, as its name implies sells bath and body products. Started in 1998 by a transplanted Brit, Paul Barrett, Bathos sells soaps, scrubs, shampoos, rubs, face masks, etc. Paul and his fiance, Stacy, make everything (except the soap dishes and some other accessories) from hand and use only safe, natural ingredients, nor do they test their products on animals.

I like the Hullaballoos which are giant bath fizzies. You throw one in the bath water, and it spins and fizzes while it softens the water (and your skin!). Very, very cool. And, for the name (as well as the smell) I love their Frosty the Soapman.

Tomorrow is theme day!

First Methodist

Just round the corner from the Historic Franklin Presbyterian Church (shown here) is the First United Methodist Church. When he founded Franklin in 1799, Abram Maury donated land a few blocks away for the building (Church and 1st) of the church, making FUMC the oldest congregation in town. Forty years later, the church relocated to Church and 2nd Avenue. During the Civil War, Union troops occupied the building, and eventually made it a hospital. In 1869, the church purchased - for $300 - the small, triangular piece of land on which it now stands. Completed in 1871, the church had approximately 230 members.

As Franklin has grown, so has membership in the church, now standing at approximately 2,700. The have four services each weekend, two in the church, and two in the church's gymnasium. While there are plans to build a new church on land they purchased outside of the downtown area, FUMC will keep the historic sanctuary to use for special services.

War Would End

War would end if the dead could return.
- Stanley Baldwin

This Daughters of the Confederacy dedicated this monument to the memory of Confederate soldiers in 1899. The monument stands in the round-about on the square in downtown Franklin.

To answer a question as to whether I have attended the Battle of Franklin Commemoration: I have not, but I plan to go this year and will hopefully have a photo of it this weekend. In 1995, however, I attended a re-enactment of the Battle of Franklin.

Home Sweet Home

Moving away from Carter House and the Battle of Franklin, I thought I would show you some of the beautiful homes in the downtown Franklin area. There are a lot of homes that sit just a few blocks from Main Street, which I think is great. The neighborhoods are charming, and the homes have a lot of character. As I mentioned in the post about Westhaven, developers are trying to bring back that town center feel. Having lived in suburbia most of my life, I really like that idea and would love to try it sometime.

Note: Thanks to all of you who have left comments or emailed me about the Carter House "book" that I've blogged over the past few days. As a student, I hated history because, like most of us, I had to remember names and dates. Fortunately, I've learned that there is much more to history than names and dates.

Tomorrow, we'll take another look at downtown Franklin.

Carter House #4

Franklin is the blackest page in the history of the War of the Lost Cause. It was the bloodiest battle of modern times in any war. It was the finishing stroke to the Independence of the Southern Confederacy.
I was there. I saw it.
–Sam Watkins, 1st Tennessee Infantry

Battle of Franklin, cont'd. (I promise not to be as verbose today!)

As one would imagine, the Carter property did not survive unscathed. The Union had torn down barns and part of the cotton gin to build fortifications. Because the farm office and smoke house were right where the soldiers built the inner breastworks, they received a lot of damage from musket and gun fire. And, after the battle, the main house became a hospital for wounded soldiers.

The farm office (above) has the distinction of having the most bullet holes of any building still standing from the war. The photo above is of the south and west walls of the office. At left is a photo of the south wall of the smoke house. Note the holes left by musket balls. In all, there are over 1,000 bullet and musket holes still visible in the walls of the Carter House buildings. (Click on the photos to enlarge them and get a better look at the damage.)

Unfortunately, damage to their property was not the devastation the family faced. When the Carter family emerged from the cellar at the end of the battle, they found that the Union army had pushed on to Nashville. However, their elation at having survived unscathed and having the Union gone dimmed rather quickly when a Confederate soldier told them that Capt. Theodrick (Tod) Carter, Fountain's 24-year old son, had been wounded in battle.

