Jackson County

            Jackson County was named in honor of Andrew Jackson and was established in 1801. Gainesboro serves as the county seat. Agriculture and timber has played a prominent role in the county’s history and economy. The county is home to the historic sites of Fort Blount and the nearby old townsite of Williamsburg that were significant frontier forts in the early settlement of the state.  Jackson County has ten Century Farms and the oldest is the Cummins Mill Farm, which dates to the 1820s. For more information regarding Jackson County, please go to the Tennessee Encyclopedia of History & Culture website.

For a brief historical sketch of each farm, click on the farm name.

Billingsley Farm

Brown Farm

Carverdale Farm

Cedar Stone Farm

Clark Farm

Cummins Mill Farm

Kennedy Farm

Old Myers Farm

Mabry Farm

The Morgan Farm

Woodard Farm

 

The following map is for a general geographical understanding. It does not provide the specific locations of the farms because of privacy reasons.

Jackson County Map

Map Courtesy of Carole Swann, Tennessee Department of Agriculture

Billingsley Farm

Jerry Nelson Billingsley

William H. and Sarah Billingsley were residents of Jackson County prior to the Civil War. The Billingsleys and their six children farmed about 250 acres and raised the typical crops of the Plateau region-cattle, swine, corn and wheat. They also grew some cotton. William joined the Confederate army and in his absence a group of Confederate soldiers raided the farm, taking leather and foodstuffs. Returning from the conflict a broken man, seriously ill with typhoid fever, William died in 1865.

Title to the farm transferred to his children, but little is known about the family’s history for the next 100 years. In 1964, Rupert and Dorothy Billingsley inherited 100 acres of the family land. Rupert and his son John Rupert farmed 180 acres of tobacco, hay, corn and cattle for nearly 50 years.  With their deaths, Rupert’s son and John Rupert’s brother, Jerry Nelson Billingsley, returned from Texas to continue the family’s ownership of the farm.

Brown Farm

Jack R. Brown

Betty Brown

In 1896, Hiram Sam Brown established his 100 acre farm near Granville  on land that was a parcel of around 8000 acres settled by Thomas and Nancy Litton Brown in 1800.  Thomas Brown (1773-1867) fought with Andrew Jackson at the Battle of New Orleans.  Hiram Brown’s farm is located just south of the historic Avery Trace and five miles from Ft. Blount.  Married to Barbara A. Brown, the couple had eight children -- James Howard, Bertha, Sallie, Dora, Charlie, Willie, Ethel and Lena.  The family produced cattle, tobacco, sheep and corn.        In 1945, James Howard Brown acquired the farm.  During his ownership, the farm supported livestock, corn, and tobacco.  James Howard and Mary Helen Brown also had eight children.

            Current owners Jack Brown and his wife Betty raised a big family on this farm, too.  Their children are Russell, Randy, Timmy, Tommy, Sammy, Alan, and Angela.  All were involved in the 4-H Club at  Flynns Lick Elementary School.  Beef cattle and hay are the primary products.  A tobacco barn is a reminder that this crop was raised by each generation until 1990.

Carverdale Farm

Joseph S. Moore

Cattle and Pasture

Born in Jackson County in the Wartrace community in 1847, Samuel Sampson Carver joined the Federal Army when he was 17.  He fought throughout the Civil War, receiving his discharge in 1865 and a pension for his service.  Samuel married Amanda West and the couple had seven children.  In 1890, Samuel purchased a 537 acre tract of land near the Liberty community.  The existing farmhouse was remodeled and the family moved into it in 1891.  The Carvers cultivated corn, tobacco and hay and raised horses, sheep, cattle and hogs.  The family has always been active in community churches and Samuel helped to construct the Liberty Church of Christ.  He also donated land and in 1916 built a similar Church of Christ building which still stands today and is attended by the Carvers.  The couple had seven children and their son Joseph Rubin Carver became the next owner of the farm.

