Am planning a trip to Tennessee. Any thoughts, suggestions as to if we fly into Nashville to see historical sites? Also want to do Memphis. Any help is appreciated. Thanks.

I make visits to Civil War battlefields at every opportunity. Shiloh is among the 3-4 I am most impressed with. It is quite well preserved and there is a sense of serenity and awe that rivals Gettysburg or Antietam.

I'll be visiting the Chattanooga battlefields in April so I can give an opinion of them after that visit.

The battle of Franklin took place just outside of Nashville and there are sites nearby to tour. Among those is a old farmhouse which was in the process of being preserved when we were there about 6 years ago. It had been used as a field hospital during the war, and is the focus of the historical fiction novel "The Black Flower" by Howard Bahr. There is also a large confederate cemetary (we were told the largest) adjacent to the farm house. A very interesting place to visit.

I have been to Lookout Mountain, and it's not a bad preservation. If you go there, you may as well visit Chickamauga Nat Military Park, which is also good. Chattanooga also features a Battle-Rama at the base of Lookout, which is the original electric, sound and light show of the battles of the area.

Fort Donelson Nat Military Park and Stones River Nat Battlefield are also good. Franklin Battlefield has a small museum but not much else.

Tennessee has maintained a series of history plaques at various battle sites, including Nashville, Fort Henry, Paris, Beech Grove, Island #10, and others.

Have you read The Widow of the South about the woman who buried all the soldiers of the Battle of Franklin on her plantation? Definitely look into going to Franklin.

And if you are going to Memphis, what about traveling on down to Vicksburg? It's fascinating.