Memphis, Tennessee

Memphis, Tennessee

History

Memphis was settled by the Chickasaw tribe.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The Spanish explorer, Hernando de Soto, is believed to have visited what is now the Memphis area.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The French built Fort Prudhomme in the vicinity.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The city was founded in 1819 and incorporated as a city in 1826. At the conclusion of the Battle of Memphis on June 6, 1862 during the American Civil War, Union forces captured Memphis from Confederate control. A yellow fever epidemic in 1870 greatly reduced the population for many years thereafter. In 1897, Memphis' pyramid-shaped pavilion was a conspicuous part of the Tennessee Centennial exposition. From the 1910s to the 1950s, Memphis was a hotbed of machine politics under the direction of E. H. "Boss" Crump. The city was at the center of civil rights issues during the 1960's, notably as the location of a sanitation workers' strike. Memphis is also known as the place where Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated on April 4, 1968 at the Lorraine Motel. Racial tension remains in Memphis as a result of its uneasy history in this regard.

Related Topics:
1819 - 1826 - Battle of Memphis - June 6 - 1862 - American Civil War - Union - Confederate - Yellow fever - 1870 - 1897 - Pyramid - Tennessee Centennial - 1910s - 1950s - Machine politics - E. H. "Boss" Crump - Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~