Moscow Carter, Tod's oldest brother, immediately went out to the fields to find Tod. Soon, Fountain Branch Carter, three of Todd's sisters, a sister-in-law, and neighbors joined in the search. (Keep in mind that it was near midnight at this point, and there were no street lights.) The group carried lanterns and torches and had to wend their way over the fortifications, through the trenches and through the blood and the bodies of wounded and deceased soldiers piled on their property. Just before daybreak, they found Tod about 500 feet from the house and carried him back to the house where he had been born. He died two days later from head wounds.

Called the "Gettysburg of the West," the five-hour Battle of Franklin was one of the bloodiest of the war. Of the 22,000 infantry and 5,000 calvary soldiers fighting for the Union, 2500 were either wounded, captured or killed. Of the Confederacy's 20.100 infantry and 5,000 calvary soldiers, over 7,000 were wounded, captured or killed. Four Confederate generals were killed, while only one Union general was wounded. More soldiers from the Confederate Army of Tennessee were killed (1750+) were killed in that five-hour battle than in the five-day Battle of Shiloh or the three-day Battle of Stones River.

The State of Tennessee bought the Carter House in 1951 and opened it to the public two years later. It is a Registered Historic Landmark and serves as a monument to all the soldiers who fought there.

There is an effort to restore as much of the battlefield as possible. In 2005, the City of Franklin purchased a lot about 100 yards from the Carter House where, for years, a Pizza Hut stood. That was the site of the Carter cotton gin and the Union's main breastworks (fortifications) and was near where Confederate General Patrick Clebourne fell. In addition, last year, the Carter House Association acquired 1/2 acre of land adjacent to the property and a key part of the battlefield.

On the anniversary of the battle every year, volunteers light 10,000 luminaries to commemorate the casualties of the Battle of Franklin.

Battle of Franklin - Carter House #3

During the battles for Atlanta in July, 1864, Jefferson Davis (President of the Confederate States) named General John Bell Hood to replace General Joseph Johnston as commander of the Army of Tennessee. Davis did so because he felt that Johnston, although successful in many battles, was too cautious, and Davis thought Hood would be more aggressive in engaging the Union. This is important to know because of what would transpire in Franklin, TN later that year.

Hood did not fare well against Sherman who, by September, had control of Atlanta. As he pulled his forces out of Atlanta, Hood burned supply depots and military facilities to prevent the Union from taking control of them. In November, 1864, Sherman burned Atlanta to the ground and started his march to the sea. Hood, determined to destroy the Union divisions heading back to Nashville, started to devise a plan to stop them and failed to do so during a battle at Spring Hill on November 29.

General Schofield and his troops were able to sneak past Hood's Army of Tennessee in the middle of the night, arriving in Franklin around 1:00 AM. As I mentioned yesterday, General Cox awoke the Carter family and commandeered their home. Throughout the day, soldiers worked at building fortifications on the Carter property.

Hood, angered that the Union had slipped by him, made plans to attack. The generals commanding Hood's troops strongly objected to the plan, but Hood was determined. At 4:00 PM, the Army of Tennessee launched their attack.

While the Union expected an attack, they didn't believe Hood would be reckless enough to attack their larger and fortified armies. Word that the Confederates were attacking was a bit of a surprise, and the Carter family, servants and neighbors (who had been assured they were probably not in danger early that day) had little time to flee to safer positions in town. Instead, 23 men, women and children crowded into the Carter House cellar for the duration of the battle. It was pitch black, and they could hear all of the sounds of war - guns. . . cannons. . . screams. . . moans. . . shouts. . . (Having been in that cellar in the middle of the day, I can tell you that it is DARK!)

For five hours, the two sides battled. The fighting was brutal and very bloody. Men were shot, clubbed, stabbed, choked, punched and bayoneted to death. In addition to the darkness due to time of day, the gun and cannon fire produced so much smoke that the men could not tell who was on which side. One soldier used a knife to claw a hole in the back door of Carter House so that he could crawl in and escape. Another died after being bayoneted on the front steps of the house.

When the fighting stopped that night, most of the remaining Union forces headed to Nashville. The Carters came out of the basement to find their home now being used as a hospital for wounded soldiers, and to get some devastating news.

But, that's tomorrow's story. . .

