[094] Dickson County Farm Join Ranks of State's Century Farms Program

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

DICKSON COUNTY FARM JOIN RANKS OF STATE’S CENTURY FARMS PROGRAM
Piney River Farm Recognized for Agricultural Contributions

(MURFREESBORO)—The Piney River Farm, located in Dickson 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 at Middle Tennessee State University.
In 1900, nearly 100 years after Dickson County was founded, Mont Donegan purchased a farm of 97 acres along the Piney River, an important water source in the county. In addition to serving the many domestic needs of residents, including providing a food source, rivers in Dickson County and other areas along the Highland Rim were sources of energy for the iron industry.
Mont and his wife, Nancy, were the parents of six children. Their youngest son, Clint, purchased 218 acres of his parents’ land in 1934 and continued to raise familiar crops and livestock. Clint’s family included his wife, Hallie Davidson, and two daughters, Nancy and Montie Sue. After 50 years of ownership by Clint, the farm passed to Nancy in 1986. Nancy and her husband, Oscar Glenn Petty, continued to raise corn, hay and cattle as her parents and grandparents had, although they no longer raised hogs and mules. Oscar and Nancy had three children: Michael, Timothy and Patrick.
In 2000, 100 years after the farm was established, the great-grandchildren of the founders acquired the land. Mike, Tim and Pat, with their wives Andrea, Gina and Rhea, continue to work the land. The three brothers are partners in the Petty Family Limited Partnership, established in 2000. The farm operation currently consists of beef cattle and 200 acres of hay and pasture land. Many of the farm’s original buildings, including the house, livestock barn, smokehouse, chicken house and corn crib, remain on the property.

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 the important work of 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 in the year of certification, must have at least 10 acres of the original farm and one owner must be a resident of Tennessee. There are more than 1,500 Century Farms across the state. “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 at Box 80, MTSU, Murfreesboro, Tenn., 37132 or at 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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