Since 1980, areas of northern Franklin have been developed for residential and related businesses, in addition to modern service industries.

Despite recent growth and development, Franklin is noted for its many older buildings and neighborhoods, which are protected by city ordinances.

[citation needed] This area is part of Middle Tennessee, and farmers prospered in the pre-Civil War years, with the cultivation of tobacco and hemp as commodity crops, and raising of livestock.

The Second Battle of Franklin was fought on November 30, 1864, resulting in almost 10,000 casualties (killed, wounded, captured, and missing).

The Carter, Carnton, and the Lotz[11] houses from this era are still standing and are among the city's numerous examples of period architecture.

Black Union League men were ambushed by Whites at the town square and returned fire.

He was fatally shot by a large group of masked men believed to be Ku Klux Klan (KKK) members.

Bowman, a Black man who worked for Bierfield and was with him at his store, was fatally wounded in the attack and soon died.

[15] After the Reconstruction era, white violence continued against African Americans, as the minority struggled to retain dominance.

Among them was Amos Miller, a 23-year-old Black man who was forcibly taken from the courtroom by a White mob during his 1888 trial in a sexual assault case.

[21] Population growth slowed noticeably from 1910 to 1940 (see table in Demographics section), as many African Americans left the area in the Great Migration to northern industrial cities for jobs and to escape Jim Crow conditions.

One of the first major manufacturers to establish operations in the county was the Dortch Stove Works, which opened a factory in Franklin in 1928.

The factory complex was restored in the late 1990s in an adaptation for offices, restaurants, retail and event spaces.

Franklin is home to an armed forces memorial, on the grounds of the Williamson County Archives.

Historic preservation and church leaders developed the "Fuller Story", a project to recognize the lives and contributions of African Americans to Franklin.

In October 2021 a statue of a soldier of the United States Colored Troops was installed in front of the old Williamson County Courthouse on Franklin Square.

It marks the contributions of thousands of African Americans in ending the Civil War and reuniting the Union.

Before the statue was erected, in 2018, the first of several planned historic plaques was installed; these mark the history of slavery, the Reconstruction era and Jim Crow, and civil rights in Franklin.

[35] Franklin is home to health-care-related businesses such as Community Health Systems, Acadia Healthcare, Iasis Healthcare, Tivity Health, Home Instead Senior Care, MedSolutions Inc, and Renal Advantage Inc. Nissan,[36] Mitsubishi Motors,[37] Clarcor, CKE Restaurants, Jackson National Life, Triangle Tyre Company, Provident Music Group, World Christian Broadcasting, Mars Petcare, Franklin American Mortgage, Kaiser Aluminum,[38] Lee Company, Ramsey Solutions, Video Gaming Technologies, and Atmos Energy also have corporate or regional headquarters in Franklin.

State Route 397, also designated as US 31/431 Truck and Mack Hatcher Memorial Parkway, serves as a bypass around the business district of the city to the east.

Other major thoroughfares in Franklin include Cool Springs Boulevard and McEwen Drive, both of which have interchanges with I-65.

[50] Pilgrimage is a music festival put together by Kevin Griffin, who lives and works as a musician in Franklin.

In addition to musical acts, it features children's activities, food, and a marketplace showcasing local crafts.

[53] Pumpkinfest is an annual fundraiser for the Heritage Foundation of Franklin and Williamson County, held on the Saturday before Halloween.

The holiday theme is carried through activities including music, children's amusements, local artisans, and food.

Victorian cuisine is served to visitors, and an arts and crafts bazaar features prominently in Public Square.