Barred from Removing Confederate Statues, Cities Are Contextualizing Them Instead

Route Fifty: In Franklin, Tennessee, a lifesize statue of a Confederate soldier, referred to by locals as “Chip,” stands atop a 31-foot base in the center of the city’s public square. The statue was dedicated in 1899 by the United Daughters of the Confederacy, and is meant to commemorate the contributions of soldiers in the Civil War, many of whom fought in the Battle of Franklin, a bloody conflict won by the Union in 1864.There are just under 100 Confederate monuments like the