New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1871-07-09
A HISTORIC SPOT.
"Reminiscences of an Old Landmark soor
sFrI4seIs stsN TO be EHaeed. '.tn
~ from the Nashville Banner. /


Since the demolition of the City Hotel has
been contem plated its history and that of
+he Ground ON which it is located has been
,i;scSssed with much interest by our old
citizens 1T seems that the site has been
occupied by hotel almost from slime out
of mind" -... -,
The first place of entertainment of which
our oldest citizens have any recollection
was frame house kept by ELI ldio0t, and
known during it's tune by his name. Parton
saws that in 1913 this was known as the City
Hotel, but one of our informants, VINO was
living there at the time, insists tnat not
until several years after was the City Hotel
erected. aa~
1t was in the Talbot Hotel. 1913, that the
famous rencontre occurred between Andrew
Jackson and the Bentons, The difficulty
originated remotely from duel between
General Carroll and Jesse Benton, in which
General Jackson had been the second of the
former, and from a bitter correspondence
subsequently had between Colonel Thomas
Fl. Benton and General Jackson, though
the two had been warm personal friends.
The circumstances which led to the rem
contre have become matters OF history, and
we propose only to recall the particulars OF
the fight itself, as locally connected with
the annals of the spot on which the City
Hotel now stands.
On the third of September, 1873 the Ben
tons were registered at the Talbot Hotel,
and General jackson at the Nashville Inn,
then located on the northeastern corner of
Market street and the public square, the.
site now occupied by the wholesale house
of Evans, Gardner & Co. The next morn
inc about nine o'clock General Coffee and
General jackson started around the square,
via the Talbot Hotel, to the postoffice,
which was then located where the house OF
Bolivar H. Cook now stands, with the os
tensible purpose of obtaining their mail.
On returning, General Jackson attacked
Colonel I. H. Benton, who was standing In
the doorway of Talbot's Hotel. Benton
fumbled in his pocket for pistol, and re-
treated slowly backward, jackson close
upon him with a pistol at his heart,
until they had reached the back
door of the hotel. At that moment,
Jesse Benton, seeing his brothers danger,
shot a slug into Jackson's shoulder, shatter-
ing it in fearful manner. The latter fell
across the entry and remained PROSTATE.
bleeding profusely At this junctnre Gen
eral Coffee fired at Colonel Benton, and
missed him. He then -"clubbed' his pistol
ana was about to strike, when Colonel Ben
ton, in stepping backward, came to some
stairs of which he was not aware, and fell
headlOng to the bottom. StOkely Hays then
coming upon the scene OF action, made
lunge at Jesse Benton with a sword,
a button, and the sword broke in pieces.
He then drew dirk, got Jesse Benton upon
the floor, held him down with one hand,
and was about to plunge it into his heart,
when a spectator caught him by the arm.
This ended the rencontre.
Some time subsequent to the year 1913,
the first house of entertainment, known as
the City Hotel, was erected in the place of.
Talbot Hotel, which had been torn down to
give place to it. This hotel was burned,
and in 1888 the present City Hotel was
built. Up to within the past few years it
was favorite place for holding political
caucuses and other meetings of public
character.
1t was at this hotel, in the year 1915, that
a very notable event happened in the life
of Z. u. C. Judson. better known under the
nom de plume of Ned Buntine." Having
shot and killed citizen of Nashville, he
took refuge in the City Hotel from the ex-
cited populace. He ran to the third story
of the hotel and was so hotly pursued that
he jumped to the ground, a distance of
thirty-six feet. He feigned to be dying and
was taken to the Jail. That night he was
taken out and hung up to an awning in
front of the house now occupied by Bolivar
H. Cooke s. Co., but was soon after cut
down by some unknown person.
Did space permit at present, we might
recall many other interesting incidents, pO
itical and otherwise, connected with this
time -honored place of entertainment.