Marker Logo HMdb.org THE HISTORICAL
MARKER DATABASE
“Bite-Size Bits of Local, National, and Global History”
“Bite-Size Bits of Local, National, and Global History”
Castilian Springs in Sumner County, Tennessee — The American South (East South Central)
 

Abraham “Abram” Bledsoe

African-American Frontiersman

 
 
Abraham “Abram” Bledsoe Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Darren Jefferson Clay, April 11, 2021
1. Abraham “Abram” Bledsoe Marker
Inscription.

Between Isaac Bledsoe's fort and Anthony Bledsoe's Greenfield, the frontier slave, identified in early accounts only as “Abram" and belonging to Col. Anthony Bledsoe, thwarted an April 27, 1793 Indian attack on Greenfield. Two months later, surprised by Cherokee Chiefs "John Taylor” and “Mad Dog” in a canebrake between the forts, he mortally shot the latter. In 1813, “Abram” met the lost child Josephus Conn Guild and guided him to safety. Guild never forgot this act of kindness.
 
Erected by Tennessee Historical Commission. (Marker Number 3B 61.)
 
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African AmericansColonial EraForts and CastlesNative Americans. In addition, it is included in the Tennessee Historical Commission series list. A significant historical date for this entry is April 27, 1793.
 
Location. 36° 23.897′ N, 86° 19.278′ W. Marker is in Castilian Springs, Tennessee, in Sumner County. Marker is on Unnamed Road north of Hartsville Pike, on the right when traveling north. The marker is some yards north of Bledsoe's Fort Historical Park. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 114-170 Rock Springs Road, Castalian Springs TN 37031, United States of America. Touch for directions.
 
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are
Paid Advertisement
Click on the ad for more information.
Please report objectionable advertising to the Editor.
Click or scan to see
this page online
within walking distance of this marker. Bledsoe's Fort Historical Park (a few steps from this marker); A Frontiersman Settles in the Wilderness (a few steps from this marker); Fighting for a Way of Life (a few steps from this marker); Bill "Hoss" Allen (a few steps from this marker); Rogana (within shouting distance of this marker); Hugh Rogan (within shouting distance of this marker); Capt. Horace Lawson Hunley (about 500 feet away, measured in a direct line); The Nathaniel Parker Log Cabin (about 600 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Castilian Springs.
 
Regarding Abraham “Abram” Bledsoe.
Abraham - Mulatto Slave
Written by Jay Guy Cisco
From "Historic Sumner County, Tennessee", 1909

"Another name that deserves to be remembered is that of Abraham, a mulatto belonging to Colonel Anthony Bledsoe. General Hall said of him: "He was a brave, active and intelligent fellow, and indeed a good soldier and marksman." He seems to have been a general favorite with the whites. He was ever ready and anxious for a brush with the Indians, and more than one of them met death before him unerring rifle. What became of him I am unable to say. Doubtless his remains were mingled with the soil he so bravely helped to defend, and from which he helped to clear the primitive forest. General Hall
Abraham “Abram” Bledsoe Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Darren Jefferson Clay, April 11, 2021
2. Abraham “Abram” Bledsoe Marker
gives, in his "Narrative," the following example of the bravery of Abraham: "He was passing one evening from the Lick fort up to Greenfield, when right in the thick canebrake he met two Cherokee chiefs of note, "Mad Dog" and "John Taylor" the latter a half-breed, well known in Nashville before the war broke out, and who could talk good English. They had been on a visit to the Shawnees; and having sent on their warriors, they were on their way by themselves to steal horses and murder any settler who might fall in their way. Abraham met them about ten paces off, and instantly drawing up his gun, he shot Mad Dog dead in his tracks, turning himself at once and feeling after his exploit."
 
 
Credits. This page was last revised on April 15, 2021. It was originally submitted on April 12, 2021, by Darren Jefferson Clay of Duluth, Georgia. This page has been viewed 416 times since then and 52 times this year. Photos:   1, 2. submitted on April 12, 2021, by Darren Jefferson Clay of Duluth, Georgia. • J. Makali Bruton was the editor who published this page.

Share this page.  
Share on Tumblr
m=170822

CeraNet Cloud Computing sponsors the Historical Marker Database.
This website earns income from purchases you make after using our links to Amazon.com. We appreciate your support.
Paid Advertisements
Mar. 28, 2024