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Please add profiles for those who were born, lived or died in Rutherford County, Tennessee.
Official Website
Rutherford County was formed in 1803 and was named in honor of Griffith Rutherford (1721–1805). Rutherford was a North Carolina colonial legislator and an American Revolutionary War general, who settled in Middle Tennessee after the Revolution. He was appointed President of the Council of the Southwest Territory (the upper chamber of the territorial legislature) in 1794.
The county strongly supported the Confederacy during the Civil War, having voted 2,392 to 73 in favor of Tennessee's Ordinance of Secession on June 8, 1861.
Its central location and proximity to Nashville during the Civil War made it a contested area. The county was home to one of the bloodiest battles of the war, the Battle of Stones River, also known as the Second Battle of Murfreesboro, and was fought between December 31, 1862, and January 2, 1863.
On July 13, 1862, Confederate General Nathan Bedford Forrest conducted a series of cavalry operations known locally as Forrest's Raid. The raid successfully led to the surrender of all Union forces occupying the area. Soon after his departure, Union troops returned to the area and held it until the end of the war.
In August 1869, rampaging white men drove close to 100 black farmers from their homes, and out of the county, to Nashville.
In the early 2000s, Muslim immigrants settled in the county, particularly in and around Murfreesboro. Their efforts to develop a mosque, the Islamic Center of Murfreesboro (and its subsequent replacement) became the focus of intense local controversy and opposition from non-Muslims, and were stymied by political and legal battles, arson, bomb threats and vandalism. A federal court forced the local authorities to allow the mosque, and opposition subsided, but sporadic incidents have continued.
Adjacent Counties
- Cannon County
- Coffee County
- Bedford County
- Marshall County
- Williamson County
- Wilson County
- Davidson County
Cities, Towns & Communities
Allisona (part) | Almaville | Barfield | Blackman | Cedar Grove | Christiana | Eagleville | Florence | Fosterville | Kittrell | La Vergne | Lascassas | Midland | Milton | Murfreesboro (County Seat) | Overall | Readyville (part) | Rockvale | Salem | Smyrna | Versailles | Walterhill | Windrow
Cemeteries
Links
National Register of Historic Places
Stones River National Battlefield
Rutherford County Historical Society
First Families of Rutherford County
