Edward W. Carmack Statue

Edward W. Carmack was a leader of Tennessee’s temperance movement and served as a state senator from 1901 to 1907. He ran on a prohibition platform in his pursuit of the Tennessee governorship. After losing the Democratic primary to Malcolm R. Patterson, a prohibition opponent, he became editor of the Nashville Tennessean newspaper. Using his position at one of the state’s most influential newspapers, Carmack frequently attacked Patterson as well as the owner of another newspaper, Nashville American, Mr. Duncan Brown Cooper. Carmack and Cooper frequently verbally sparred over the opposing positions on alcohol. The feud came to a head on November 9, 1908. Cooper and his son, Robin, were walking downtown when they encountered Carmack on Seventh Avenue. The men traded fire with Carmack’s bullets wounding Robin. Robin shot back, killing Carmack. After his death, a media frenzy ensued during the murder trials of Duncan and Robin Cooper. Both were convicted of second degree murder.

Carmack’s death shifted public opinion about prohibition, and the state legislature banned the sale, consumption, and distribution of alcohol in 1914. As a martyr of the cause, the legislature commissioned a statue by sculptor Nancy McCormack in his memory. The statue was unveiled in 1925 and is now a testament to a murder that has been largely forgotten by many in Nashville. For more information on Edward Carmack, go around the statue to read “Carmack’s Pledge to the South.”

Feel free to check out our beautiful state capitol before continuing to the tour’s last stop. The Tennessee State Capitol marker is to the right of the Motlow Tunnel entrance. If you’re interested in seeing more government buildings, check out our Civic and Public Spaces Tour.

Continue east on Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. towards Sixth Avenue North. At the corner of Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. and Sixth Avenue North, look to your left. This is your final stop for Cedar Street and Capitol Hill.