MEMPHIS, Tenn. – A new historic marker in Memphis will point out that a famed Confederate general was a prosperous slave trader before the Civil War.
The Commercial Appeal reports the marker near the site of Nathan Bedford Forrest's early home will be unveiled April 4 on the property of Calvary Episcopal Church, which is sponsoring it along with Rhodes College and the National Park Service.
A nearby 1955 historical marker says "business enterprises" made Forrest wealthy but fails to note that his primary enterprise was slave trading.
The new marker says Forrest operated a slave trading business at the site. History professor Tim Huebner says it will be the only historical marker in Memphis referring to the slave trade.
After the war, Forrest was also an early Ku Klux Klan leader.
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Information from: The Commercial Appeal, http://www.commercialappeal.com
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