Despite the construction debris around it, the historic Merrill-Williams home somehow retains an air of dignity and importance. It’s one of those houses that seems to reach out to the sidewalk, entreating passersby to stop and listen to its stories. Indeed, this property has much to say about Franklin’s African American history, from the ugly days of slavery to the travails of Jim Crow and beyond. Now, thanks to a group of preservation-minded people, the home is being transformed into a heritage center where its stories and those of the larger African American community will survive for years to come.

 

The story of the Merrill-Williams house begins with the land on which it sits. The property was once part of the Carter Farm, which saw heavy combat during the Battle of Franklin. A section of the main Federal line of defense actually bordered the lot along what is now 11th Avenue. In recent years, metal detectors have uncovered a significant amount of Civil War relics on the site.

 

After Emancipation, freedmen began to purchase property in this area, including Moses Merrill who had been in bondage for forty years. His former owner Charles A. Merrill, a Nashville slave trader, had bequeathed land and a yearly stipend of $100 a quarter to Moses. On April 11, 1881, Moses purchased the lot where the Merrill-Williams house would later stand.

 

Though it’s unclear whether Moses ever actually lived at what is now 264 Natchez Street, the surrounding acreage grew into one of the first neighborhoods in Franklin to be established by freedmen. Now known as the Natchez Street Historic District, it became a thriving African American community and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2004.

Moses eventually transferred his property to Thomas A. Williams, a local grocer and teacher. Thomas was the son of the legendary A.N.C. Williams, a freedman and the first African American to own a business in Franklin. It’s difficult to overstate A.N.C.’s legacy, which continues to be honored today. In 2021, a road was named after him, and last year, a commemorative plaque was installed where his former store was located on Main Street.

 

When Thomas and his wife, Jane, moved to 264 Natchez Street, the property became a hub of the neighborhood. During Jim Crow when entertainment options were limited for African Americans, the Williams' hosted community gatherings, art shows and musical performances. Also during this period, the home caught fire one or two times. Charred studs have since been discovered within the frame of the home. Preservationists speculate the burned wood was either from one of the fires or brought in afterward to save money on repairs.

 

Upon Thomas’s death in 1946, the home was left to his family. On September 7, 1950, his nephew Fred D. Williams purchased it. According to Fred’s daughter, Cassandra Taylor, the home was a gift to her mother, Mattie. “My parents used to walk up Natchez Street to Franklin Training School, and they used to pass that house. She told my daddy that if we ever get married, I want you to buy me that house.”

 

Fred owned Midway Taxi Company in Franklin and was a photographer, an avid antique collector, and a trumpet player in a jazz band named the “Patent Leather Kids.” He also was part of a small group that strategized and advocated for peaceful tactics to end segregation in Franklin.

 

After her parents’ deaths, Cassandra, who now lives in Memphis, inherited her childhood home. The Natchez neighborhood around it was falling victim to increasing gentrification, which made the house a likely target for demolition if she decided to sell it. Cassandra and her husband considered opening a bed and breakfast there, but a local ordinance prevented that. Ultimately, she sold it to the African American Heritage Society of Williamson County under a one-year option.

Working in partnership with the MTSU Center for Historic Preservation, the AAHS has since raised more than $1.2 million to restore and transform the home into an African American heritage center. AAHS Executive Director Alma McLemore says the center will honor the people who lived in the house as well as the surrounding Natchez community. “The Williams family legacy continues with this house,” says Alma. “And the master plan is to preserve this whole neighborhood and have a tour to showcase all of this from the Carter house to here.”

 

As the project progresses, it is attracting some prominent supporters. AAHS board member and preservationist Mary Pearce connected with the renowned Cheryl McKissack Daniel, president and CEO of the legacy firm McKissack & McKissack, the oldest minority-female-owned design and construction firm in the country, based in New York City. Cheryl has deep roots in middle Tennessee — her ancestor Moses McKissack was an enslaved brick maker in the area. In 1905, his grandson Moses III founded McKissack & McKissack in Nashville. Cheryl is serving as a consultant on the Merrill-Williams house project.

 

“I feel like God is blessing us in a profound way,” says Alma. “When you share stories [of the past], that’s a ministry. When we tell the stories of our ancestors, we’re dignifying them. It humanizes them.” And thanks to the efforts of these dedicated preservationists, the Merrill-Williams house will be a cornerstone of Franklin’s African American history, giving a voice to those ancestors for years to come.