Carter House #2

Today's view of Carter House, while not the most beautiful, serves the purpose of showing you the position of the house in relation to other buildings around it. The house, of course, is the two-story building in front. The small, brick building directly behind it ( which I showed in yesterday's post) was the kitchen. The three buildings on the right side of the photo are, from left to right in the photo at right, the farm office, smoke house, and slave cabin. Except for the slave cabin, all the buildings are original to the site.

A note about the kitchen: Because of the climate and social conventions in the south, the kitchens of the home were normally in a separate building that sat behind the house or mansion. Fireplaces were the main source of "cooking fuel" at the time, and in the south's warm climate, the heat thrown from the fires would make the homes very hot and uncomfortable in the summer. In addition, since slaves did the cooking, social standards dictated that they not work where the master of the house lived.

Fountain Branch Carter did have slaves, but he gave them their freedom at the time of the war. Several left, but several stayed on and were with the family throughout and after the Civil War.

The Battle of Franklin: There were actually two Battles of Franklin. The Union had controlled Franklin and Williamson County since early in 1862. In April, 1863, the Confederates tried to take back control, but lost and retreated back to Spring Hill (south of Franklin). In September, 1864, Sherman's forces won control of Atlanta and started to plan their "march to the sea." The majority of the divisions in that area stayed with Sherman, but General Schofield and a regiment from Ohio headed back to Tennessee and Nashville.

And, in November, 1864, Confederate General John Bell Hood was determined to stop the Union soldiers from getting back to Nashville. In the early morning of November 30, 1864, Union General Jacob Cox woke the Carter family and took over Carter House as the field headquarters for the upcoming battle. Cox's men built breastworks (fortifications) about 100 yards south of the house. The inner breastworks sat 60 feet from the main house, right next to the farm office, smoke house, and slave cabins.

The Carter family asked Cox if they should flee the property, but Cox assured them they would be all right and should probably stay to claim their property after the battle. At the time, there were 23 people in the home, including Fountain Branch Carter, his oldest son Moscow, Moscow's family, and assorted other relatives and neighbors.

Tomorrow, we'll take a closer look at the Battle of Franklin's affect on the Carters and their property.

Carter House

In 1829, Fountain Branch Carter purchased 19 acres of land on Columbia Turnpike in Franklin. The following year, he built a two-story, brick home on the property (above) which was, at the time, considered "in the country" even though it was a mere four-five blocks from downtown Franklin's Main Street. (You can see a map of the locations by clicking here.)

An industrious man, Carter held many jobs, including county surveyor, farmer, merchant, and more. In addition, he operated a cotton gin, manufactured and sold shoes and boots, and bought and sold property. Over the years, he purchased more land and eventually owned 288 acres on both sides of Columbia Turnpike. (Note: Carter was on the committee that oversaw the building of the Historic Franklin Presbyterian Church in 1841. See my post from two days ago for information on it.)

Carter and his wife, Mary, had 12 children, eight of whom survived to adulthood. Mary passed away in 1852, nine years before the start of the Civil War, and 12 years before her property became the site of the bloodiest battle of the war - The Battle of Franklin.

A couple of interesting facts about Carter House: I took the photo of the house from the sidewalk in front. From where I stood, I could see the intersection of Main Street and Columbia. The house is right in the middle of other residences. One of the Carter children, four-year old Samuel, died when he fell through the house's banister to the entry hall below. The house played an important role in the Battle of Franklin. Three of the Carter sons fought in the Civil War, and one died during the Battle of Franklin.

Do you know what the building in the photo above right is?

Tomorrow I'll show you more of the Carter House property and tell you a bit about the Battle of Franklin and the house's role in it.

Thanksgiving

If the only prayer you said
in your whole life was,
"Thank you," that would suffice.
~ Meister Eckhart

Because it's Thanksgiving Day in America, I thought I would post a photo of a display I found outside of a store in downtown Franklin. While so many places have already put away the signs of fall for holiday decorations, many of the Franklin stores still had autumn-themed displays out. All that will change, I'm sure, by the weekend's end.

