[089] Lincoln County Farm Joins Ranks Of State's Century Farms Program

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: September 16, 2010
CONTACT: Caneta Hankins, Center for Historic Preservation, 615-898-2947


LINCOLN COUNTY FARM JOINS RANKS OF STATE’S CENTURY FARMS PROGRAM
Templeton Farm Recognized for Agricultural Contributions

(MURFREESBORO)—The Templeton Farm, located 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 Middle Tennessee State University campus.

In October 1833, James R. Pitts, who was born in South Carolina in 1784, purchased a farm of 231 acres for the sum of $1300 southwest of Fayetteville in 1809, near what is now called Molino Creek. Pitts and fellow South Carolinian Rachel Young, who were married in 1809, had 16 children. No doubt, the Pittses raised a variety of crops and livestock to sustain the large family. James and Rachel are buried in the family cemetery, which is still owned by the family today.

Their 12th child,Isaac Russell Pitts, inherited 69 acres of land after his father died in 1862. First married to Rebecca N. Ashby in 1852, he married Elvira Reese after Rebecca’s death in 1853. Isaac and Elvira were the parents of eight children. When Isaac died in 1868, Elvira carried on the farm’s operations until her death 20 years later in 1888. During this time, the land had been cleared and much of the land was suitable for crops. According to the family, the largest section of good farmland was 14 acres which also contains the family cemetery. Isaac and Elvira are buried alongside his parents. Realizing the importance of this historic burial ground, the family keeps the cemetery, with its original wrought-iron fence, in good condition.

In 1888, Elizabeth Pitts, granddaughter of the founders and daughter of Isaac and Elvira, inherited 96 acres of the farm. She and her husband, Rufus Templeton, had six children and raised hogs, milk cows, mules, turkeys, honeybees and chickens and also had an orchard. According to the family, Birdie, a daughter born to Rufus and Elizabeth in 1891, remembered “a time when the mules were being led from the field, hot and sweaty, and as they passed the beehives, the bees swarmed, stinging them, and they took off out of control.” Today, a single pear tree remains from the orchard, but the family still enjoys the fruit it bears nearly every year.

The fourth-generation owner was Walker Cowan Templeton, who acquired the land in the early 1900s. He and his wife, Minnie, raised six children. During this time, tenant farmers also worked and lived on the property. Mules were a main source of power for almost all farm operations. “Walker had four big stout boys, so he would buy unbroken mule colts and put each boy with a team of colts to break, then he would sell them and give the boys another team to break” Walker was forced to keep the boys out of school to do the work, and two of his sons, Ralph and Malcolm, dropped out of high school after two years. Conrad did not want to drop out and attended the University of Tennessee at Knoxville.

The current owner of the farm likes to tell this story of his uncle Conrad: “Although he had never played football or any other kind of school sports, things changed for him at UT. . . He was walking across campus to his job when the football coach noticed his build and asked if he had played football in school. Conrad answered that he didn’t know anything about football. But one thing led to another, and Uncle Conrad went out for football and became not only a football star but starred also in wrestling and boxing.” Conrad served in the U.S. Army during World War II and achieved the rank of colonel. He then taught agriculture for 30 years in Springfield, Tenn., and in his spare time bought and restored to production 10 “run-down” farms.

Malcolm Templeton inherited the land in 1943 after the death of his father. He and his wife, Margaret Josephine, had three children: Betty Jane, Malcolm Don and Ray Morris. They raised beef cattle, milk cattle, hogs, corn, wheat, cotton and hay. Aside from farming, Malcolm was a member of the Farm Bureau from the 1930s until his death in 1988. He also worked for the state of Tennessee and at the local stockyard. Josephine worked as a homemaker, keeping the garden, and going to town “once or twice a month.” Betty and Ray chose to leave the farm. Don, after marrying and being stationed in New Mexico during his service in the Army, returned to the farm.

Don and his wife, Emma Gene Jennings, have four children. They and their daughter, Sherry Templeton Bartlett, and her children are the three generations living on the farm today. They own 328 acres, 69 of which are from the original farm founded by James R. Pitts. The family raises corn, cotton, hay, beef cattle, honeybees and horses.

Don writes, “Although times had changed, requiring outside jobs to make a living, my heart and soul have always been at home on the farm.” Active in many cattle and horse associations, Don was a Farm Bureau director. He also worked for Borden and Kraft making Swiss and cottage cheese, as a state honey bee inspector and as a substitute mail carrier. He also writes, “In recent years, a big portion of my time and energy has been beekeeping. I’ve always said my two years as state bee inspector was my ‘Ph D. in beekeeping.’” Gene Jennings and her mother-in-law were members of the Molino Home Demonstration Club for many years. Keeping in the family tradition, Don and Gene kept their children busy on the farm where “they’ve learned the value of hard work.” In closing, Don writes, “I’m very proud of our farming heritage and that my ancestors wanted to continue the legacy. Now that I’m getting older, I’m thankful that my children want to keep our farm in the family.”

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 Center for Historic Preservation at MTSU has been a leader in documenting Tennessee’s agricultural heritage and history through the Tennessee Century Farm 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. There are more than 1,000 Century Farms across the state’s 95 counties. “The Century Farmers represent all the farm families of Tennessee,” says Hankins, “and their contributions to the economy, and to the social, cultural, and agrarian vitality of the state, both past and present, are immeasurable. Each farm is a Tennessee treasure.”

For more information about the Century Farms Program, please visit its website at www.tncenturyfarms.org. The Center for Historic Preservation also may be contacted mail at Box 80, MTSU, Murfreesboro, Tenn., 37132 or 615-898-2947.


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


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