Forrest Catharine Forrest?

[10th Michigan Infantry]

Recently I've discovered a claim that Forrest fathered a mulatto child with a slave named Catharine Forrest. I call baloney on the whole thing, but I thought I'd share a blog post I wrote a while back on the subject, and the original article.

Catharine Forrest?

Recently I’ve discovered a new accusation used against Nathan Bedford Forrest, this one being particularly disgusting.

blueandbutternut.substack.com

https://cupola.gettysburg.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1119&context=gcjcwe

 

[major bill]

Great question,. I hope on of out Forest experts might know.

 

[7th Mississippi Infantry]

Recently I've discovered a claim that Forrest fathered a mulatto child with a slave named Catharine Forrest. I call baloney on the whole thing, but I thought I'd share a blog post I wrote a while back on the subject, and the original article.

Catharine Forrest?

Recently I’ve discovered a new accusation used against Nathan Bedford Forrest, this one being particularly disgusting.

blueandbutternut.substack.com

https://cupola.gettysburg.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1119&context=gcjcwe

If such were true (and I'm not saying it didn't happen), I honestly think that would have been a well known fact many decades ago.

" The person propagating this is Sarah Eiland of the Southern Poverty Law Center."

Well ... that's all I needed to read.

 

[AshleyMel]

I believe this has been addressed in another thread by former member Diane.
She was very knowledgeable about Forrest. I'm sure a search would turn up the thread.

 

[AshleyMel]

I found this thread but it is not the one I am remembering.

Forrest - Illegitimate Son - Nathan Bedford Forrest | Famous People of the Late Unpleasantness

I have raised this question in another topic and have been advised to open a new thread. Whilst searching for information about Nathan B Forrest III I have come across a couple of internet sources which refer to an illegitimate son of Nathan B. There are explicit references to the status of...

civilwartalk.com

I'm not very good with the search function.
Maybe someone else will help.

 

[10th Michigan Infantry]

I found this thread but it is not the one I am remembering.

Forrest - Illegitimate Son - Nathan Bedford Forrest | Famous People of the Late Unpleasantness

I have raised this question in another topic and have been advised to open a new thread. Whilst searching for information about Nathan B Forrest III I have come across a couple of internet sources which refer to an illegitimate son of Nathan B. There are explicit references to the status of...

civilwartalk.com

I'm not very good with the search function.
Maybe someone else will help.

While doing research on the topic a while back I stumbled across her comments here, which proved quite helpful. The thread isn't about Catharine, but the topic came up somehow. https://civilwartalk.com/threads/bl...-southern-gentleman”.88413/page-8#post-711758

 

[DSessom]

Recently I've discovered a claim that Forrest fathered a mulatto child with a slave named Catharine Forrest. I call baloney on the whole thing, but I thought I'd share a blog post I wrote a while back on the subject, and the original article.

Catharine Forrest?

Recently I’ve discovered a new accusation used against Nathan Bedford Forrest, this one being particularly disgusting.

blueandbutternut.substack.com

https://cupola.gettysburg.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1119&context=gcjcwe

This article makes all kinds of assumptions, and offers little to nothing of real evidence to back up the claim. Forrest did indeed buy and sell slaves at his market, that much is certain. But, if you really study the character of Bedford Forrest, it's very doubtful that he had any kind of sexual relations with any of the slaves he bought and sold. Many accounts at the time mention Forrest as being one of the more humane slave traders in the Memphis area - meaning that he consciously tried to keep family units together and would not separate children from their mothers, etc.

One also has to take into account Forrest's adoration of his wife, Mary Ann Montgomery, who was just as headstrong as Bedford and by all accounts an extremely beautiful woman. I have read many times that she was one of the few people that Bedford feared (the other being his younger brother William Hezekiah).

 

[Borderruffian]

If such were true (and I'm not saying it didn't happen), I honestly think that would have been a well known fact many decades ago.

" The person propagating this is Sarah Eiland of the Southern Poverty Law Center."

Well ... that's all I needed to read.

It HAS been rumoured for many years that NBF did father a child with Catherine. It would hardly be a surprise given the oft times unsavory relationships owners had with their female slaves, not saying it occurred with NBF but it could have occured.

 

[DSessom]

This is the source of the accusation. This was a newspaper article written by a New York newspaper, immediately after the Fort Pillow incident, titled "The Butcher Forrest And His Family". Seems more like a propaganda piece than anything.

Catharine (slave) - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[Borderruffian]

This is the source of the accusation. This was a newspaper article written by a New York newspaper, immediately after the Fort Pillow incident, titled "The Butcher Forrest And His Family". Seems more like a propaganda piece than anything.

