Near Gray in Washington County, Tennessee — The American South (East South Central)

Ford vs. Ford

Photographed by Jason Ford, 2022

1. Ford vs. Ford Marker

Inscription. This land brought about the historic court case of Ford v. Ford. Loyd Ford (1748-1843) freed his five enslaved individuals and gave them his farm located here. His children challenged the will and the five who were freed fought the case up to the Tennessee Supreme Court. In 1846, Judge Nathan Green authored an opinion which ruled that an enslaved individual is "Not in the Condition of a horse or an ox … he is made in the image of his creator." The state's highest court recognized the enslaved humanity as both "persons and property." Those formerly enslaved won their case and kept their freedom and land. The Tennessee Supreme Court's decision affirmed the legal right of those enslaved to bring suit to probate the will.

Erected by Tennessee Historical Commission. (Marker Number 1A 157.)

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Abolition & Underground RR • African Americans • Civil Rights. In addition, it is included in the Tennessee Historical Commission series list. A significant historical year for this entry is 1846.

Location. 36° 25.63′ N, 82° 30.405′ W. Marker is near Gray, Tennessee, in Washington County. It is on Bob Jobe Road 0.1 miles east of Browder Road, on the right when traveling west

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. Located near Gray Station. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 188 Bob Jobe Rd, Johnson City TN 37615, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in East Tennessee

and in the Tri-Cities Area.

It is also in the American South,

specifically in the Upper South,

in Appalachia,

and specifically in Southern Appalachia. Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the original Cherokee Nation,

the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

one of the Confederate States of America,

the State of Franklin,

and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 5 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Freed African Americans Win First Inheritance Suit (approx. 0.3 miles away); Fiddlin’ Charlie Bowman (approx. 2.2 miles away); Buffalo Ridge Church (approx. 3 miles away); Double Springs (approx. 3.2 miles away); Keebler-Keefauver Home (approx. 4½ miles away); Suffering and Survival (approx. 4½ miles away); Tennessee Veterans Memorial (approx. 4.6 miles away); Great Indian Warrior Trading Path (approx. 4.8 miles away).

Photographed by J. J. Prats, May 16, 2025

2. Ford vs. Ford Marker

Photographed by J. J. Prats, May 16, 2025

3. Ford vs. Ford Marker

Credits. This page was last revised on May 29, 2025. It was originally submitted on September 26, 2022, by C. R. Arterburn of Lexington, Kentucky. This page has been viewed 2,294 times since then and 158 times this year. Last updated on September 27, 2022, by C. R. Arterburn of Lexington, Kentucky. Photos: 1. submitted on September 26, 2022, by C. R. Arterburn of Lexington, Kentucky. 2, 3. submitted on May 29, 2025, by J. J. Prats of Powell, Ohio. • Devry Becker Jones was the editor who published this page.