Memphis United Against National Guard Deployment
In 1938, Memphis stood largely united against a National Guard deployment, behind a self-assured leader with a powerful political organization and friends in Washington, D.C.
National Guardsmen and Memphis Police patrolled downtown around the Bass Pro Shops at the Pyramid and Riverside Drive.
Historians Robert Dean Pope and his son Justin Pope are writing a forthcoming biography of E.H. Crump for the University of Virginia Press, conducting archival research on Crump for several years.
Memphians may be intrigued to learn what happened in 1938 in a world where Memphis stood largely united against a National Guard deployment, behind a self-assured leader with a powerful political organization and friends in Washington, D.C.
Author's summary: Historians explore E.H. Crump's leadership during National Guard threat.