Hidden History of Tennessee Politics

by James B. Jones Jr.

The Volunteer State plays politics according to its own particular set of rules. Witness the rise and fall of the lost state of Franklin, Tennessee's first instance of secession. Pull back the curtain on the disputed election of 1894 and get the inside scoop on the acerbic editorial cartoons of James Pinckney Alley. Glad-hand influential figures like Andrew Jackson and Kate Bradford Stockton, the state's first female gubernatorial candidate. Pick through filibusters and fiercely partisan quarrels as James B. Jones navigates the twists and turns of Tennessee's political heritage.

144 pages, Paperback

First published July 6, 2015

Reviews

[Mark Bunch · Rating 3 out of 5]

A quick, easy read of Tennessee political heritage. 11 story that clue one in on the history of Tennessee. I bought this book at the East Tennessee History Museum gift shop in downtown Knoxville, TN - they have a great selection of books about Tennessee. If you want a thin volume to give you a good taste of our Tennessee past-this may be it. I really enjoyed the chapter on the Highland School from Monteagle, TN. They were pioneer in community change and accused communists and enemies of the white power movement of the South. I heard about the move to New Market in the 1970's and the controversy it stirred.

[Barbara Heerman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Though this book just a few vignettes from Tennessee's past, which end pre-World War II, it shows the geographic, racial, and economic divisions in TN.

[Jason · Rating 2 out of 5]

Some interesting stories, but hampered by typos, wordy prose, and occasional generalities.