Memphis Greenspace Inc. is a non-profit corporation started in October 2017 in Memphis, Tennessee. The issue that led to its creation was the unanimous decision of the City Council of Memphis and Shelby County to remove statues of Confederate Generals Robert E. Lee and Nathan Bedford Forrest from public parks. However, under the new Tennessee Heritage Protection Act, they could not do so without permission from the Tennessee Historical Commission, which refused permission.
Memphis Greenspace purchased Health Sciences Park (formerly Forrest Park) and Fourth Bluff Park, which housed the two statues, for US$1,000(equivalent to $1,105 in 2021) each, and immediately removed the statues. [1] According to the terms of the sale, the land must continue as parks.
The president of Memphis Greenspace is Van Turner, a Shelby County Commissioner. He announced that it plans to buy more parks in the future. [2]
In 2019, a legal action brought against Memphis Greenspace's removal of the statues was dismissed by the Tennessee Court of Appeals. [3]
In 2020, Memphis Greenspace agreed to the removal of the remains of Nathan Bedford Forrest and his wife Anne, which had been buried beneath the equestrian statue of Forrest in Health Science Park, to another site. [4]
Nathan Bedford Forrest was a prominent Confederate Army general during the American Civil War and the first Grand Wizard of the Ku Klux Klan from 1867 to 1869. Before the war, Forrest amassed substantial wealth as a cotton plantation owner, horse, and cattle trader, real estate broker, and slave trader. In June 1861, he enlisted in the Confederate Army and became one of the few soldiers during the war to enlist as a private and be promoted to general without any prior military training. An expert cavalry leader, Forrest was given command of a corps and established new doctrines for mobile forces, earning the nickname "The Wizard of the Saddle". He used his cavalry troops as mounted infantry and often deployed artillery as the lead in battle, thus helping to "revolutionize cavalry tactics", although the Confederate high command is seen by some commentators to have underappreciated his talents. While scholars generally acknowledge Forrest's skills and acumen as a cavalry leader and military strategist, he is a controversial figure in U.S. history for his role in the massacre of several hundred U.S. Army soldiers at Fort Pillow, a majority of them black, coupled with his role following the war as a leader of the Klan.
The Second Battle of Memphis was a battle of the American Civil War occurring on August 21, 1864, in Shelby County, Tennessee.
West Hughes Humphreys was the 3rd Attorney General of Tennessee and a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee, the United States District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee, and the United States District Court for the Western District of Tennessee.
Emma Sansom was an Alabama farm worker noted for her actions during the American Civil War, during which she assisted the campaign of Confederate Army general Nathan Bedford Forrest. Activists in the 2020 racial protests, including descendants of Sansom herself, called for the removal of a statue commemorating her in Gadsden, Alabama.
Raleigh is a community in north-central Memphis, Tennessee, United States, named for a formerly incorporated town that used to be at its center. Raleigh is bordered on the west by the community of Frayser, on the east by the incorporated suburb of Bartlett, on the south by the Wolf River and Interstate 40, and on the north by the Memphis city limits. The former town of Raleigh was the first county seat of Shelby County, Tennessee.
Elmwood Cemetery is the oldest active cemetery in Memphis, Tennessee. It was established in 1852 as one of the first rural cemeteries in the South.
Matthew Joseph Hill is an American talk show host, businessman, and politician who served as a member of the Tennessee House of Representatives from 2005 to 2021.
Randolph is a rural unincorporated community in Tipton County, Tennessee, United States, located on the banks of the Mississippi River. Randolph was founded in the 1820s and in 1827, the Randolph post office was established. In the 1830s, the town became an early center of river commerce in West Tennessee. Randolph shipped more cotton annually than Memphis until 1840. In 1834, the first pastor of the Methodist congregation was appointed. The fortunes of the community began to decline in the late 1840s due to failed railroad development, an unfavorable mail route and other factors. The first Confederate States Army fort in Tennessee was built at Randolph early in the Civil War in 1861, a second fortification at Randolph was constructed later that same year. During the Civil War, the town was burned down twice by Union Army forces.
The Nicholas Gotten House is located on 2969 Court Street in Bartlett, Tennessee, United States. It houses the Bartlett Museum, a local history museum operated by the Bartlett Historical Society.