Under Joseph’s ownership, the farm continued to produce traditional  livestock and crops.  Married to Lillie Lousettie Fox, the couple lived in the farmhouse and ran a general store that was built on the farm next to Highway 53. They had one daughter, Thelma Ashley Carver and she became the third generation to own the land. Thelma and her husband John H. Donald Moore had two children and they raised corn, tobacco, hay and livestock on the farm. In addition to farming, Donald worked for Purina Feeds during the Great Depression.  With his job and Sam’s pension, the family managed better than many during these bleak years.  Later Donald sold fertilizer with Armour Agriculture Chemical Company, later bought by U. S. Steel.  He served as the first President of the Tennessee FFA when it was organized in 1928.  Thelma is credited with naming the farm “Carverdale” for her family and the fact that the property is located in a dale.

Joseph “Joe” S. Moore, the son of Thelma and John and the great grandson of the founder is the current owner of the farm. Born and raised on the farm, he was given his first Jersey cow at age 7.  Active in 4-H and FFA, he showed both cows and hogs.  Over the years, Joe has received many agricultural distinctions such as being named the Star Farmer of Tennessee in 1952 and was elected the 25th State FFA President in 1953-54.  He was awarded his American Farmer Degree in 19955 and that same years was name the Southern Regional Star Farmer and went on to be chosen as the the Star FFA Farmer of America in 1955.  For that distinction, Time magazine featured a story on Joe, and he was on the cover of that issue.

Joe and his wife Ruth Ann Huffner have been married since 1956 and live in the family homeplace.   In addition to being on the farm, Ann taught in Jackson County schools from 1961 until her retirement in 1995.  They have one son, Samuel Leach Moore, who is married to Tammy Gribble.  Today, the farm produces hay and beef cattle and Joe reports that Steve Letterman manages the day to day operations of the farm.  The farm has many buildings including a log house, a corn crib, a tobacco barn and two storage barns as well as the nineteenth century farmhouse.

 Photo: A view of the Carverdale Farm.

Cedar Stone Farm

Donald V. Pharris

Cattle and Cemetery on Cedar Stone Farm

Cedar Stone Farm was founded by John Pharris, who purchased 84 acres in 1824 from Sampson Williams, one of the early settlers and county leaders in Jackson County. John and wife Susan Williamson Pharris had nine children. The family raised a variety of crops and livestock on the farm, which is located southwest of Gainesboro in the Liberty community. Over the years, John added more acres to his farm, including a land grant of 45 acres in 1825.

            Members of the second generation to own the farm were John and Susan’s daughters, Elizabeth Pharris Cantrell, Polly Pharris and Susan Pharris. Elizabeth had one son, John Newton Cantrell, while Susan had one son, George Washington “Wash” Pharris. Eventually, George and John inherited the farm and they split their ownership of the acreage. Later on, John sold his acreage to John Clemons; however, Wash continued to live on his part of the land all of his life. Wash passed away in 1945, leaving his widow and six young children.

According to the family’s history, one of the most dramatic events that happened during this time was the flood of 1948. It was the only time in 184 years that the original farmhouse flooded. The flood was so strong that it swept away a house about a mile west of the Pharris place. After the rain stopped and the flood subsided, neighbors rallied and helped clean the house. 

The Pharris family was active in the Liberty Community Club and in the 4-H club in the 1940s and 1950s. Today, George’s youngest son, Donald V. Pharris, owns the farm. Over the years, Donald has purchased adjoining land, much of which his great grandfather had previously owned. Currently, Donald works the land and raises beef cattle and goats. The old homestead where G. W. Pharris was born still stands on the property and the Pharris family cemetery is also on the land.

Photo: Cattle and a family cemetery on the Cedar Stone Farm.

Clark Farm

Coleman Clark

            Two and a half miles north of Gainesboro lies the Clark Farm, which dates to 1853. Richard and Rebecca Hudson, who moved to Tennessee to homestead, founded the farm with 50 acres and later expanded it to one of the county’s largest. They and their eight children raised corn, swine, cattle and mules. Just three years after the establishment of the farm, 500 acres passed to the founders’ daughter Hannah Hudson Davis and her spouse Dickie Davis. Hannah, Dickie and their four children cultivated corn and wheat and looked after herds of swine and beef cattle.

