This lecture will explore how Tennessee earned the nickname the Volunteer State because of the eagerness with
which Tennesseans stepped forward to answer our country’s call during times of war.
The speaker, Dr. Timothy Johnson, has authored or edited two dozen articles and eight books that deal primarily
with the Mexican-American War and other military conflicts that occurred before the U.S. Civil War. He is on the history faculty at Lipscomb University, where he received the Outstanding Teacher Award and was designated as a University Research Professor.
He has been a research fellow at Yale University and the Virginia Historical Society and has appeared on C-SPAN, The History Channel and Public Television. A native of Chattanooga, Johnson, received his Ph.D. from The University of Alabama.
After the presentation, in-person attendees can view items related to Tennessee’s military service from the
Library & Archives’ collections and take a guided tour of the new state-of-the-art facility.
Save the date for the Library & Archives’ next two Lunchtime Speaker Series events on Feb. 11 and May 6. The
topics for these events include how Tennessee’s topography and geology impacted where pioneers settled and Native American life and culture in early Tennessee.