In Lynchburg, Tennessee, the name Nearest Green has always meant something special. His birth name was Nathan Green but those who knew him best, his family and friends, called him Uncle Nearest. His children and grandchildren solely referred to him in Nearest in each of their legal documents. No one actually knows how he obtained that nickname, so we assume he was the “nearest and dearest” to so many who came in contact with him. An incorrect spelling of his name in the 1880 census as Nearis, has caused some confusion. But rest assured, no one in his family is confused about the spelling of his name: Nathan “Nearest” Green.
READ MORENearest Green, nor his wife, Harriet could read or write. That was the reality of most slaves and their children. Education was scarce and work was plentiful. But what Nearest Green developed was a craft and that great talent opened READ MORE
Following an 8,800 mile journey from Singapore to Los Angeles, and then 1,800 miles from Los Angeles to Lynchburg, Tennessee, USA Today and New York Times best-selling author Fawn Weaver began what would become a more than 12-month long research project READ MORE
In 1967, the world learned about the important role Nearest Green played in the life of a young man named Jack Daniel READ MORE
Aside from the Nearest Green Distillery being built in Shelbyville, Tennessee, and the erection of a permanent memorial at Highview Cemetery, the task of preserving the historical significance of Nearest Green as the first African-American master distiller READ MORE