Points Along The Trail
From Charleston to Franklin, Tennessee
Day One on the Trail of Tears.
From Charleston, Tennessee, the trail goes west through some mountain roads which are very winding and narrow. Signs mark the way. This is the first part of the trail that we found marked with perodic signs. We had to stop once and back up as a car approached, although we did not have any switchbacks. After about an hour we reached a stretch of 4 lane highway, then a turn off for another hour on winding roads across the top of a ridge with beautiful views, then onto a four lane highway and interstate for the remaining 3 hours to Franklin, TN. The journals state that the Cherokee passed 4 miles south of Nashville, but of course the town was nothing like it is today.
The segment from Charleston, Tennessee to Franklin took us about 4 hours. It would have taken the Cherokee about 2 months. There was a snowstorm along the trail and some give accounts of how treacherous the trail was with the ice. Many hundreds died along the way, including the wife of John Ross, and are buried in unmarked graves along the trail.
The Trail of Tears The segment from Charleston, Tennessee to Franklin took us about 4 hours. It would have taken the Cherokee about 2 months. There was a snowstorm along the trail and some give accounts of how treacherous the trail was with the ice. Many hundreds died along the way, including the wife of John Ross, and are buried in unmarked graves along the trail.