TBA Law Blog


Posted by: Stacey Shrader Joslin on Jan 27, 2020

In a move that would dovetail with an effort to end the observance of Nathan Bedford Forrest Day, a Knoxville Democrat is calling for removal of the Forrest bust from the state capitol and replacing it with recognition of other Tennesseans. Rep. Rick Staples has introduced House Joint Resolution 686, which would honor state Rep. Anne M. Davis of Knoxville and Gatlinburg and William F. Yardley of Knoxville in place of the Forrest bust, the Daily Memphian reports. Davis was among the state’s first female House members when elected in 1925 and sponsored legislation that led to creation of the Great Smoky Mountains. Yardley was the first African American to launch a serious gubernatorial campaign in the state in 1876.