Exploring the living history of Promise Land, Tennessee
Promise Land was established and settled by formerly enslaved people near Charlotte, Tenn., during Reconstruction.
The original settlers included at least five former members of the United States Colored Troops: Clark Garrett, Landin Williams, Ed Vanleer and the brothers John and Arch Nesbitt.
The community grew at one point to about 1,000 acres, home to about 50 families. It remained independent and flourished in spite of Jim Crow. But during the Great Migration, families began moving away, many to Ohio and other locations in the Midwest. By the 1950s, the town dwindled and only a few…
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