Forrest Bump!
Posted on 07/24/2005 11:17:37 AM PDT by zipper
A prominent Memphis businessman has proposed that the Memphis City Council move the graves of Nathan Bedford Forrest and his wife from Forrest Park and turn the park over to the neighboring University of Tennessee.
Lawyer and real estate developer Karl Schledwitz suggests that Elmwood Cemetery officials have agreed to a plan in which the graves would be moved to the historic cemetery -- their original location -- along with the 9,500-pound bronze statue of the Confederate general.
Elmwood officials couldn't be reached for comment Saturday.
Sue Harpole, UT vice chancellor for development, said school officials have agreed to maintain and police the park now at the center of a raging debate.
[snip]
(Excerpt) Read more at commercialappeal.com ...
Folks, this is what happens when the politics of a city change. The blacks now running the city have decided to purge all references to "controversial" historical figures (that is, when they're white). There are three parks that they seek to rename (who knows, maybe there'll be a new Malcolm X park-- the mayor gave him the key to the city a few years ago), and this particular city park will see the bodies of Confederate General Nathan Bedford Forrest dug up and banished to an old cemetery, along with his monument.
There is also a state park called Nathan Bedford Forrest State Park, which is located closer to Nashville than Memphis (AKA Detroit of the South). Fortunately they can't have a hand in suppressing that historical landmark.
Malcolm X is dead, that must have been some feat. Anyway's, I agree with you 100%.
Did they dig him up too to do that?
Rejoice! You are learning one of the true meanings of the term 'equality;' i.e. one group replaces the other then promptly begins to "lay down the law." One this fact is realized then the problem then becomes manageable.
Excuse me-- that was Louis Farrakhan
Forrest Bump!
-- George Orwell, 1984
I spoke to my brother yesterday who lives in Memphis and he told me that there is "no way" that the names will be changed.
In fact, if memory serves the land which Forrest park is located was owned by the Forrest estate and I believe that the land was given to the city with the understanding that the park would be named "Forrest Park" and the general and his wife would be buried there. Change the name or remove the graves and the city loses the park.
Next case...
I wonder what blacks whose ancestors were in the CSA think about all this???
Semper Fi,
Kelly
I have lived in Memphis for over 30 years, and this is the first time that I have heard that the part is on Forrest land. I pray that it is so. We had to leave and move 40 miles north, just to get a way from the horrible politics in Memphis proper.
bump
Just goes to show that to some history is nothing more than an obstacle on the road of progress.......how sad.
I respond: Lord!
It should be: Once this fact is realized, then the problem becomes manageable.
I live in Memphis and I have heard the same thing about the land reverting to the estate if the name is changed.
Doesn't surprise me.
"In 1864 Confederate leader Nathan Bedford Forrest led 2,000 cavalry troops to Memphis. Forrest's brothers rode into town early one morning and nearly captured three Union generals, one fleeing in his nightshirt up General Washburn Alley - which was named for his escape. The raid was immortalized by Nobel laureate William Faulkner."
But wouldn't possibly consider renaming Tom Lee Park, but lionize the accomplishments of civil-war era slave Tom Lee (for whom Tom Lee Park is named in downtown Memphis; "Memphis' greates hero" according to the newly rewritten history of Memphis):
"It is typical of Memphis' history that it merges the renown and the unknown. The well-known rights activist Ida B. Wells worked long and hard for Memphis, organizing and writing, especially in response to riots and the lynching of Black businessmen here early in this century. And in 1925 the man called Memphis' "greatest hero," Tom Lee (for whom our riverside park is named), single-handedly saved thirty-two people from drowning when a steamer sank. Tom Lee could not swim."
History of Memphis (according to the current administration, emphasizes the civil rights movement but de-emphasizes the role of whites)
We've got a zoo here in Nashville named Grassmere that had a conditional donation agreement as well but the city simply ignored it. Same thing as the local Ben West library; it has one shelf of books in a cloak room so that the city can retain title to the building.
July 4, 1875
Memphis, Tennessee
Source "Black Southerners in Gray" - edited by Richard Rollins, Rank and File, 1994.
