Columbia in Maury County, Tennessee — The American South (East South Central)

James K. Polk

Rise to the White House

Photographed by Duane and Tracy Marsteller, March 13, 2021

1. James K. Polk Marker

Inscription. Prior to his presidency, James K. Polk was a successful lawyer in Columbia. He was admitted to the Maury County bar in 1820 following his graduation from the University of North Carolina.

Polk's first case ended successfully when he defended his father for engaging in an "affray" with another man. Although Polk's father had to pay a one-dollar fine, his adversary was required to pay ten. Polk's father also helped his son's career by purchasing books for his law library and building his law office in Columbia.

While the routine work of settling land claims provided steady business, Polk also took on more interesting cases to boost his reputation. In his first four years of practice, Polk's income rose from $250 per year to $2,659 by 1824.

Between 1820 and his tenure in the White House, Polk successfully defended some of the most notorious people of the day including pugilists, horse thieves, counterfeiters, and murderers.

Not all cases ended favorably. Those who lost their cases were often branded or whipped on the public square, or hanged on the gallows near the Duck River.
Tom Price — James K. Polk Home

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This historical marker is listed in this topic list: Law Enforcement. A significant historical year for this entry is 1820.

Location. 35° 36.9′ N, 87° 2.032′ W. Marker is in Columbia, Tennessee, in Maury County. It is at the intersection of North Main Street and Public Square when traveling south on North Main Street. Marker is mounted on the north wall of the Maury County Courthouse. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 1 Public Square, Columbia TN 38401, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Middle Tennessee

and in Greater Nashville.

It is also in the American South

and specifically in the Upper South.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

one of the Confederate States of America,

and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Maury County War Memorial (a few steps from this marker); The Founding of Maury County and Columbia (within shouting distance

Photographed by Duane and Tracy Marsteller, March 13, 2021

2. James K. Polk Marker

of this marker); James Edwin R. Carpenter (within shouting distance of this marker); Andrew Johnson (within shouting distance of this marker); Nathan Vaught (within shouting distance of this marker); The Forrest-Gould Affair (within shouting distance of this marker); Nelson House Hotel (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); Freedmen's Savings Bank and Trust Company (about 400 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Columbia.

Also see . . . James K. Polk: Life Before the Presidency. By John C. Pinheiro, Professor of History at Aquinas College, for the University of Virginia-affiliated Miller Center. (Submitted on March 14, 2021, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee.)

James K. Polk image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Ralph E. W. Earl, circa 1830

3. James K. Polk

From the Tennessee State Library and Archives' Colonial Dames of America Portraits in Tennessee Painted Before 1866 Photograph Collection.

Credits. This page was last revised on March 14, 2021. It was originally submitted on March 14, 2021, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee. This page has been viewed 485 times since then and 39 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on March 14, 2021, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee.