The Tennessee History Nerd

TTHN Ep 12 - A Pearl of a Story

Freshwater pearls may not be the first thing that comes to mind when people think about Tennessee history…but for decades, Tennessee rivers were at the center of one of the most unusual industries in America. Long before cultured pearls became common in jewelry stores, rivers across Tennessee produced natural freshwater pearls inside native mussels. By the late 1800s, the state found itself in the middle of a full-blown “Pearl Rush,” especially along the Clinch River near Clinton, Tennessee. Pearl hunters waded the rivers barefoot searching for mussels, brail boats dragged the river bottoms, and buyers traveled from New York City to East Tennessee to purchase pearls for the jewelry trade. But pearls were only part of the story. The shells themselves became enormously valuable for the manufacture of mother-of-pearl buttons before plastics transformed the industry after World War II. Eventually, Tennessee mussel shells became even more important internationally as the primary source of nuclei used in cultured pearls around the world. But like many Tennessee stories, this one didn’t simply end. It adapted. Today, the Tennessee River Freshwater Pearl Museum and Farm near Camden preserves the legacy of this unusual industry while continuing the only freshwater pearl culturing operation in North America. This is the story of rivers, mussels, pearls, aquaculture, environmental change, and one of Tennessee’s most surprising hidden industries. Key Sources February 27, 2026 interview with Bob Keast, owner of Birdsong Resort and Marina and the Tennessee River Freshwater Pearl Museum and Farm Fred Ward, “The Pearl,” National Geographic, August 1985 Gemological Institute of America — “Freshwater Pearling in Tennessee” Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency — Freshwater Mussels in Tennessee resources and conservation materials Tennessee River Freshwater Pearl Museum and Birdsong Resort historical and educational materials Tennessee Blue Book — Tennessee State Gem materials McClung Museum of Natural History & Culture freshwater mussel exhibit resources Historical marker archives concerning “The Market Place of Pearls” in Clinton, Tennessee Appalachian History — “A Pearl Rush Grips Clinch River Residents” WKRN Hidden Tennessee feature on the Tennessee River Freshwater Pearl Farm On-site research and field observations conducted at the Tennessee River Freshwater Pearl Museum and Birdsong Marina and Resort Credits Hosted by Big John Summers Produced by Summers Media Enterprises Foley/Sound effect recordings by Big John Summers Follow & Support Follow The Tennessee History Nerd on Facebook for: • On-location videos • Tennessee history content • Episode updates • Historical insights and research clips Support the show on Patreon for: • Early access • Ad-free listening • Bonus interviews • Extended historical discussions 🔗 Links 🎧 Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/summersmediaenterprises [https://www.patreon.com/summersmediaenterprises] 🧢 Merch: https://www.summersmediaenterprises.com/merch [https://www.summersmediaenterprises.com/merch] 🎤 Speaking: https://www.summersmediaenterprises.com/speaking-engagements [https://www.summersmediaenterprises.com/speaking-engagements] 📘 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheTennesseeHistoryNerd/ [https://www.facebook.com/TheTennesseeHistoryNerd/] Check out Dauphin Island Diaries: https://www.summersmediaenterprises.com/podcasts/did [https://www.summersmediaenterprises.com/podcasts/did] Subscribe to Patreon: Patreon.com/summersmediaenterprises Love what you're hearing? Hate what you're hearing? Either way, we'd love to hear what you think! [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2589833/fan_mail/new] Support the show by subscribing to Patreon! Check out our sister podcast Dauphin Island Diaries Advertise with us!  John.summers@summersmediaenterprises.com Check out merchandise from The Tennessee History Nerd.   www.summersmediaenterprises.com/merch Thanks for listening!  Please check out our other episodes! If you enjoyed this episode, follow the show, share it with someone who loves history, and leave a review—it helps more folks discover the stories of the Volunteer State.

TTHN Ep 11 - Red Stick Ruination

Division. Before there was Horseshoe Bend…there was a nation tearing itself apart. In the years leading up to the Creek War, the Muscogee Confederacy found itself divided over one question that would reshape the future of the American South: How do you survive the unstoppable expansion of the United States? Some Creek leaders believed accommodation and diplomacy offered the best chance for survival. Others believed that path would only lead to the destruction of their people, their culture, and their lands. The result was civil war. As violence spread across the Southeast, Red Stick warriors struck at those they believed had aligned themselves with the Americans. American frontier settlements answered with retaliation. The conflict spiraled…until finally it came to a bend in the Tallapoosa River called Tohopeka. Known today as Horseshoe Bend. There, in March of 1814, roughly 1,000 Red Stick warriors fortified themselves behind a massive barricade alongside hundreds of women and children. Facing them was an army under Andrew Jackson made up of Tennessee militia, United States Regulars, Cherokee warriors, and Lower Creek allies. What followed was brutal. In this episode, we examine the divisions within the Creek Nation, Tecumseh’s influence, the rise of the Red Sticks, the Creek War campaign, the battle itself, and the devastating aftermath that followed. Because Horseshoe Bend did more than end a war. It redrew the map of the American South. 📚 Sources Braund, K. H. (2024). Mapping Conquest: The Battle Maps of Horseshoe Bend. University of Georgia Press. Braund, K. H. (n.d.). “American Indians and the War of 1812.” In The War of 1812 Official National Park Service Handbook. National Park Service. Kanon, T. (2015). Tennesseans at War, 1812–1815: Andrew Jackson, the Creek War, and the Battle of New Orleans. University of Alabama Press. Peach, S. (2025). Muscogee Creek History and the American South, 1750–1815. Presentation transcript. Encyclopedia of Alabama. (n.d.). “Battle of Horseshoe Bend.” Encyclopedia of Alabama. (n.d.). “Battle of Burnt Corn Creek.” University at Albany Libraries, M. E. Grenander Department of Special Collections & Archives. Espy Project Execution Record: John Woods. Espy File ID 10002. Reviewed by author. Tennessee Encyclopedia. (n.d.). “Creek War of 1813 and 1814.” Horseshoe Bend National Military Park museum exhibits, battlefield interpretation, maps, brochures, and interpretive materials reviewed by author. National Park Service. (n.d.). Horseshoe Bend National Military Park official interpretive materials. Wikipedia contributors. (n.d.). “Battle of Horseshoe Bend.” Wikipedia. Used as supplemental reference material. 🎙️ Credits Hosted by Big John Summers Produced by Summers Media Enterprises Music by Big John Summers 📣 Follow & Support Follow The Tennessee History Nerd on Facebook, Instagram, and X for additional content, including on-location videos and historical insights from around Tennessee and the broader American South. Support the show on Patreon for: • Early access to episodes • Ad-free listening • Exclusive bonus content, including full-length interviews 🔗 Links 🎧 Support the show on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/summersmediaenterprises [https://www.patreon.com/summersmediaenterprises] 🧢 Merch & Apparel: https://www.summersmediaenterprises.com/merch [https://www.summersmediaenterprises.com/merch] 🎤 Book John for Speaking Engagements: https://www.summersmediaenterprises.com/speaking-engagements [https://www.summersmediaenterprises.com/speaking-engagements] 📘 Follow on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheTennesseeHistoryNerd/ [https://www.facebook.com/TheTennesseeHistoryNerd/] Love what you're hearing? Hate what you're hearing? Either way, we'd love to hear what you think! [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2589833/fan_mail/new] Support the show by subscribing to Patreon! Check out our sister podcast Dauphin Island Diaries Advertise with us!  John.summers@summersmediaenterprises.com Check out merchandise from The Tennessee History Nerd.   www.summersmediaenterprises.com/merch Thanks for listening!  Please check out our other episodes! If you enjoyed this episode, follow the show, share it with someone who loves history, and leave a review—it helps more folks discover the stories of the Volunteer State.

