Human Interest 'Ugly' Statue of KKK Leader Nathan Bedford Forrest Removed After Owner's Death Jack Kershaw sculpted the statue in 1998 and placed it on the Nashville property of his friend, Bill Dorris, where it stood for more than 20 years By Jason Hahn Jason Hahn Jason Hahn is a former Human Interest and Sports Reporter for PEOPLE. He started at PEOPLE's Los Angeles Bureau as a writer and reporter in 2017 and interviewed the likes of Kobe Bryant, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Tom Brady. He has a B.A. in English from the University of California, Berkeley, and a Master's degree in Journalism from Columbia University. He previously worked for Complex Magazine in New York City. People Editorial Guidelines Published on December 7, 2021 07:55PM EST Nathan Bedford Forrest statue. Photo: Mark Humphrey/AP/Shutterstock A controversial statue of a former Confederate general and Ku Klux Klan (KKK) member has been removed after it was erected on private property in Tennessee more than two decades ago. According to CBS affiliate WTVF, a 25-foot statue of Nathan Bedford Forrest has overlooked a freeway south of Nashville since 1998. Forrest was a Confederate Lieutenant General during the Civil War and played a prominent part in the foundation of the KKK hate group after the war. While many locals viewed the statue as a symbol of racism, the statue was erected on private land owned by businessman Bill Dorris, who ignored requests to remove it all the way to his death at age 84 in November 2020. "Any monument is a symbol of racism if you are going to make it a symbol of racism," he told NPR in a 2011 interview. Dorris believed Forrest was a significant historical figure and committed to leaving the statue up despite it being the target of vandalism, including an incident that left it covered in pink paint. "It's been going on for ten years," he told WTVF in 2008. "We get hit some way or another and I'm tired of it." Nathan Bedford Forrest statue. Mark Humphrey/AP/Shutterstock Ex KKK Leader Turned Life Around, Now Helps Others Do Same After his death, Dorris — who had no wife or children — reportedly left $5 million to his dog named Lulu, and left a building and flag display to The Sons of Confederate Veterans, WTVF reported. Dorris also left the rest of his property to the Battle of Nashville Trust, which preserves and maintains historic remainders of the Nashville Civil War battlefield. In a statement to the local outlet, the organization said it ultimately decided to take the statue down. They attributed the decision to a number of reasons, with one simply being that it was "ugly." Police Chief Leaves After Placing KKK Note on Black Officer's Desk "Forrest was not present at the Battle of Nashville," the Trust said in a statement. "The property has no historical significance related to the battle other than a spring house and ice house that was part of a large estate where CSA Brig. General Claudius Sears was taken for a leg amputation-the home has long since been destroyed by Interstate 65." "The statue is ugly. Even Forrest would think it is ugly," they continued. "[And] It hinders our mission and what we are trying to accomplish." RELATED VIDEO: All 3 Defendants Found Guilty of Murdering Ahmaud Arbery, Black Jogger Chased Down and Shot in Georgia According to WSMV, the statue was removed from its location early Tuesday morning. "This has been a national embarrassment," said state Sen. Heidi Campbell, D-Nashville, according to the Tennessean. "I'm so excited. This is great news. It's just so hurtful to people, not to mention it's heinously ugly."