Tomorrow, I'll take you to Carter House, which is a mere couple of blocks from downtown Franklin.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Historic Franklin Presbyterian Church

In 1811, Rev. Gideon Blackburn organized a Presbyterian church near the city cemetery in Franklin, Tn. In 1842, the congregation built a church on the corner of Main Street and 5th Avenue in downtown Franklin. After the Battle of Franklin, the church, like every other building in the downtown area, became a hospital for the troops. While the war caused a lot of damage to the church, a fire in 1905 destroyed it, requiring reconstruction of the church.

As Franklin grew, so did church membership, and in late 1980s/early 1990s, some members pushed for expansion, which would mean moving out of the historic building. However, in 1992, the members of the church who wanted to stay in the downtown location organized the Historic Franklin Presbyterian Church which still stands on the corner of Main Street and 5th Avenue (above).

The photo I posted of Main Street yesterday shows the north side of the block, looking west. The intersection indicated by the street signs is where the church stands, although it is on the south side of Main Street.

Tomorrow, we'll look at another historic site in Franklin.

Historic Downtown Franklin

A few miles east of Westhaven is the 15-block historic district of downtown Franklin, Tennessee. Renovated historic buildings and brick sidewalks line both sides of the classic, American Main Street (shown above) and today house a variety of boutiques (including a Chico's) and cafes (including Starbucks, of course). If you like antiques, Franklin has a lot of them, and has received the distinction of being named One of the Five Best Places in America to Antique Shop. Franklin has actually won a number of awards, including Clean Cities Award, Great American City Award, Tree City, USA Award, and Preserve America's Community Award.

Founded in 1799, Franklin was originally a wealthy, agricultural community and, actually, the center of the plantation economy of the area. The Civil War changed all that. Union Troops occupied Franklin for over three years, and most businesses died. The Battle of Franklin (more on that this week) turned most businesses and homes in the area into hospitals. It took over 100 years for Franklin to recover.

Today, Franklin is again a wealthy, thriving community. Developments chip away at the bucolic farmland on the outskirts of town bringing people - and economic growth - to the area. Money Magazine has named Franklin one of the Top Ten Places to Retire in the US, and one of the Top Ten Places to Live in the US.

For the next few days, we'll look at some of the attractions in this historic town.

Westhaven

Since I showed you an abandoned home yesterday, I thought I would show you Westhaven today. Located in Franklin, Westhaven is a 1500-acre master-planned community of single-family homes, mini mansions, condos, duplexes and townhomes. The community has five, separate neighborhoods, each with its own neighborhood center - a common area open for public use.

Modeled after the small-town neighborhoods of yesterday, Westhaven has tree-lined streets, sidewalks, parks a golf club, tennis courts, and more. In addition, the town center (currently under construction) will house doctors' offices, a bank, stores, cafes, condos and more, all within walking distance of the homes.

The homes on both sides of the street shown above face a beautiful greenspace down the middle of the boulevard. The homes in the photo are mostly duplexes, while the homes on the side of the street that you don't see are stand-alone homes. All garages in this subdivision are behind the homes, and the individual yards - both front and back - are relatively small. Prices start in the low $400,000s and top $1,000,000.

The more than 2500 homes in Westhaven sit on what was once farmland. Westhaven is about 16 miles south of downtown Nashville.

Auction!

While out on another of our weekend drives to nowhere in particular, we passed this abandoned house not too far from the road I posted the other day. The auction sign caught my eye, and I took the photo without reading the sign. I thought, at the time, that this house and land were up for auction. After all, the land is in a prime location on a highway that runs between Davidson and Williamson Counties. There is a lot of building going on around there, and it could be a good commercial property. However, once I got home, I noticed that the advertised auction is for a 7200 square foot house and 50 acres of land in Centerville, TN, which is about 50 miles from Nashville.

Still, I couldn't get this house out of my mind. I wonder who lived there. . . .when they left. . . . why they left. . . .

