Forrest Boyhood Home

Forrest Boyhood Home. "Wizard of the Saddle". The Nathan Bedford Forrest Boyhood Home, the only surviving house of three that the Forrest family occupied in the northern end of Marshall County, is located a quarter mile ahead of you. In 1830, Forrest's father, William Forrest, bought the two-story log house and 181 acres adjacent to the farm of John Beck, his father-in-law. The Forrest family moved here from Chapel Hill when Bedford, the oldest son, was nine years old. William Forrest added the one-story extension and front porch to accommodate his growing family., In 1834, the family moved to northern Mississippi just below Memphis. Forrest, a blacksmith, died three years later. Sixteen-year-old Bedford became the nominal head of the household, although his beloved, six-foot-tall mother was well able to manage her family., Before the war, Bedford Forrest made his living as a slave trader and speculator, honing his astute ability to read people. He became a millionaire and one of the richest men in the South. In 1861, he enlisted as a private in the Confederate forces in Memphis, but by the end of the war, he was a lieutenant general., Forrest returned to this area several times to rest and feed his men while recruiting in Middle Tennessee. He also visited his cousin, Abraham Forrest Lillard, at nearby Lillard's Mill, where he stocked his wagons with meal, flour, and other goods., Despite Forrest's earlier lack of military training or experience, his unrivaled gifts as a leader and tactician earned him the nickname “Wizard of the Saddle.” His tactics continue to be studied at our nation's military academies., [Captions] , . (Left) Gen. Nathan B. Forrest Courtesy Library of Congress , . (Top right) Forrest Comes Home - Courtesy artist David Wright , . Forrest's raid on Memphis, Harper's Weekly, Sept. 10, 1864 ,

The Sons of Confederate Veterans, headquartered in Columbia, Tennessee, is currently restoring and maintaining the Nathan Bedford Forrest Boyhood Home.