Join us for a reading Sunday, June 9th, 2 pm with lawyer and historian Tony Turnbow for his book Hardened to Hickory: The Missing Chapter in Andrew Jackson's Life.

About the Book

Mr. Turnbow spent seven years tracking down unpublished documents to tell the story of Jackson’s first military expedition command.  He discovered that Andrew Jackson became "Old Hickory" through his fight with the general in command of the U.S. Army. That general was also a spy for an enemy power. As Jackson led an expedition of mainly teenage soldiers down the Mississippi River and Natchez Trace to overtake the spy, Jackson was forced to choose between facing a firing squad or abandoning his young Tennessee Volunteers to die. Chickasaw and Choctaw nations helped rescue Jackson’s soldiers and career.

The book reveals a more human side of Jackson than has often been portrayed. It also explains events that transformed Jackson into the man known as general and president.

Kirkus Reviews calls the nonfiction Hardened to Hickory “An impressive combination of scrupulous scholarship and powerful storytelling.”

About the Author

Tony Turnbow has studied the history of the Old Natchez Trace for more than 30 years. He practices law in Franklin, Tennessee. With a Bachelor of Arts  concentrated in southern U.S. history from Vanderbilt University and a Juris Doctorate from the University of Tennessee College of Law, he has continued to use his training to explore unpublished primary sources about the Natchez Trace.  Mr. Turnbow has authored articles in historical journals. He has also written a full-length play about the mysterious death of explorer Meriwether Lewis.