            Upon the death of their parents, the four Davis children divided the farm equally. Elvira Davis Clark, the wife of John Clark, and her brother Henry Davis, who had married the sister of John Clark, inherited one half of the property. F. D. Clark, the father of John and his sister Gainey, purchased the other half of the Davis family land and gave it to his son and son-in-law. The four children farmed the land jointly, producing corn, wheat, oats, tobacco and swine. They also operated a sawmill and sold timber products.

            By 1959, three of the Davis and Clark partners had died and the farm went before a public auction. J. J. Clark, his son Phelps and his son Coleman Clark bought the land, keeping it in the family’s ownership. Phelps and his son Coleman presently farm the property and corn, cattle, hay, tobacco and timber are their agricultural commodities. The Clark Farm contains the farm’s original dwelling, but this building is now used as a tobacco barn.

 

Cummins Mill Farm

William Cummins

            A grist mill operation was a necessity for a prosperous rural settlement. Without a convenient location where their grains could be processed for market, farmers had difficulty even providing flour and meal for their own tables. The 4th District of Jackson County is home to the Cummins Mill Farm, established by John Cummins between 1820 and 1825. He moved to this area of Jackson County to build and operate a grist mill that “served farmers as far as 40 miles away.” At the mill, “wheat and corn were ground; wool was carded into rolls for spinning.” Cummins’ farm land yielded corn, wheat, sugar cane and livestock.

            Married twice, Cummins fathered ten children and his son Morrison Woods Cummins received the farm in 1868. Morrison was an agrarian entrepreneur: mill operator, farmer, coffin maker and self-taught doctor. According to the family, Morrison suggested to his neighbors that “they get a trained doctor for serious injuries, set bones and dresses wounds.” Encouraged by his example, three of Morrison’s six sons became doctors.

            Morrison wed Frances Pate and they raised ten children. In 1887, their son Jubel Herndon Cummins acquired a farm of 459 acres. He, his wife Ginerva Thurman and their six children grew the traditional crops of the Plateau. Jubel owned “the only grain binder and threshing machine for miles around” and by harvesting his neighbor’s crops, he annually supplemented his farming income. The family suffered a serious economic loss when a 1928 flood destroyed the Cummins grist mill.

            In 1938, the current owners obtained about 65 acres of the farm and today they farm 20 acres of the original family land, raising tobacco, soybeans and timber. Mrs. Prehn lives in the family dwelling of yellow poplar, built between 1860 and 1865.

 

Kennedy Farm

Barry R. Kennedy

The Kennedy Farm, located northwest of Gainesboro on Highway 56 was founded in 1883 by John D. Kennedy.  He and his wife Matilda Ann (Kemp) were the parents of three children.  On the 676 acres they grew corn, wheat, and oats, and raised dairy cows, horses, mules, and swine.  J. D. Kennedy and Sons Merchandise Store, the first store in the Gum Springs community, was owned and operated by the family.  Many members of the family and neighbors are buried in a cemetery on the farm. 

John Buford and Peyton Kennedy were the next generation owners. John Buford built the first tobacco barn in the community and Peyton ran a general store in a room of the residence after the original store closed in the early 1900s.

The current owner, Barry Kennedy, acquired the farm in the 1980s.  He raises tobacco, beef cattle, and hay.

 

Old Myers Farm

Billy White Myers

Mary Myers

Old%20Myers%20Farm%20Joseph%20Myers%20with%20Fox%20Hounds.jpg  Old%20Myers%20Farm%20White%20Henry%20and%20Roxie%20G%20Myers%20Children.jpg

 The farm’s story began in 1816 when Phillip Myers, whose grandfather came from Germany, married Mary White Cook. The widow of Capt. James Cook, Mary was the mother of Mariah, William and Earl Cook. With Myers, she had five more sons. 

In 1835, Phillip Myers purchased 200 acres of land from his stepsons, William and Earl Cook. The farm is on the old Fort Blount Road, which leads from the Cumberland River. Fort Blount operated in 1788-1794 to provide protection for travelers along the Avery Trace.