Women's Basketball

Michael had to head to a meeting in Knoxville yesterday, and I went along for the ride. While there, we passed the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame, and I thought I would post a photo of it since women's basketball is popular both in the state (UT Lady Volunteers) and Nashville (Lady Commodores).

Dr. James Naismith invented basketball in 1891, and a year later, Senda Berenson adapted the rules for women's play. Within two years, women were playing basketball on the college level, and the game has continued to grow in popularity. In recent years, the US National Team has won the Olympic Gold medal three times, and the bronze medal once.

Coach Pat Summit, who has headed the Lady Vols for 34 years, receives credit for making basketball popular at the once-football dominated University of Tennessee. She was in the inaugural class of WBHOF inductees in 1999, and was also inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2000. She has over 900 wins and fewer than 200 losses over her career.

Women's basketball is also popular at Vanderbilt University in Nashville. In the six years she's been at Vanderbilt, coach Melanie Balcomb has taken the Lady Commodores to the NCAA regional finals fives straight years.

For more information on the WBHOF, click here.

Y'all Come Back

I recently saw this sign hanging at the exit of a festival held downtown, and it made me think of how I swore I would never say, "Y'all" (That's the correct spelling, by the way.) when we moved to Atlanta back in the 80s. HA! Within a few days, "y'all" was part of my vocabulary.

You guys. Youse. How else do we Americans pluralize "you?"

Getting Ready for Thanksgiving, Which Comes First

Thanksgiving is next week (ALREADY!), and I was happy to see that there were still pumpkins and gourds at the Farmers' Market the last time I was there (above). In addition, there are mums galore, and since our weather has been relatively mild, the colors of the mums are vibrant.

Pumpkins, so popular at Halloween, were present at the first Thanksgiving feast, although not the way most of us eat them today - in pie. Present in the Native American diet for centuries, pumpkins were more of a side dish, and cooks baked them whole right in the midst of hot coals.

I'm posting this today and joining in with other bloggers who have proclaimed today "Thanksgiving Comes First" Day. Suldog, in his blog, has started a campaign to bring a little sanity to the holiday season, and Fenix explains it well in her blog. If you are interested, you can click on the links to read what they have to say. Because I'm very late in posting this today, I'll address more tomorrow in my other blog.

The Road to #100

The big question is whether you
are going to be able to say a hearty
"Yes!" to your adventure.

- Joseph Campbell

I can't quite believe it, but today's post is #100 of my Nashville Daily Photo adventure!

When I started the blog on August 2, I wasn't sure where it would take me, but I knew the ride would be fun. I am grateful for having found this project (through Eric's Paris Daily Photo) and for being included in it with over 300 others around our amazing world. I have learned a lot about your cities and countries, about cities around the United States, and, most importantly, about Nashville and Middle Tennessee.

Tomorrow, we'll continue down the road and see what else we can find along the way. I hope you'll join me!

(The road shown in the photo above is about 15 miles west of downtown Nashville. )

The "Girls" Come for a Drink

The land on which our house sits was, at one time, cattle pasture. Actually, our entire subdivision sits on retired farm land. Luckily for us, the land's original owner still has quite a bit of property for his cattle, and three of his fields are behind our house. As I mentioned the other day, the field farthest from us borders the Harpeth River. Every couple of weeks, the cows move into the pastures behind our house.

In the 12 years we've lived here, I've had a lot of opportunity to watch the cows. . .and they me, for that matter. Sometimes they get very close to the fence, and they and our dogs have a staring contest. I wonder if the dogs think that the cows are over-sized canines, and the cows think the dogs are runt calves. Normally, if we get too close to the fence, the cows will run into the pasture. The calves, however, tend to be a bit braver.

Sunday morning, I walked my dogs to the fence where a few calves were chewing on grass. The calves just stood and stared at us. When Decker lunged, most of the calves fled, as usual. One, which was about 20 feet to our left, stayed close to the fence, even when my husband came out with the hose. Michael put the hose over the fence and waited. Soon the calf (the black one in the photo on the right) came over and started to drink out of the "fountain." I ran for the camera.
We waited, and soon a number of other calves and cows ambled slowly toward the fence. At one point, there were about 12-15 cows trying to get a drink.

