Forrest & Maples
| Company type | Partnership |
|---|---|
| Industry | Slave trading |
| Founded | July 1854 |
| Founder | Josiah Maples, Nathan Bedford Forrest |
| Defunct | January 1, 1856 |
| Headquarters | Memphis , United States |
Area served | Southwestern United States |
Forrest & Maples was a slave-trading enterprise operating out of Memphis, Tennessee in the mid-1850s. The company was managed by Josiah Maples and Nathan Bedford Forrest from July 1854 until December 31, 1855.
History
In November 1854, the company sold a nine-year-old girl named Page for $600. According to Jack Hurst, a biographer of Forrest, the firm's business was notably lucrative: in October 1854, they purchased three enslaved people for $1,450 and resold them in November for $1,600, achieving a profit exceeding 10% within just seventeen days—a common occurrence in the thriving Southwest slave market.
On July 9, 1855, they sold a 22-year-old man named Adisson for $1,000. That same year, Mary, a 15-year-old girl, was sold for $800.
The company is also known for offering a $500 reward—the highest recorded amount—for capturing Richard, an enslaved man who was both literate and skilled as a carpenter, after he escaped to a free state. This highlights the firm’s determined efforts to recover escaped enslaved individuals.
The business partnership between Maples and Forrest ended on January 1, 1856.