Catharine (slave) - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

View attachment 500083

Wasn't that " Parson" Brownies " Newspaper"? Not at all saying that it's not true but the Radical Republicans in Tennessee went hard against NBF so depending on the source you have take their " reporting" with block not grain but a block of salt.

 

[DSessom]

Exactly. The above article also says that Bedford and his brothers whipped multiple slaves until their backs were cut up and the entire surface covered in blisters, and even whipped one man to death. Keep in mind that slaves cost a LOT of money - the equivalent of $40,000 to $50,000 each! I seriously doubt Bedford and his brothers would willingly throw money away like that. Don't get me wrong, slave trading is deplorable, but purely from a business standpoint, beating your slaves to death makes no sense.

Anyway, much about the article are simply gross exaggerations to vilify a General in the Confederate Army, which throws the accusation of Bedford fathering a "mulatto" into serious doubt.

 

[RedRover]

Wasn't that " Parson" Brownies " Newspaper"? Not at all saying that it's not true but the Radical Republicans in Tennessee went hard against NBF so depending on the source you have take their " reporting" with block not grain but a block of salt.

Hearts and minds as it were.

Even late into the war, Forrest's command recruited heavily behind federal lines in Tennessee, (even some in Kentucky) etc., and were almost universally supported/supplied by their families....

....

The Union government of the State of Tennessee understood that Forrest's successes were based principally on continued public support (including cooperation with conscription at times...)

Anything to potentially erode public support by planting doubts or fears of guilt by association was fair game in the presses.


In June, 1864, General Washburne, USA, commanding at Memphis and no doubt familiar with the common stories, decided to inquire of General Forrest himself to what extent he was engaged in a war of "massacre" etc.

....

Forrest replied as follows, essentially claiming a continued support by the general public...

 

[Bentonville]

This article makes all kinds of assumptions, and offers little to nothing of real evidence to back up the claim. Forrest did indeed buy and sell slaves at his market, that much is certain. But, if you really study the character of Bedford Forrest, it's very doubtful that he had any kind of sexual relations with any of the slaves he bought and sold. Many accounts at the time mention Forrest as being one of the more humane slave traders in the Memphis area - meaning that he consciously tried to keep family units together and would not separate children from their mothers, etc.

One also has to take into account Forrest's adoration of his wife, Mary Ann Montgomery, who was just as headstrong as Bedford and by all accounts an extremely beautiful woman. I have read many times that she was one of the few people that Bedford feared (the other being his younger brother William Hezekiah).

View attachment 500075

I have a pet theory that Sherman was scared of women as well.

 

[Tennessee Union Gal]

Recently I've discovered a claim that Forrest fathered a mulatto child with a slave named Catharine Forrest. I call baloney on the whole thing, but I thought I'd share a blog post I wrote a while back on the subject, and the original article.

Catharine Forrest?

Recently I’ve discovered a new accusation used against Nathan Bedford Forrest, this one being particularly disgusting.

blueandbutternut.substack.com

https://cupola.gettysburg.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1119&context=gcjcwe

I think absent some good luck with DNA, it would be really hard to prove.

 

[Borderruffian]

Exactly. The above article also says that Bedford and his brothers whipped multiple slaves until their backs were cut up and the entire surface covered in blisters, and even whipped one man to death. Keep in mind that slaves cost a LOT of money - the equivalent of $40,000 to $50,000 each! I seriously doubt Bedford and his brothers would willingly throw money away like that. Don't get me wrong, slave trading is deplorable, but purely from a business standpoint, beating your slaves to death makes no sense.

Anyway, much about the article are simply gross exaggerations to vilify a General in the Confederate Army, which throws the accusation of Bedford fathering a "mulatto" into serious doubt.

And particular brother they did that had been wounded during the Mexican War and wasn't capable of doing so.

 

[bankerpapaw]

Recently I've discovered a claim that Forrest fathered a mulatto child with a slave named Catharine Forrest. I call baloney on the whole thing, but I thought I'd share a blog post I wrote a while back on the subject, and the original article.

Catharine Forrest?

Recently I’ve discovered a new accusation used against Nathan Bedford Forrest, this one being particularly disgusting.

blueandbutternut.substack.com

https://cupola.gettysburg.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1119&context=gcjcwe

Southern Poverty Law Center. That's all you need to know.

 

[Borderruffian]

Southern Poverty Law Center. That's all you need to know.

Sure enough. That says it all.