If happiness truly consisted in physical ease
and freedom from care,
then the happiest individual would not be
either a man or a woman;
it would be, I think, an American cow.
- William Lyon Phelps

More Veterans' Day

In celebration of the "official" Veterans' Day, I thought I would post a photo of the monument dedicated to the Korean War. Situated on War Memorial/Legislative Plaza, the bronze sculpture celebrates the more than 10,000 Tennesseans who fought in the "forgotten" war. During the three years of fighting (1950-53), more than 36,500 men and women lost their lives (843 from Tennessee), over 103,000 were wounded in combat, and over 8,100 were listed as "missing in action." Note that behind the two soldiers is a map of Korea.

All men are brothers like the seas throughout the world;
so why do winds and waves clash so fiercely everywhere?

- Emperor Hirohito

Courage, Conviction, Honor

In honor of Veteran's Day, I wanted to post a photo of part of the World War II Memorial at Bicentennial Mall in Nashville. The memorial pays tribute to the more than 5,600 Tennesseans killed during "The Great War." Included are seven benches honoring the seven Tennesseans who won the Medal of Honor and the large, granite displays (above) inscribed with information about the war and battles during the war. I n addition, the 18,000-pound granite globe that floats on water indicates all of the places in the world that Tennesseans fought during the war. (I showed one view of the globe on 10-29. Another is right.)

Many thanks to the men and women who fought - and continue to fight - to preserve our freedom.

"As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them. "

~ John Fitzgerald Kennedy

The Frost Is On The. . . . .

We had our first frost in the Nashville area this week. My poor vincas, petunias, Mexican heather and mini carnations that suffered so much this summer from the extreme heat and lack of water had started to blossom - literally - over the past month or so. Most of them, however, fell victim to the icy "sugar coating" this week.

I am rich today with autumn's gold,
All that my covetous hands can hold;
Frost-painted leaves and goldenrod,
A goldfinch on a milkweed pod,
Huge golden pumpkins in the field
With heaps of corn from a bounteous yield,
Golden apples heavy on the trees
Rivaling those of Hesperides,
Golden rays of balmy sunshine spread
Over all like butter on warm bread;
And the harvest moon will this night unfold
The streams running full of molten gold.
Oh, who could find a dearth of bliss
With autumn glory such as this!

- Gladys Harp

Katie in Nashville

If you watch the CBS Evening News, you might know that Katie Couric was in Nashville yesterday to interview Fred Thompson. Because she couldn't get back to NYC in time for the nightly news broadcast, she did the broadcast live from LP Field (Home of the Titans). CBS rigged a set on one of the ramps leading up to the Club Seats so that the city skyline was the backdrop (left).

I thought I would publish all three of the photos to show what you don't see when watching television. If you look at the top photo, you can see that the "set" is on risers so that you see the city and not the railings of the ramp behind Katie. In addition, note the three camera men as well as production assistants, floor director, director, etc. Lighting hangs from the grid above as well as in front, and the two, domed "towers" are portable heaters.

In the photo at right, note the piece of white tape at Katie's feet, marking where she needs to stand during the broadcast. You can also see the monitors, although you don't see the teleprompter which is hidden behind the men standing around. The man standing directly in the center of the two wide-shot photos (and whose arm is in the close-up of Katie) was talking on his cell phone, no doubt to the CBS newsroom back in NYC.

In other words, there's a lot behind the scenes that you just don't see!

In the spirit of full disclosure, I do want to advise that my husband is the news director at the CBS affiliate here in Nashville and actually was a producer at CNN at the same time the then Katherine Couric was an assignment editor there. In addition, I'd like to thank one of the NewsChannel5 photographers, Terry Godfrey, for taking the photos for me.

"I want to tell you all a story. . . ."

Harpeth Valley Elementary School sits on a piece of land not too far from the Harpeth River. Approximately 620 students attend classes in the five grades (K-4) at the school. Harpeth Valley consistently ranks at or near the top in student test scores.

