[511] Lincoln County Farm Certified As Tennessee Century Farm

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: June 14, 2010
CONTACT: Caneta Hankins, Center for Historic Preservation, 615-898-2947

LINCOLN COUNTY FARM CERTIFIED AS TENNESSEE CENTURY FARM
State Program Recognizes Sun Rose Dairy for Agricultural Contributions

(MURFREESBORO)—The Sun Rose Dairy in Lincoln County has been designated as a Tennessee Century Farm, reports Caneta S. Hankins, director of the Century Farms program at the Center for Historic Preservation, which is located on the MTSU campus.
“The dairy industry was one of the most important parts Tennessee’s overall economy throughout most of the 20th century,” Hankins noted. “The lifestyle and livelihood of many families revolved around the twice-daily milking, with many local dairies and creameries operating throughout the state to provide the freshest products to nearby communities.”
According to this 101-year-old farm’s history, Charles Newton and Ethel Williams Bates, in 1909, started a dairy farm known as the Clover Leaf Dairy, later renamed the Sun Rose Dairy. The dairy consisted of 21¼ acres of land used for raising dairy cattle, along with corn and hay that was grown for food and honey for sale.
The Newton’s operation was “the first known dairy in the area to provide fresh milk and butter, as well as honey to Fayetteville residents with door to door service,” per the family. Over the next few years, they acquired more land to eventually total 162 acres.
During the early years of their business, milk was delivered by horse and buggy and distributed in large containers from which customers dipped out the milk into their own buckets or jars. The first glass bottles with lids were patented around 1900 and the family said they believe the Sun Rose Dairy’s first use of this new technology was around 1915.
Until the 1920s, a steady water supply was an issue for the dairy. The only water came from the Drip Spring that was located an eighth of a mile away. It was the children’s job to carry water to the house for drinking. A cistern was built to catch rainwater for other uses until a metal pipeline was installed from the spring. In the 1920s, Charlie, Ethel and their neighbors paid for and installed a two mile-long water line along their road, which provided enough pressure to wash the bottles and work areas and also enable indoor plumbing.
In 1949, Charlie and Ethel’s son and daughter-in-law, Carlos and Gaynelle Bates, acquired the farm. With their three children, Jane, C. N. and Robert, they continued the daily operations of the farm. Prior to the construction of the Tim’s Ford Dam in the late 1960s, the Elk River and its tributaries would flood almost every spring, preventing the family from going to town to sell their dairy products. This was a problem because there was no refrigeration to keep the milk cool and it could take several days for the waters to subside.
According to the family, one year, the Tennessee National Guard was able to reach the dairy and take milk and other products to town for distribution. However, with the completion of the dam, there were no more problems with flooding.
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In 1972, the dairy herd was switched to beef cattle and corn was no longer grown. After Carlos passed away in 1982, Gaynelle continued to manage the farm. She lived in the house built by Charlie Bates in 1910 until her death in 2009.
Jane, C. N. and Robert currently own the farm, which is known by its historic Sun Rose Dairy name. Michael Bates, son of C. N., owns 20 acres of the later land that was bought by Charlie and Ethel, while Jane and husband Clyde Johnson own 10 acres of the original 21 on which they continue to raise beef cattle.
The Sun Rose Dairy is the 24th Century Farm to be certified in Lincoln County, Hankins confirmed.


About the Century Farms Program

The Century Farm Program recognizes the contributions of Tennessee residents who have continuously owned, and kept in production, family land for at least 100 years. Since 1984, the CHP at MTSU has been a leader in the important work of documenting Tennessee’s agricultural heritage and history through the Tennessee Century Farm Program, and continues to administer this program.
The Tennessee Department of Agriculture began the Tennessee Century Farm Program in 1976 as part of the nation’s bicentennial. Today, the TDA provides a metal outdoor sign, noting either 100, 150 or 200 years of “continuous agricultural production” to Century Farm families.
To be considered for eligibility, a farm must be owned by the same family for at least 100 years; must produce $1,000 revenue annually; must have at least 10 acres of the original farm; and one owner must be a resident of Tennessee.
“The Century Farmers represent all the farm families of Tennessee,” Hankins said, “and their contributions to the economy, and to the social, cultural and agrarian vitality of the state, both past and present, is immeasurable. Each farm is a Tennessee treasure.”
For more information about the Century Farms Program, please visit its Web site at http://histpres.mtsu.edu/histpres. The Center for Historic Preservation also may be contacted via mail at Box 80, MTSU, Murfreesboro, Tenn., 37132, or by telephone at 615-898-2947.


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• ATTENTION, MEDIA: To interview the farm’s owners or request jpegs of the farm for editorial use, please contact the CHP directly at 615-898-2947.


With three Nobel Prize winners among its alumni and former faculty, Middle Tennessee State University confers master’s degrees in 10 areas, the Specialist in Education degree, the Doctor of Arts degree and the Doctor of Philosophy degree. MTSU is ranked among the top 100 public universities in the nation in the Forbes “America’s Best Colleges” 2009 survey.