The Heritage Foundation

The Heritage Foundation was formed in 1967 to protect and preserve the architectural, geographic and cultural heritage of Franklin and Williamson County and to promote the ongoing ecomnomic revitalization of downtown Franklin in the context of historic preservation.

Current Projects

	The enduring romance with the Franklin Theatre began in the summer of 1937. The marquee spilled brilliantly onto Main Street inviting citizens countywide to see "Night Must Fall," starring Robert Montgomery and Rosalind Russell.   And they came -- young and old, black and white, rich and poor. They laughed, they cried, they dreamed. And, together, within the illuminated walls of the Franklin Theatre, unforgettable moments occurred and memories were made.   Click here to visit our Save the Franklin Theatre website!
	Save Fleming Hall!   Built 1911 as primary structure for private school, the successor to Harpeth Academy dating to 1811 Largest educational building in Williamson County abandoned after construction of new campus and purchased by Williamson County County has not maintained structure and it is deteriorating rapidly
	Breezeway

Why Preserve

What is it that you value most about Williamson County? For most, the small town charm of our growing community and its historic character rank near the top, along with our scenic landscapes. You have probably traveled around the country enough to know that very few places possess the historic character and charm of Franklin and Williamson County, and that these attributes do not happen by accident. The Heritage Foudnation of Franklin and Wililamson County continues to be a driving force in the charachter of this community, as it has for the past 42 years. With the help of today's citizens the Heritage Foundation continues to preserve our wonderful history for future generations.

How We  Preserve

To accomplish our mission, the Heritage Foundation has established three divisions of preservation services that are: 
 
Public Preservation - preservation projects that require interaction with government.
Examples of public preservation projects include maintain accurate inventory of historic sites in Franklin and Williamson County, Historic Preservation Plan for Franklin, Historic Zoning, Saving the Farmstead Study, listing properties on the National Register of Historic Places and bi-monthly newsletter.
 
Private Preservation - Purchased Roper’s Knob (a signal post during the Civil War), Purchased Cotton Gin site, Historic Marker Program, Heritage Classroom Program, Lecture Series, Land Trust partnership. 
 
Franklin Main Street program - Produce community events to showcase our historic downtown, monthly merchant meetings, Streetscape, Parking Program, Advocates for Library, Courthouse, Post Office to remain in downtown, participate in the National Trust Main Street Program.
 
Our organization is governed by a board of 18 elected directors who believe strongly that the retention of Franklin and Williamson County’s historic resources are important to our community’s well being. The 6 staff members of the Heritage Foundation believe in the mission of the Heritage Foundation and seek to achieve the mission with the strong support of more than 1000 solid gold members who work with our organization each year to accomplish the goals of the organizations.

Success Stories

Success can be measured by the national attention Franklin’s historic resources receive. Our City won the Great American Main Street award in 1995 and has been featured in national publications such as Colonial Homes, Life, Southern Accents, Southern Living, Victorian Homes and National Trust publications.
 
The high level of Heritage Tourism is a good measure of success.
 
Award-winning community wide events attended by thousands spell success.
 
The thousands of students who are informed about our community’s unique historic resources and who can tell the history of our town means we are succeeding in passing along awareness of our community treasures to the next generation.
 
High quality publications spell success.
 
Listening to our membership and modifying our programs and projects to meet the identified priorities of the majority of membership means success.
 
The willingness of the Heritage Foundation to change and grow to better accomplish the mission of the organization.
 
Success can be measured by the diverse 900 plus membership that is comprised of both natives of Williamson County and newcomers to Franklin. Plus, we now have volunteers and board members who are the second generation to be involved in the organization.
 
Success can be measured by the 3,000 acres that have been preserved with conservation easements through our partnership with the Land Trust for Tennessee.
 
Success can be measured by the strong partnerships the organization has formed with such organizations as city and county governments, land trusts, chambers of commerce, visitors’ bureaus, house museums, national organizations and historic property owners. 
 
But our success can best be measured by a drive though our town and county where you can enjoy the rich architectural heritage and rural landscapes that are till here in one of  fast growing counties in our nation.