TTHN Ep 10 - Horror on the Mississippi: The Forgotten Inferno

For a few terrible hours in April of 1865, the Mississippi River became the setting for one of the greatest disasters in American history. The Civil War was ending. Thousands of Union soldiers, recently freed from Confederate prison camps, were finally headed home. Many never made it. Packed far beyond capacity, the steamboat Sultana pushed north against the current carrying exhausted passengers who had already survived war, imprisonment, starvation, and disease. Near Memphis, disaster struck. In the darkness before dawn, the boilers exploded. What followed was chaos on the river: fire, freezing water, collapsing decks, and desperate survivors fighting to stay alive in the current of the Mississippi. In this episode, we tell the story of the Sultana: how it happened, why so many were aboard, the corruption and negligence surrounding the voyage, the human cost of the disaster, and why one of the deadliest maritime tragedies in American history has so often been forgotten. Because sometimes history is not lost because it was small. Sometimes it is lost because the nation was already trying to move on. Special Note: If you are interested in the Association of Sultana Descendants and Friends organization, you can reach out directly to Norman Shaw at shawclan4@bellsouth.net [shawclan4@bellsouth.net] 📚 Sources Potter, J. O. (2012). The Sultana Tragedy: America’s Greatest Maritime Disaster. Pelican Publishing. Salecker, G. E. (2022). Destruction of the Steamboat Sultana: The Worst Maritime Disaster in American History. Naval Institute Press. Shaw, N. (2026). Personal interview conducted by author. The Sultana Association of Descendants and Friends. (n.d.). “The Disaster.” Tennessee Encyclopedia. (n.d.). “Sultana Disaster of 1865.” American Battlefield Trust. (2023). “The Sultana Disaster.” The Civil War Monitor. (2021). “Facts and Figures: The Sultana Disaster.” Library of Congress. (n.d.). “Sinking of the SS Sultana: Topics in Chronicling America.” Encyclopedia of Arkansas. (n.d.). “Sultana.” Lincoln Shrine. (n.d.). “The Sultana Disaster.” University of Arkansas at Little Rock Center for Arkansas History and Culture. (n.d.). “Understanding the Sultana Tragedy: The Long Way Home.” Sultana Disaster Museum. (n.d.). Museum exhibits and interpretive materials reviewed by author. 🎙️ Credits Hosted by Big John Summers Produced by Summers Media Enterprises Music by Big John Summers 📣 Follow & Support Follow The Tennessee History Nerd on Facebook, Instagram, and X for additional content, including on-location videos and historical insights from around Tennessee and other places connected to its story. Support the show on Patreon for: * Early access to episodes * Ad-free listening * Exclusive bonus content, including full-length interviews 🔗 Links 🎧 Support the show on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/summersmediaenterprises [https://www.patreon.com/summersmediaenterprises] 🧢 Merch & Apparel: https://www.summersmediaenterprises.com/merch Love what you're hearing? Hate what you're hearing? Either way, we'd love to hear what you think! [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2589833/fan_mail/new] Support the show by subscribing to Patreon! Check out our sister podcast Dauphin Island Diaries Advertise with us!  John.summers@summersmediaenterprises.com Check out merchandise from The Tennessee History Nerd.   www.summersmediaenterprises.com/merch Thanks for listening!  Please check out our other episodes! If you enjoyed this episode, follow the show, share it with someone who loves history, and leave a review—it helps more folks discover the stories of the Volunteer State.

TTHN Ep 9 - Terror in the Night

For a time, the quiet waters of Reelfoot Lake reflected more than cypress trees, flooded timber, and West Tennessee sky. They reflected fear. In the early 1900s, conflict over land, access, ownership, and outside control erupted around Reelfoot Lake. What began as a fight over the future of the lake became one of the darkest and most dramatic chapters in Tennessee history. Armed men moved through the night. Threats became violence. Homes, families, and communities were pulled into a struggle that blurred the line between local resistance and terror. In this episode, we trace the story of the Night Riders of Reelfoot Lake: the roots of the conflict, the people caught in it, the violence that shocked Tennessee, and the way this story lived on in memory, history, and even early motion pictures. Because at Reelfoot Lake, history does not always rise gently from the water. Sometimes, it comes in the dark. 📚 Sources Vanderwood, P. J. (2003). Night riders of Reelfoot Lake. Franko, A. M. (2000). The night riders of Reelfoot Lake. Lake County Historical Society. Original articles written in 1953. Hayes, D. G. (2017). The historic Reelfoot Lake region: The night riders of Reelfoot Lake. Reelfoot Lake State Park Museum. (2026, April 28). Interpretive panels reviewed by author. Tennessee Encyclopedia. (n.d.). The Night Riders of Reelfoot Lake. https://tennesseeencyclopedia.net/ [https://tennesseeencyclopedia.net/] Carey, B. (2017, March). Reelfoot Lake and its dark history of night riders. The Tennessee Magazine. Caldwell, R. H. (2005). Reelfoot Lake remembered. Tennessee Secretary of State. (2023–2024). Tennessee Blue Book. Find a Grave. (n.d.). Robert Zachary Taylor. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/60374168/robert_zachary-taylor [https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/60374168/robert_zachary-taylor] Bagnall, N. H. (1996). On shaky ground: The New Madrid earthquakes of 1811–1812. Meador, M. (n.d.). The truth is not always in black or white: Facts and fictions surrounding the David Walker family lynchings. 🎙️ Credits Hosted by Big John Summers Produced by Summers Media Enterprises 📣 Follow & Support Follow The Tennessee History Nerd on Facebook, Instagram, and X for additional content, including on-location videos and historical insights from around Tennessee and other places connected to its story. Support the show on Patreon for: Early access to episodes Ad-free listening Exclusive bonus content, including full-length interviews 🔗 Links 🎧 Support the show on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/summersmediaenterprises [https://www.patreon.com/summersmediaenterprises] 🧢 Merch & Apparel: https://www.summersmediaenterprises.com/merch [https://www.summersmediaenterprises.com/merch] 🎤 Book John for Speaking Engagements: https://www.summersmedia [https://www.summersmediaenterprises.com/speaking-engagements] Love what you're hearing? Hate what you're hearing? Either way, we'd love to hear what you think! [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2589833/fan_mail/new] Support the show by subscribing to Patreon! Check out our sister podcast Dauphin Island Diaries Advertise with us!  John.summers@summersmediaenterprises.com Check out merchandise from The Tennessee History Nerd.   www.summersmediaenterprises.com/merch Thanks for listening!  Please check out our other episodes! If you enjoyed this episode, follow the show, share it with someone who loves history, and leave a review—it helps more folks discover the stories of the Volunteer State.

