Capt. Tod Carter’s Pass Returns Home

By Gregory L. Wade · Originally published March 2016 · p. 17

FRANKLIN, Tenn. — The recent “discovery” of an artifact important to the story of the Battle of Franklin is proof there are still incredible pieces of history left to be found. The Battle of Franklin Trust, managers of key Franklin battle sites, recently announced the acquisition of the pass given to Capt. Theodrick “Tod” Carter two days before the Nov. 30, 1864, battle. It would have allowed him to visit his family home on the outskirts of Franklin. By late 1864, Tod Carter had served with the Army of Tennessee for over three years, including time spent as a prisoner of war. He found himself in Middle Tennessee as part of Confederate Gen. John Bell Hood’s command moving north during its attempt to free Middle Tennessee and Nashville from Federal occupation. Carter grew up on the family farm, but could not visit it, despite the pass, because Federal troops filled trench lines near the farmhouse. He had no way he would face battle within hours and would have been disappointed to be so close and not able to visit family. Carter was mortally wounded about 500 feet from his family home on Nov. 30. Found the day after the battle, he survived until Dec. 2, dying in one of the Carter House

The Nov. 28, 1864, pass permitting Capt. Tod Carter to visit his nearby family home in Franklin has been acquired for display at the Carter House. (Battle of Franklin Trust) bedrooms. Battle of Franklin Trust Chief Executive Officer Eric Jacobson said the pass “further tells the [Carter] story.” He knew the pass had existed, and had seen a photo of it, but no one knew where it was. Brig Gen. Thomas Benton Smith signed the pass giving Carter permission to “go in advance of this command to Franklin, Tennessee.” It is believed he stayed at a farm about two miles south on the night of Nov. 28 and got much closer during the battle itself.

A direct descendant of the Carter family, Mary Anne Warren, saw the artifact as a child and always thought it was somewhere in the family’s papers but couldn’t locate it, said curator Joanna Stephens. It had been taken out of Tod Carter’s wallet and framed. A Hernando, Miss., man recently purchased the contents of a storage bin and found the pass, still in its original frame. Noting the reference to Franklin, he contacted Larry Hicklin, a Murfreesboro, Tenn., artifact dealer, who called Jacobson. The purchase was arranged and the pass came home to Franklin. Written in pencil on simple white paper, the pass is in relatively “good shape,” Stephens said. The document will be treated by a conservator and placed on display at the Carter House Visitors Center. General Smith, who signed the pass “By order of TB Smith,” was seriously wounded weeks later at the Battle of Nashville, receiving brain injuries that affected him the rest of his life. In 2010, the bullet taken from Tod Carter’s skull was returned to the Carter House by family members. Stephens expressed her gratitude to those involved who made the “effort to contact us and bring this incredible part of the Battle of Franklin story home.”