truthckr
2nd Lieutenant
- Joined
- Nov 1, 2010
- Location
- Waynesboro, Virginia
Good posts, thanks for the info. Does anyone know the circumstances of Mrs. Forrest's death (Mary Ann)?
Good posts, thanks for the info. Does anyone know the circumstances of Mrs. Forrest's death (Mary Ann)?
Cool. I remember your sharing that with us several years ago, but couldn't seem to find it again. Forrest definitely took after both of them, didn't he?
http://civilwartalk.com/threads/great-couples-from-civil-war-for-valentines-day.95506/#post-807080Nathan Bedford Forrest and Mary Ann Montgomery is a long term love story! He was a difficult man to be married to, for sure, but she was a very strong personality herself. He had not known of her before he found her and her mother stuck in the creek, but she had undoubtedly heard of him. They met just after he had the big shoot-out with the Matlocks in the street in front of his uncle's business. He proved a number of things by fishing her out of the creek - he was decent, he was a gentleman (unlike the jokers standing by watching!), and he was strong. He put his shoulder under the wheel and hefted it up, loaded carriage and all! After seeing them safely on the road again, he came back to the two men watching - all muddy and dripping wet - and laid into them but good. They left and he then turned to Mary's mom and asked politely to see her daughter. Well, you bet you can! When he arrived for his date he saw the same two men sitting in the living room. They snickered, saying Mary wasn't going to pick him - she was a cultured lady and he was a hillbilly. That was evidently the end of the conversation, and when Mary did finally come down she found one man sitting on the couch waiting patiently for her. It was the one she figured on! Forrest promptly proposed to her. He was not the romantic type and didn't know what else to say, so he gave her his basic resume - I'm working, I've saved some money, I've got a little property and I'm a big galoot. I can provide for you and protect you. What do you say? She didn't say anything. So, he said, "Coming back tomorrow. I'll have the marriage license with me." Being as he was also the constable of De Soto County, that wasn't hard! He did return, with the papers done, and they were married directly. By all accounts it was a good marriage. Many who met Forrest and his wife during the war were surprised at how deferential he was to her. She always managed to be as near to her husband and son as possible. He had tried to leave her in Memphis but after being badly wounded at Shiloh, he gave in to her insistence that she be near. Whenever he was wounded he didn't fail to tell her, nor did he make light of it. The only thing they argued about was his gambling. Mary did not like it one bit and often told him so. After the war, Forrest made the mistake of vouching for a friend's loan. The friend defaulted, which meant Forrest suddenly owed around $5,000. He came up with all of it but $1000. This was due in the morning. Forrest and the wife sat at the dining table looking at their last $10 in all the world. "Won't you let me find a game of draw?" he asked. "Gambling is a sin," Mary replied. "No good comes of sin!" "Mary, this is a matter of honor." "Then I will be waiting for you, with a Bible on my lap!" Forrest went off with the $10 and found him a game. He turned the $10 into $1200. He then got up, put the winnings in his hat, and started to go. The other players stopped him, saying he should give them a chance to get their losses back. "No, gentlemen," said Forrest. "My wife is sitting at home praying for me and reading the Bible. This is my last game." As far as anyone knows, it really was his last game! He considered her his 'guardian angel' and truly believed he had survived the war due to her constant prayers.
Well, she certainly looks like she could stand up to Bedford! Beautiful and you can see the strength in her face. Thanks for posting, Donna.Mary Ann Montgomery Forrest has Memorial on Find A Grave. There is picture of her on a small box. I wondered if anyone knew if this original picture.
Memorial at:
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=38153642
Now that you mention it, he looks like his mama! minus the beard of course. Rats......Got to say - that isn't Mary Ann Forrest. That is Mariam Beck Forrest Luxton - mom! On the back of that brooch is William Forrest - dad. It's an easy mistake as it's been on the internet a lot identified as Mrs. Forrest. It is...just the wrong generation! It's Forrest's mother, not his wife.