On Sunday, February 14th at 3 P.M., the Franklin Civil War Round Table will present City of Franklin alderman and preservation activist Pearl Bransford, who will speak on “The Natchez Area During and After the War.”

The Natchez area west of the Carter House is an often overlooked part of the Franklin Battlefield. The area, now known as the Natchez Historical District, is rich in African American history not only during the Civil War, but post-war as well. This unique presentation will explore the slave and landowner relationships in the area, where military activity took place and the settling of the area during Reconstruction. Bransford will lead the discussion along with local author and historian Thelma Battle. Heritage Foundation historian Rick Warwick will assist in the presentation with his extensive knowledge of Franklin’s richly diverse communities.

Bransford is a graduate of Tennessee State University and earned her M.S. degree from Vanderbilt. She has served in the health care industry and has been a Franklin alderman for several years. She has served on the Franklin Special School District board and in other community leadership roles. Bransford has been active in historic preservation especially in support of recent efforts to reclaim key parts of the Franklin battlefield.

Thelma Battle is a well-known Williamson County author and historian and was the inspiration for the Thelma Battle Collection at the Williamson County Library. She has been published in several history related journals and her book, Rainy in the House and Leaking Outdoors, spotlights the lives of one hundred of Franklin’s most influential women of color over the last several generations.

The event is free to the public. The Franklin Civil War Round Table is an educational program of Franklin’s Charge, and meets each month at Carnton Plantation's Fleming Center, 1345 Eastern Flank Circle. For more information, email fcwrt@yahoo.com, or visit www.franklinscharge.org/the-round-table.