Myers was a gunsmith and postmaster at Fort Blount. Mary was industrious, “providing for her family and their slaves by supervising the spinning and weaving of wool and flax, and sewing for (all) … members of the family,” according to the farm’s history.

In the same year that he purchased the property, Phillip Myers died, leaving the farm to Mary and their five sons. Myers was buried in the family cemetery on the farm. Mary and her sons, along with several slaves, continued to farm and raised a variety of crops and livestock. When she died in 1845, her sons inherited equal shares of the property.

According to a family history by Calvin Elias, the youngest son of Mary and Phillip, the family had a tradition of military service. Elias Myers, father of Phillip, was from North Carolina and enlisted in the Revolutionary War when he was 14 years old, where he served for seven years. His son, Philip, then served in the War of 1812 and was with Andrew Jackson at the Battle of New Orleans. 

Luther Bigelow Myers, son of Phillip and Mary, served in the Mexican War under Gen. Winfield Scott and also fought in the Civil War as captain of Company D, 25th Regiment of Tennessee Troops, under J. E. Johnson and Col. S. S. Stanton.  Calvin also served in Mexico under Gen. Scott as a private in Company E of the 4th Tennessee Volunteers. He soldiered for four years of the Civil War as captain of the 1st Company from Overton County, Tenn., as well as the 8th Tennessee Confederate Regiment. 

Another brother, Patrick Henry Myers, acquired 150 acres of the original 200 from his siblings. In 1862, he married Sarah Elizabeth Pate Payne, a widow with two children. Patrick and Sarah were the parents of White Henry, Mignon Belle “Nancy” and Lucy Virginia. Patrick’s wife and children received the land after his death in 1868.  Sarah reared her children and managed the farm until the 1880s. At that time, she married Jonathon Haley and moved to Texas. Her daughters also married and moved to Texas, selling their shares to their brother, White.

White married Roxie Gailbreath in 1898. They had three children, Sallie Marie, Joseph and Raymond Eugene. This family grew grain and tobacco, as well as cattle. After White’s death in 1934, the land was divided among his three children. Because Sallie and Eugene moved away, Joseph tended the farm. Sallie went to college and studied to be a teacher while Eugene moved to Nashville to enter banking.

  Joseph and his wife, Georgia McCawley, were the parents of Joe and Billy White Myers. The family raised tobacco, corn, oats, soybeans, wheat, hogs, mules and cattle, in addition to raising and training horses. Joseph, whose family recalled that “he loved his dogs,” also bred and raised foxhounds, selling and trading the hunters as another source of income for the farm. Just before his death in 1952, he purchased a new Farm-All Row Crop tractor, the first one for the farm.

In 1952, Billy White acquired his brother’s share of the farm as well as other acreage. In 1954 at the Future Farmers of America’s national convention in Kansas City, Mo., Billy received the highest degree awarded by the organization, that of American Farmer, an award based on farming, leadership and scholarship. Throughout high school, Billy was active in the 4-H and vocational programs. In 1959, he married Mary Lucinda Chaffin. The couple’s children are David Eugene White and Stephanie White Konrad.  

From the time of receiving the land until the 1970s, Billy White owned 150 acres of the 200 purchased by Phillip Myers. However, the Cordell Hull Dam and Reservoir project took about 86 acres of river bottomland. 

Billy White Myers served as a county commissioner for 28 years and was a county judge in 1960 and 1961. He and Mary also operated a five-and-dime store, general store and a feed barn. Today, they raise grain crops and a small amount of tobacco and beef cattle. 

   Old%20Myers%20Farm%20The%20Old%20Barn.jpg

Photo (top left): Joseph Myers with his fox hounds.
Photo (top right):  White Henry and Roxie G. Myer's Children, Raymond Eugene, Sallie Marie, and Joseph Myers.



