Bust of Confederate Gen. Nathan Bedford Forrest in alcove on 2nd floor of Tennessee Legislature. Photo/AP.NASHVILLE – Tennessee Historical Commission members on Tuesday approved Gov. Bill Lee’s proposal to remove the bust of Confederate general, slave trader and early Ku Klux Klan leader Nathan Bedford Forrest from the state Capitol, although legislative leaders cast doubt on whether that will be the final word on the matter.
The 25-1 vote to move the Forrest bust to the Tennessee state museum came following a five-hour meeting in which commissioners heard comments from some 30 Tennesseans, most of whom urged removal of the bust.
Commissioners agreed with Lee’s position that the Tennessee State Museum is a better place to house and provide more suitable historical context to Forrest. The bust has generated controversy since it was installed on the Capitol’s second floor in 1978, in a prominent position outside the House and Senate chambers.
The lone no vote came from Joanne Cullom Moore, who said she never received the Historical Commission staff’s email attachment of provisions under discussion.
The Historical Commission follows up on similar action taken last summer by the State Capitol Commission. But the controversy over the Forrest bust and for Lee, a Republican, may not end anytime soon, and attempts to learn from the Lee administration when or whether it plans to move the bust remained unclear Tuesday afternoon.