Nathan Bedford Forrest State Park

[GeoBQn]

My dad was trying to trace my brother and SIL's road trip to Arkansas when he was shocked to discover that there is a Nathan Bedford Forrest State Park in Tennessee.

http://www.tn.gov/environment/parks/NBForrest/

The park was named for General Nathan Bedford Forrest, the intrepid Confederate cavalry leader, who on November 4, 1864, attacked and destroyed the federal supply and munitions depot at (Old) Johnsonville at the mouth of Trace Creek. His operations were concentrated along the river in the vicinity of the park and the town of Eva.

In 1929 the park was dedicated to Nathan Bedford Forrest on land acquired in part from Benton County. Forrest was one of the greatest military tacticians and leaders of the American Civil War.

No no no no no. No no. No.

I've read that he wasn't actually that good of a general, not to mention his role in the Fort Pillow massacre. And yet if a group tried to get the park renamed, they'd probably be opposed on the basis of "tradition."

[dairyfreelife]

It's been around for awhile, but the state has been working on a name change. Tennessee was the birthplace of the KKK, so it's not that surprising. Forrest, in my understanding, was not fond of the violence the KKK wanted to promote and disbanded. Of course, that doesn't change the fact that he was a seriously racist asshole, even for his time.