Yeoman's in the Fork Blog

Thomas Hart Benton is a man who generally requires no introduction to those from the area surrounding our little bookshop in Leiper's Fork, TN. The town that we call home was once even named for Benton - Bentontown! Bentontown switched to Hillsboro and that led to Leiper's Fork... Our Thomas Hart Benton was the uncle to the slightly more well-known nephew of the same name (the artist Thomas Hart Benton). Our Benton was an early settler to the area and served as General Andrew Jackson's aide-de-camp during the Battle of New Orleans and a bit of the War of 1812. Our Benton went on to become a 30+ year Senator from the State of Missouri and is almost as known for his altercations and duel with his friend Andrew Jackson... Benton was a true man of honor and substance (from most accounts at least) and caught the eye of a young John F. Kennedy in the early 1950's. Kennedy actually chose to include our Benton as one of the eight Senators detailed in his Pulitzer Prize winning book, 'Profiles in Courage.' Please take a look at the links below for a little more on Thomas Hart Benton and the issue of slavery, Benton's stance on the subject and the reasons he was chosen by Kennedy for inclusion in this modern political classic!