North Capitol in Nashville in Davidson County, Tennessee — The American South (East South Central)

Sam Davis of Tennessee

Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, September 9, 2013

1. Sam Davis of Tennessee Marker

Inscription. Born October 6, 1842, near Murfreesboro, Tenn.
Educated at the Western Military Institute at Nashville.
Early in the Civil War he joined the Confederate Army
Company 1, First Tennessee Regiment.
In 1863 he was assigned to Shaw’s Scouts, Cheatham’s Division.
In November, 1863, when on duty
uniformed in Confederate butternut and grey,
Davis was captured in his native state, then within the Federal lines.
Important papers, descriptive of the Federal fortifications and forces,
were found upon his person.
These papers had been given Davis by Captain Shaw
who had also been captured and was confined in the same prison.
Davis was tried by court-martial,
condemned to death and executed at Pulaski, November 27.
The Federal commander offered Davis his life, if he would tell
who gave him the papers. To this offer, under the very shadow of
the gallows, Davis made his immortal reply:
”I would die a thousand deaths
before I would betray a friend.”
• • •
”Greater love hath no man than this -
that a man lay down his life for his friends.”

Erected 1909.

Topics. This memorial is listed in these topic lists: Patriots & Patriotism • War, US Civil. A significant historical month for this entry is November 1863.

Location. 36° 9.906′ N,

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86° 47.054′ W. Memorial is in Nashville, Tennessee, in Davidson County. It is in North Capitol. It is on Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Boulevard east of 7th Avenue North, on the right when traveling west. Marker, monument and statue are located near the southwest corner of the Tennessee State Capitol grounds. Touch for map. Memorial is at or near this postal address: 600 Charlotte Avenue, Nashville TN 37219, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this memorial is in Middle Tennessee.

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 location: Lest We Forget: The Middle Passage (a few steps from this marker); Tennessee State Capitol (within shouting distance of this marker); Mrs. John Hill Eakin - Mrs. Robert F. Weakley (within

Sam Davis Statue image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, September 9, 2013

2. Sam Davis Statue

shouting distance of this marker); Motlow Tunnel (within shouting distance of this marker); a different marker also named Tennessee State Capitol (within shouting distance of this marker); Samuel Dold Morgan 1798-1880 (within shouting distance of this marker); Edwin W. Craig (within shouting distance of this marker); Operation Desert Shield and Desert Storm (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Nashville.

Also see . . . Sam Davis (Wikipedia). Davis suffered a fate shared by many intelligence gatherers operating around Nashville. Most of the rural counties surrounding Nashville were only nominally under Union control, and this 'no-man's land' witnessed over three years of bloody internecine conflict and the steady dissolution of the institution of slavery. In this context, execution for espionage was not uncommon. The Provost Marshal records for Middle Tennessee offer evidence of scores of execution on espionage charges, with not all the victims receiving trials (as Davis did). Most executions, however, went unrecorded apart from a perfunctory note in the Provost Marshal's

Sam Davis of Tennessee Monument (<i>Tennessee Capitol in background</i>) image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, September 9, 2013

3. Sam Davis of Tennessee Monument (Tennessee Capitol in background)

records. (Submitted on March 19, 2019, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)

Sam Davis of Tennessee Monument Dedication plaque<br>(<i>located on east side of pedestal</i>) image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, September 9, 2013

4. Sam Davis of Tennessee Monument Dedication plaque
(located on east side of pedestal)

Sam Davis
1842-1863
”The boys will have to fight
the battles without me.”

He gave all he had -
life;
he gained all he lacked – immortality.

This monument is erected
by contributions from citizens
of every state in the American Union.
On the site authorized
by the 51st General Assembly
of the State of Tennessee
1909

Sam Davis of Tennessee Monument Poem plaque<br>(<i>mounted on west side of pedestal</i>) image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, September 9, 2013

5. Sam Davis of Tennessee Monument Poem plaque
(mounted on west side of pedestal)

Sam Davis
When the Lord calls up Earth’s heroes,
to stand before his face,
O, many a name, unknown to fame
shall ring from that high place;
Then out of a grave in the Southland
at the just God’s call and beck,
shall one man rise with fearless eyes
with a rope about his neck;
O Southland! Bring your laurels,
and add your wreath, O North!
Let glory claim the hero’s name
and tell the World his worth.
Ella Wheeler Wilcox

Photographed by Darren Jefferson Clay, June 15, 2024

6. Sam Davis of Tennessee Marker

Credits. This page was last revised on June 18, 2024. It was originally submitted on March 19, 2019, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. This page has been viewed 837 times since then and 54 times this year. Last updated on June 17, 2024, by Darren Jefferson Clay of Duluth, Georgia. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. submitted on March 19, 2019, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. 6. submitted on June 17, 2024, by Darren Jefferson Clay of Duluth, Georgia. • Bill Pfingsten was the editor who published this page.