Forrest's jail

Location of 87 and 89 Adams marked in red (streets have since been renumbered; historical marker is in parking lot behind church)
The Memphis Commercial Appeal claimed in 1907 that this had been Forrest's slave pen,[1] but Forrest's jail was between Second and Third.[2] In 1862, the Daily Union Appeal described Forrest's pen as "a filthy den, and it would make any decent man sick to be there one night."[3]
Forrest & Maples advertisement, 1853; Josiah Maples was also a bank director and cotton plantation owner[4][5]
"General Assortment of Negroes": This card is from between 1859 and 1861, after Forrest sold 87 Adams to his former partner Byrd Hill for US$30,000 (equivalent to $1,017,333 in 2023)[6] (National Museum of African American History and Culture)
"Hill, Ware & Chrisp, A New Firm" Memphis Daily Appeal, September 7, 1859
"The New Jail" Memphis Daily Union Appeal, August 24, 1862

Forrest's jail was the slave pen owned and operated by Nathan Bedford Forrest in Memphis, Tennessee, United States. Forrest bought 87 Adams Street, located between Second and Third, in 1854.[2] It was located next to a tavern that operated under various names,[2] opposite Hardwick House,[7] and behind the still-extant Episcopal church.[8] Forrest later traded, for fewer than six months, from 89 Adams.[6] Byrd Hill bought 87 Adams in 1859.[6] An estimated 3,800 people were trafficked through Forrest's jail during his five years of ownership.[9]

  1. ^ "The Old Negro Mart". The Commercial Appeal. January 27, 1907. p. 48. Retrieved 2023-12-01.
  2. ^ a b c Hurst, Jack (1993). Nathan Bedford Forrest: A Biography. New York: Alfred A. Knopf. pp. 37–38, 56–60. ISBN 978-0-307-78914-3. LCCN 92054383. OCLC 26314678.
  3. ^ "Are we to have a new jail?". Daily Union Appeal. August 16, 1862. p. 3. Retrieved 2023-12-01.
  4. ^ "Directors, Bank of West Tennessee". Memphis Daily Appeal. March 7, 1861. p. 3. Retrieved 2023-12-14.
  5. ^ "Personal". The Daily Memphis Avalanche. December 21, 1875. p. 4. Retrieved 2023-12-14.
  6. ^ a b c Cite error: The named reference Huebner2023 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. ^ "Removal of the station house". Daily Union Appeal. August 28, 1862. p. 3. Retrieved 2023-12-04.
  8. ^ "The Butcher Forrest and His Family: All of them Slave Drivers and Woman Whippers". Chicago Tribune. May 4, 1864. p. 3. Retrieved 2023-12-04.
  9. ^ Colby, Robert K. D. (2024). An Unholy Traffic: Slave Trading in the Civil War South. Oxford University Press. p. 54. doi:10.1093/oso/9780197578261.001.0001. ISBN 9780197578285. LCCN 2023053721. OCLC 1412042395.