Rippa Villa

Shannon Shertzer

Our tour guide, Bill, did an exceptional job detailing the Civil War events that happened at SpringHill specifically at Rippa Villa. I appreciated the sensitivity with which he spoke about the enslaved peoples for which the war was fought. The house is in restoration stage which doesn’t disappoint us since we’ve renovated historic homes and like to see the progress. If you are touring all three historic homes… Rippa Villa, Carter House and Carnton, I suggest you tour in that order (but you can go in any order). We are history buffs and we highly recommend all three of the tours. All three tour guides were the best we’ve experienced at any sites we’ve visited.

Kristina Spargo

We toured Rippavilla in 2019 and it was amazing! Best tour we've ever taken and we've taken a lot! The guides were knowledgeable and engaged in the subject, talking specifically about the house, the people who lived there, and about the surrounding area. The Battle of Franklin was mentioned as was slavery because they are a part of the history of the house but they weren't the only focus. We took the tour again on Monday and the tour was terrible! The only reason I'm not giving it one star is because our guide and the gift shop gal were nice but that's the only thing it's got going for it. The house is gutted (given it's going through renovations) but there are maybe 5 pieces of furniture in the whole place. When I asked what furniture from before would be back in again after renovations I was told nothing. I asked at another museum that had pieces that we recognized from Rippavilla what happened and we were told the family and everyone who had leant pieces took them back because they didn't want to be associated with the Battle of Franklin Trust that is now in charge. Another guide on another tour confirmed it. They have an agenda behind what they are doing to this beautiful place and it's obvious which is sad. Photos attached are of how it used to look.

Randall Peacock

A really neat antebellum plantation house. The house is very sparsely furnished resulting in my less than perfect score. Our guide was incredible! She knew the history of the house and the family that built it. She was very helpful with questions about the house and the many changes that have been made to it.

Sue Brinkmann

We visited Rippavilla on a Monday afternoon and toured the grounds first where we saw the extent on the plantation and were able to visualize the troops and their placement during the battle. Then we returned to the main house and had a fabulous tour by Kristi who was so knowledgeable and able to communicate her stories of the house, the people and the war in a fascinating way that brought it all to life. This house is under a complete restoration and it will be even more interesting when it is completed.