TTHN Ep 8 - The Fort That Wasn't

Old Stone Fort has stood on this bluff above the Duck River for nearly two thousand years. Massive walls of stone and earth stretch across a natural peninsula, enclosing nearly fifty acres. To early settlers, it looked unmistakable—a fortress. A place built for defense. A place of war. But it wasn’t. In this episode, we walk through the long story of Old Stone Fort—from early speculation and 19th-century investigation to the archaeological work that reshaped our understanding of the site. Along the way, we explore how this place was built, how it changed over time, and what it may have meant to the people who returned here generation after generation. We also examine the layers that came later—the mills, the industry, and the transformation of the landscape—before returning to the central question that still lingers: If it wasn’t a fort…what was it? 🎧 Bonus Content A full-length interview with Keith Wimberley, manager of Old Stone Fort State Park, is available for premium supporters on Patreon. 📚 SOURCES Faulkner, C. H. (1968). The Old Stone Fort: Exploring an Archaeological Mystery. University of Tennessee Press. Davenport, S., & Gibson, J. (2023). The Duck River: A river like no other. The Tennessee Conservationist. Mayo, B. (2019, November 6). Old Stone Fort: A solstice ceremonial site surrounded by river waterfalls. Murfreesboro Pulse.  Tennessee Encyclopedia. (n.d.). Coffee County.  Tennessee Encyclopedia. (n.d.). Old Stone Fort State Archaeological Park.  Tennessee Historical Commission. (n.d.). Historical Marker 2E 29: Manchester. Tennessee History for Kids. (n.d.). Old Stone Fort.  Wimberley, K. (2026, April 7). Personal interview. L’Amour, L. (1985). Jubal Sackett. Bantam Books. Interpretive materials and video presentation, Old Stone Fort State Archaeological Park museum. 🎙️ CREDITS Hosted by Big John Summers Produced by Summers Media Enterprises Music by Big John Summers 📣 FOLLOW & SUPPORT Follow The Tennessee History Nerd on Facebook, Instagram, and X for additional content, including on-location videos and historical insights. Support the show on Patreon for: * Early access to episodes * Ad-free listening * Exclusive bonus content, including full-length interviews 🔗 LINKS 🎧 Support the show on Patreon (early access, bonus content, interviews): https://www.patreon.com/summersmediaenterprises [https://www.patreon.com/summersmediaenterprises] 🧢 Merch & Apparel: https://www.summersmediaenterprises.com/merch [https://www.summersmediaenterprises.com/merch] 📘 Follow on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheTennesseeHistoryNerd/ [https://www.facebook.com/TheTennesseeHistoryNerd/] Love what you're hearing? Hate what you're hearing? Either way, we'd love to hear what you think! [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2589833/fan_mail/new] Support the show by subscribing to Patreon! Check out our sister podcast Dauphin Island Diaries Advertise with us!  John.summers@summersmediaenterprises.com Check out merchandise from The Tennessee History Nerd.   www.summersmediaenterprises.com/merch Thanks for listening!  Please check out our other episodes! If you enjoyed this episode, follow the show, share it with someone who loves history, and leave a review—it helps more folks discover the stories of the Volunteer State.