When we first moved to Nashville in 1995, Harpeth Valley Elementary School occupied a very old, outdated and small building. The school district decided to rebuild, and construction on the new building (above) continued while students occupied the old building which sat in front of the current structure. Once the move to the new building was complete, the old school came down.

At one time, Tom T. Hall, country music artist and songwriter, lived in Franklin, TN, not too far from Harpeth Valley ES. He has said that he liked the way the school name sounded and it inspired him to write, "Harper Valley PTA." Hall did not base the song on anything that happened at the school, just on the sound of the name.

Jeannie C. Riley recorded the song in 1968, and it sold over 6,000,000 copies, making it a hit on both country and pop charts. The song was later the inspiration for a movie and TV series of the same name.

Harpeth River

The Harpeth River, one of the main tributaries of the Cumberland River, meanders through the counties of middle Tennessee from its start in Rutherford County (south of Nashville). Flowing west through Williamson County, the river turns northwesterly and crosses into the southwest section of Davidson County (Nashville). Continuing west, it flows through Cheatham County and eventually forms the border between Cheatham and Dickson Counties before it flows into the Cumberland River near Ashland City.

The Harpeth is very popular with outdoor enthusiasts, offering over 100 miles for boating activities. Paddling, canoeing, kayaking and fishing (bass, bluegills, crappies and catfish, among others) are all popular, and there are several outfitters in the different counties. While mostly a Class 1 river, the Harpeth does have a few Class 2 rapids (about 20%). In addition, there are several historic sites on the river, including Mound Bottom (a Native American ceremonial and burial ground), Pattison Ford (old iron mill), and Newsom's Mill.

The Davidson County portion of the Harpeth flows very close to our house. Actually, the cattle pastures behind our house border part of the river, so we can sometimes see it if the river is high and there are no leaves on the trees. I took this photo from a bridge we cross everyday as we head toward downtown. The river, as you can see, is still suffering from the summer drought, and the trees are still a bit confused as to what season it is.

No one really knows where the name "Harpeth" originated. Some say it is a Native Indian name, while others say it is mispronunciation of the English name, "Harper."

Can you guess what country music song has a very remote link to the Harpeth? I'll tell you tomorrow. . . .

Hole in the Wall

On September 23, I posted a view of the Pathway of History, the 1400-foot, granite wall that borders the west side of Bicentennial Mall in Nashville. The photo above, is another view of the wall and includes the tall, granite pylons (far left side of the photo) that mark each 10-year period in the state's history.

The etchings in the wall present a timeline of Tennessee's history. The only breaks in the wall are those that represent the years of the Civil War, signifying how divided the state was during the Civil War. What do I mean? Consider these facts:

A) As the second most populous state in the south, Tennessee provided the second most soldiers to the Confederacy.
B) Tennessee provided more soldiers to the Union than all other southern states combined!
C) The state's first referendum to secede from the Union failed, but in June, 1861, Tennessee became the last state to join the Confederacy.
D) Tennessee Senator Andrew Johnson was the only southern senator who did not resign when the states seceded. Lincoln appointed Johnson military governor of Tennessee in 1862. And, Johnson became Lincoln's VP in 1864, and president upon Lincoln's assassination in 1865.
E) The eastern part of the state was largely pro-Union and supported Lincoln.

Balls of Fun

For nine years, I owned a paper arts store here in Nashville, and I've just returned from a cruise where I taught 10 classes in stamping and cardmaking. Paper arts, particularly scrapbooking and rubberstamping, are very popular crafts due in part to the fact that anyone can do them. In the past few years, knitting and crocheting have also experienced explosive growth because, like paper arts, almost anyone can knit or crochet. I've crocheted since I was a child, although I hadn't done much in recent years. However, since closing my store, I have started a new project. I love colorful yarns that have some texture, like the ones shown above.

Do you knit or crochet? Or, do you scrapbook or rubberstamp?

"Faces" of Nashville

For Theme Day, I posted a view of the "Batman Building," home to BellSouth/ATT&T in Nashville. Today, since I'm still out of town (and unable to write much commentary about what's in my photos), I thought I would post a photo of another steel and glass (mirrored) structure gracing the downtown skyline. If you study the facade, you can see the "face" made by the protruding windows (eyes and nose) and arched entrance (mouth). I thought that was interesting and wondered if the architects noticed it. . . .