"Nathan Bedford Forrest was invited to speak by the Jubilee of Pole Bearers, a political and social organization in the post-war era comprised of Black Southerners. Miss Lou Lewis was introduced to General Forrest then presented him with a bouquet of flowers and said: 'Mr. Forrest - allow me to present you this bouquet as a token, of reconciliation, an offering of peace and good will.'
"General Forrest received the flower with a bow, and replied: To the General Forrest Tribute Website
'Miss Lewis, ladies and gentlemen - I accept these flowers as a token of reconciliation between the white and colored races of the South. I accept them more particularly, since they come from a lady, for if there is any one on God’s great earth who loves the ladies, it is myself. This is a proud day for me. Having occupied the position I have for thirteen years, and being misunderstood by the colored race, I take this occasion to say that I am your friend. I am here as the representative of the Southern people - one that has been more maligned than any other. I assure you that every man who was in the Confederate army is your friend. We were born on same soil, breathe the same air, live in the same land, and why should we not be brothers and sisters.
When the war broke out I believed it to be my duty to fight for my country, and I did so. I came here with the jeers and sneers of a few white people, who did not think it right. I think it is right, and will do all I can to bring about harmony, peace and unity. I want to elevate every man, and to see you take your places in your shops, stores and but I want you to do as I do - go to the polls and select the best men to vote for. I feel that you are free men, I am a free man, and we can do as we please. I came here as a friend and whenever I can serve any of you I will do so. We have one Union, one flag, one country; therefore, let us stand together. Although we differ in color, we should not differ in sentiment. Many things have been said in regard to myself, and many reports circulated, which may perhaps be believed by some of you, but there are many around me who can contradict them. I have been many times in the heat of battle - oftener, perhaps, than any within the sound of my voice. Men have come to me to ask for quarter, both black and white, and I have shielded them. Do your duty as citizens, and if any are oppressed, I will be your friend. I thank you for the flowers, and assure you that I am with you in heart and hand.'"
The Memphis Daily Avalanche reported this event on July 6, 1875.
Thanks for that excellent piece of history.
It turns out Nathan Bedford Forrest was less antagonistic to black people than Senator Robert Byrd.
my how I do love this man....were that he could lead our forces today !
Glad he's dead myself.
regarding tactics, it seems like he was accredited with the remark
"get theya fustist with the mostest"
absolutely correct ,
if it hadn't of been for Turkey we would've been
able to follow the Forest doctrine in Iraq.
N .B. Forest was a great great man.
Another slap in the face is that the park is also named for NB Forrest III, General USAAF; the first General Officer to be killed during WW II. General NB Forrest, USAAF, was the great grandson of NB Forrest and was shot down in a B-17 on one of first raids to Wilheilvshaven, Germany. General Curtis Lemay took command from NB Forrest.
Forrest died right across the street from where he is buried. It is just south of the current Sun Recording studio where Elvis made his first recording.
What are they going to do about the tiny fact that the Forrest family OWN that plot of land and loan it to the city as long as Nathan Bedford Forrest and his wife are buried there?
I wish I knew the answer to that. I don't think any of those on the city council that favor renaming Forrest Park care if it's legal or not. They will score political points with their constituents regardless. At the expense of race relations, of course.
I suppose we'll find out a lot more over the next few days.
something else I found for everyone to consider, which agrees with the biography I saw at the Nathan Bedford Forrest State Park:
"Embittered by the state of his homeland after the war, in May 1866, Forrest became "Grand Wizard" of the (A secret society of white Southerners in the United States; was formed in the 19th century to resist the emancipation of slaves; used terrorist tactics to suppress Black people) Ku Klux Klan, an organization of Confederate veterans. Because of Forrest's prominence, the organization grew rapidly under his (The activity of leading) leadership. In addition to aiding Confederate widows and orphans of the war, many members of the new group began to use force to oppose the extension of voting rights to blacks, and to resist (The activity of constructing something again) Reconstruction-introduced measures for the ending of segregation. In 1869, Forrest, disagreeing with its increasingly violent tactics, ordered the Klan to disband. However, many of its groups in other parts of the country ignored the order and continued to function."
http://www.absoluteastronomy.com/encyclopedia/n/na/nathan_bedford_forrest.htm
FREE the southland, NOW!
free dixie,sw
What did he or his estate leave for the city?
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