Mabry Farm

Gregory D. and Jennifer L. Mabry

Choosing a site on Blackburn’s Fork of the Roaring River, William Jefferson Maberry and his wife, EIizabeth Jessie Maberry purchased about 350 acres in 1887 for the sum of $2,200. With their sons, Laurence and Leonard, they lived in an existing log home that still remains on the farm. Primary crops were tobacco, corn, hay, wheat, cattle, and horses.

images/Mabry Farm; Original Homestead Log Cabin, built in 1860s

            Leonard acquired 150 acres of his parents’ farm in 1913. Married to Jemima Loftis, this generation owned and worked the farm for 65 years. When their six children were in school, “the school house burned.”  When the teacher of their son, Walter, made a new roster, his name was shortened to Mabry. His brothers and sisters remained Maberry, but he was listed as Mabry which sometimes caused confusion. Walter and his branch of the family, however, continue to go by Mabry. In 1978, Walter and his sister, Dimple, the oldest of the six children, became the owners.

Mabry Farm; Original barn, built in the early 1900s

            Walter’s son, Greg and his wife Jennifer Richardson, became the owner of 150 acres of the original farm in 2008. He is the great-grandson of the founders. He and Jennifer was the parents of Wyatt, age 14, and Luke, now 7. Greg, a member of the Jackson County Soli Conservation District, and Wyatt work the farm which supports timber and row crops.

Marby Farm; Mayberry Family on Farm Property, date unknown

Photo (top): Original homestead log cabin, built in 1860s.

Photo (middle): Original barn, built in the early 1900s.

Photo (bottom): Mayberry family on farm property, date unknown.

 

 

The Morgan Farm

  Jeff Morgan

Robert M. Morgan

Tim Morgan

 

            In 1881, J.W. and Louisa Morgan purchased three hundred acres of land near the Roaring River in Jackson County.  Paying just under $5.00 an acre, the couple began farming in earnest raising cattle, corn, hay, mules and horses primarily.  The Morgans were the parents of ten children.

            In 1936, five of the children of acquired the farm.  The daughters who became owners were Eliza Morgan Berry (G.E. Berry), Eula Morgan Lynn (Hop Lynn), Amanda Morgan Johnson (Henry Johnson), Ruth Morgan Reeves.  A son, Perry Morgan acquired 100 acres and continued to work the 300 acres. He and his wife Sophrona were the parents of 13 children.   

            In 1963, seven great-grandsons of the founding couple acquired 100 acres of the original Morgan Farm.  James, Austin, Cecil, Billie, Donald, Robert, and Clay Morgan grew cattle, hogs, corn, hay, and tobacco.  In 1964, James, Austin, and Robert Morgan, became the owners.  

            I n 2002, two great-great grandsons of the founders, nephews of Robert Morgan and his wife Virginia, and their spouses acquired an interest in the farm.  Jeff and Gail Morgan and Tim and Sandy Morgan, along with Robert, own the 100 acre farm.  Jeff manages and works the farm where he raises hay and cattle. The 130 year old farm is the ninth Century Farm to be certified in Jackson County. 

 Photo: Barn and white oak on the farm

Woodard Farm

Shirley A. Woodard

Bradford D. Woodard

          In 1892, Robert E. Woodard, along with H.E. Woodard and C.H. Woodard, purchased a 100-acre farm in western Jackson County near the Gladdice community. He and his wife, Virgie Phillips Woodard, were the parents of Elbert, Eugene and Clio. The family raised cows, hogs, corn, tobacco, chickens, and sugar cane and also had a vegetable garden.

          In 1948 when Robert died, the children inherited the farm. Elbert remained on the farm where he and his wife Cleo, Green Woodard, raised their family Eldon, Earleen and Francis Sue, the third generation.

          Earlene Woodard Wilkerson, daughter of Elbert Woodard, and her husband, Lee Dow Wilkerson, acquired the farm in 1976 when her father’s health required him to retire from farming. The Wilkersons and their daughter, Lucinda, primarily raised cattle. Bernice Ray Woodard, a great-nephew of the founder, acquired the farm in 1997 and continued to raise cattle. Bradford Woodard, another great-nephew of the founder, acquired 35 acres of the family farm in 2009. Bradford and his wife, Shirley, live on the farm and report that a log cabin remains from the time of the founders.