Just above the entrance, you can see the reflection of the blue windows of another structure. That's the Viridian, the first high-rise condo complex completed in downtown Nashville. I'll have more on that later in the week.

The Moon. . .Paper, that is

I thought you might be interested in seeing what my former store looked like. Located in Bellevue, it was the first scrapbook store in Tennessee.

It quickly evolved into a paper arts store, and for nine years, my life revolved around rubber stamps, scrapbook supplies, and paper arts of all sorts. . .

Now, I'm concentrating on my photography, producing this blog and looking for the next adventure in my life.

Nashville City Cemetery

The three graves in the forefront of this photo are of the Ewing Family. Andrew Ewing, whose monument is the tall one on the right, was the clerk of the first government during Nashville's formation.

Opened in 1822, the City Cemetery is the oldest continuously operated public cemetery in Nashville. This cemetery holds the remains of many early settlers. Most prominent would be James Robertson, the founder of Nashville. Four Civil War generals also lie in rest here.

Theme Day: Blue. . .Batman Blue

The autumn skies have been particularly beautiful this year. I think that, in part, they're trying to make up for the lack of color the trees are giving us!

At any rate, this is the former BellSouth Tower, now called the AT&T Tower (or so I'm told) in downtown Nashville. At 33 stories tall, it is the tallest building in the state of Tennessee.

I'm sure you can see why most of us in Music City refer to it as "The Batman Building."

Today there are over 80 blogs participating in the blue theme day. Be sure to stop by and enjoy their sites!

Boston (MA), USA - Cleveland (OH), USA - Philadelphia (PA), USA - Arlington (VA), USA - Cape Town, South Africa - Portland (OR), USA - Sequim (WA), USA - Selma (AL), USA - Arradon, France - Petaling Jaya (Selangor), Malaysia - Stockholm, Sweden - Singapore, Singapore - Wassenaar (ZH), Netherlands - Phoenix (AZ), USA - Seattle (WA), USA - Toulouse, France - The Hague, Netherlands - Moscow, Russia - Fort Lauderdale (FL), USA - Kyoto, Japan - Tokyo, Japan - Saint Paul (MN), USA - Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia - Stayton (OR), USA - Maple Ridge (BC), Canada - Detroit (MI), USA - Crystal Lake (IL), USA - Port Angeles (WA), USA - Cottage Grove (MN), USA - Nelson, New Zealand - Bandung (West Java), Indonesia - Greenville (SC), USA - Hyde, UK - Radonvilliers, France - Albuquerque (NM), USA - Nashville (TN), USA - Manila, Philippines - Port Vila, Vanuatu - Saarbrücken, Germany - New Orleans (LA), USA - Bellefonte (PA), USA - Melbourne, Australia - Hobart (Tasmania), Australia - Forks (WA), USA - Wichita (Ks), USA - Mainz, Germany - St. Louis (MO), USA - Joplin (MO), USA - Chandler (AZ), USA - Quincy (MA), USA - Setúbal, Portugal - Inverness (IL), USA - Christchurch, New Zealand - Toruń, Poland - North Bay (ON), Canada - Le Guilvinec, France - Chateaubriant, France - London, England - Minneapolis (MN), USA - Naples (FL), USA - Norwich (Norfolk), UK - Sydney, Australia - Austin (TX), USA - Mumbai, India - Boston (MA), USA - Santa Fe (NM), USA - Menton, France - Monte Carlo, Monaco - Paderborn, Germany - Montréal (QC), Canada - Jackson (MS), USA - Stavanger, Norway - Orlando (FL), USA - Grenoble, France - Cheltenham, UK - Forks (WA), USA - Mexico City, Mexico - West Sacramento (CA), USA - Silver Spring (MD), USA - Weston (FL), USA - London, UK - Jefferson City (MO), USA - Ocean Township (NJ), USA