Fort Wright was constructed in 1861 and located on the second Chickasaw Bluff at Randolph, Tipton County, Tennessee. Fort Wright was a Civil War fortification and the first military training facility of the Confederate Army in Tennessee.
Myron Lowery was the Mayor Pro Tem of Memphis, Tennessee, from July 31, 2009 to October 26, 2009. He is a former television news anchor for WMC-TV 5 in Memphis. Mayor Pro Tem Lowery has served on the Memphis City Council since 1991. He became interim mayor on July 31, 2009, following the retirement of Mayor W. W. Herenton. He ran for Mayor of Memphis in a special election held on October 15, 2009, losing to A C Wharton.
John Watson Morton was an American Confederate military officer, farmer and politician. Educated at the Western Military Institute, he entered military service soon after graduation, with the outbreak of war. He served as captain of artillery under General Nathan Bedford Forrest in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. Afterward he was the founder of the Nashville chapter of the Ku Klux Klan during the Reconstruction era.
More than 160 monuments and memorials to the Confederate States of America and associated figures have been removed from public spaces in the United States, all but five since 2015. Some have been removed by state and local governments; others have been torn down by protestors.
The Nathan Bedford Forrest Monument is a bronze sculpture by Charles Henry Niehaus, Niehaus, one of the most preeminent sculptors in U.S. history was paid $25,000 in 1901 to create it, the equivalent of $676,000 in today’s money and all of it raised from private donations, depicts Confederate States of America Lt. General and first-era Ku Klux Klan Grand Wizard Nathan Bedford Forrest mounted atop a horse, wearing a uniform of the Confederate States Army. It was formerly installed in Forrest Park in Memphis, Tennessee. The statue was cast in Paris. Forrest and his wife are buried in front of the monument, after being moved there from Elmwood Cemetery in a ceremony on November 11, 1904. The cornerstone for the monument was laid on May 30, 1901 and the monument was dedicated on May 16, 1905. It was removed on December 20, 2017 and is currently in the possession of the Sons of Confederate Veterans. Plans are for the statue to be re-erected on the grounds of the SCV National Headquarters in Columbia, Tennessee.
The Nathan Bedford Forrest Statue was a 25 feet (7.6 m) tall statue of Confederate States of America Lt. General and first-era Ku Klux Klan Grand Wizard Nathan Bedford Forrest mounted on a horse in Nashville, Tennessee, located near Interstate 65 at 701D Hogan Road. The statue depicted Forrest shooting behind himself and was flanked by Confederate battle flags. Its abnormal facial features bore little resemblance to Forrest himself, and more resembled a screaming, deformed man.
For the statue in Nashville, see Nathan Bedford Forrest Statue.For the statue in Memphis, see Nathan Bedford Forrest Monument.
The Tennessee Heritage Protection Act (THPA) was enacted in 2013, and amended in 2016 and 2018. It prohibits the removal, relocation, or renaming of a memorial that is, or is located on, public property without permission. Permission requires a two-thirds vote of approval from the 29 member board of the Tennessee Historical Commission, 24 of whose members are appointed by the Governor and the remainder ex-officio. The purpose of the Act is to prevent the removal of Confederate memorials from public places in Tennessee. As put by the New York Times, the Act shows "an express intent to prevent municipalities in Tennessee from taking down Confederate memorials."
The 2019 Memphis mayoral election took place on October 3, 2019. Jim Strickland, the incumbent mayor, was elected to second term in office. The mayoral election coincided with elections to all thirteen seats on the Memphis City Council.
Robert Hodges, more commonly known by his self-styled moniker Prince Mongo, is an American entrepreneur and minor local political personality in Memphis, Tennessee, who has continuously run for Mayor of Memphis and occasionally for Mayor of Shelby County since the 1970s. He tends to be known locally for his eccentric personality. Though much of his life remains unknown, he claims to have been born on the planet Zambodia around 333 years ago.
Tami Sawyer is an American politician and civil rights activist. She was elected in August 2018 as Shelby County Commissioner for District 7 and resides in Memphis, Tennessee. She is a member of the Democratic Party. She serves as chair of the Education and Legislative committees. She is chair of the Shelby County Commission Black Caucus.