The Legend of Marshall Carlos

This surprising story focuses on a Spanish-speaking police chief beginning in the 1850s during Knoxville’s murky antebellum era.  Christopher Columbus Carlos, a tailor-turned-policeman had a reputation as an especially tough cop—a Town Marshall even—who was so skilled with a long stick and a thrown brick that he never carried a gun.

A legend in his own time, stories of Marshall Carlos continued even when he was an old man in a rapidly growing city of tall buildings. Old folks would tell stories about him, just like they had about Robin Hood or William Tell. He himself liked to amuse the disbelieving with tales that he remembered Knoxville when everything north of Clinch Avenue was wild, and you could hunt foxes and possums in the wilds of what only later became Market Square.

After he died, one newspaper wrote that he “was one of the best known and most highly respected citizens of this city. His name will always be familiar in the annals of East Tennessee and Knoxville.” That hasn’t proven to be the case, but we respectfully remember his fascinating story here, preserved for future generations.

Join us on this extended episode written by Jack Neely and narrated by Don Thress. Special thanks to producer Pete Carty. 

Knoxville Chronicles is brought to you by the nonprofit Knoxville History Project. 
  
Learn more at KnoxvilleHistoryProject.org