Obion County Historical Society

The Obion County Historical Society will meet August 26, 2025 at 6 PM at the Obion County Public Library. Jerry O. Potter of Somerville,TN will speak on the Sultana Disaster of April 27, 1865, a steamboat explosion on the Mississippi River near Memphis that killed 1,864 people, many of whom were Union soldiers returning home from Confederate prison camps. Potter is presently employed with the firm, Harris, Shelton, Hanover and Walsh in Memphis. He graduated from UT-Martin in 1973, the University of Memphis School of Law in 1975, and was admitted to practice law in Tennessee in 1976. He is a Fellow with the American College of Trial Lawyers, and a member of the Memphis Bar Association. He has received numerous awards for his work in personal injury litigation, and is also a recipient of the Tennessee Historical Commission award. He is the author of two books, The Sultana Tragedy in 1992 and Problems Relating to the Development of Northwest Tennessee in 1973. He has also authored several articles over the years in various historical journals, and is a board member of the Sultana Disaster Museum in Marion, Arkansas. The Obion County Historical Society meets on the fourth Tuesday of each month. The meetings are open to the public. All interested persons are encouraged to attend. You, Now