Decatur County

            Decatur County was established in 1845 and was named in honor of Commodore Stephen Decatur, naval hero from the War of 1812. The county seat is Decaturville. Agriculture has been and continues to be the primary economic base for the county. In addition, the county has had many industries that have provided employment in its history such as the Kaddis Manufacturing Corporation, makers of machine parts; Decaturville Sportswear Company, Inc;  Thermo Dynamics, Inc., manufacturers of refrigerators; Kol-pak Industries, a commercial refrigerator company; and Karlyn Manufacturers, an apparel producer. Decatur County has five Century Farms and the oldest is the Moore Farm that was established in 1840. For more information regarding Decatur County, please go to the Tennessee Encyclopedia of History & Culture website.

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

Keeton Farm

Lealon Wyatt Farm

Moore Farm

Rhodes Farm

Welch Farm

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

Map Courtesy of Carole Swann, Tennessee Department of Agriculture

Keeton Farm

Tim Keeton

            The ideas of progressive farming have shaped the twentieth century rural landscape. The Keeton Century Farm is a perfect example of how farmers over the last 100 years have changed the look of the land. The Keeton Farm dates to 1851 when Robert and Catherine Keeton acquired just over 157 acres of land seven miles south of Scotts Hill in the 1^st District of Decatur County. The Keetons grew corn, cotton and hay and raised cattle. During the Civil War, the Confederate army used the farm site as a mustering station.

            Dr. John L. Keeton, one of Robert and Catherine’s eleven children, was the second family owner of the farm. A practicing medical doctor, John managed the farm with the help of his wife Margaret Kelley. The third generation owner was Robert F. Keeton, the founders’ grandson. Robert erected a log building on the property which became the genesis of the Dunbar community. Through the remainder of the nineteenth century, the building served as a general store and stagestop. It also served as the community post office during Robert’s two separate terms as the Dunbar postmaster.

            In 1922, the family farm passed into the hands of Bedford B. Keeton, who owned the property for the next 53 years and expanded its 157 acres to almost 900 acres. According to the family, Bedford “served as a member of the Decatur County School Board, a Farm Bureau director, . . .and was a charter member of the Soil Conservation Board of Supervisors.” He convinced many of his neighbors to follow the progressive farming practices popular in the mid-twentieth century. Today, terraces, grass waterways, permanent pasture, crop rotation and soil-tested fertilized fields are a commanding part of the local farming landscape.

            Bedford Keeton died in 1975 and the farm passed into the hands of four children and one grandson. Charles and Billy Keeton, along with Marjorie K. Fiddler, inherited timber land while Bryan E. and Timothy B. Keeton inherited the farming operation. Timothy Keeton is the owner of the farm today. Today four pre-1886 buildings remain intact on the farm: the farmhouses of both John Keeton and Bedford Keeton, the log store and a log barn.

Lealon Wyatt Farm

Lealon Wyatt, Jr.

            Dating to 1852, the Lealon Wyatt Farms are located twelve miles south of Decaturville. The history of this land indicates how early settlers used the Tennessee River to their advantage. Solomon and Mary Wyatt moved to Tennessee from Ireland in search of “religious freedom and a better opportunity for living.” The original farm contained 155 acres on which the founders grew corn, cotton, wheat and oats and raised all kinds of farm animals. A veteran of the War of 1812 and a founder of the Turmans Creek Primitive Baptist Church, Wyatt “floated log rafts down the Tennessee River,” carrying local foodstuffs to market.

            At the end of the Civil War, in 1866, James R. Wyatt inherited a farm of 196 acres. He and his wife Elvira Wyatt guided the farm through the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Like many farmers of the time, the Wyatts produced a variety of agricultural commodities, from corn and cotton to goats and mules. To increase their production, the family also acquired 32 additional acres of land.

            Of James and Elvira’s ten children, David Chesley Wyatt obtained title to 228 acres in 1916. David and Maggie Wyatt led the farm into the progressive era of agriculture, breeding Poland China swine, Hereford cattle and Suffolk sheep. “The good clear branch, a good flat rock of limestone, and plenty of wood made this place,” according to the family, “a good public slaughter ground for swine, cattle, sheep and goats.” The Wyatts would have “as many as 25 hogs hanging on the rail at one time. They would swap horses, milk cows, wagons, knives and farms while working together at the “Hog killing place.’ They also barbecued pork there at times.” The Wyatts, however, did more than raise livestock. Their “farm was a place for experiments for improvement of agriculture and pastures” and the site of “some of the first conservation practices” in the community.

            In 1947, the farm passed to Lealon Wyatt, the great grandson of the founders. As of 2001, Lealon’s son Lealon, Jr., works 236 acres, raising breeded livestock, corn, soybeans, wheat, oats, clover, peanuts and cotton. The family still uses the farm’s original dwelling and log crib, both of which date to 1840.

Photo: Mr. and Mrs. Lealon Wyatt standing behind their flock of sheep.

Moore Farm

Roy Moore

            The influence of nineteenth century agricultural organizations such as the Grange, the Agricultural Wheel and the Farmers’ Alliance on the rural way of life has largely been forgotten. The Moore Farm, the oldest Century Farm in Decatur County, is a reminder of the significance of these early agrarian groups. Established by Jessee and Margret Moore in 1840, the farm is three and a half miles west of Decaturville. The founders produced cotton, corn and honey and raised sheep, cattle and oxen on their 157 acres. Jessee and Margaret, the parents of six children, were founding members of the New Hope Baptist Church. Upon Jessee’s death, “the family had to sell their household belongings and cattle to pay debts” in order to “retain the land.”

            In 1869, Leroy P. Moore inherited the farm from his mother. Leroy played a major role in establishing the local Agricultural Wheel, a progressive agrarian organization of the late nineteenth century. “As a member of the Agricultural Wheel,” according to the family, “Leroy P. Moore did go around the community giving help on how to best raise crops.” Leroy’s own crops included cattle, swine, corn, cotton, sorghum, timber and wheat. Wed to Mary Rushing, he was the father of seven children.

            Roy Moore, the great grandson of Jessee and Margret Moore, inherited approximately 150 acres of the family land in 1958. As of 1976, he operated 375 acres, growing cotton, corn, peas and hay and managing herds of cattle and swine. At that time, three of the farm’s mid-nineteenth century buildings remained in use: the dwelling, corn crib and barn.

Rhodes Farm

Cleo and Claudean Rhodes

Located ten miles from Parsons is the Rhodes Farm that was founded by John Prior Hill in the 1850s.  He and his wife, Rebecca Aldridge Hill, had four children.  On the 140 acre farm, corn, pigs and cattle were raised. The Hill- Johnson Cemetery was established by the founder and his family on the farm and was used until the 1960s.

            The second owner of the property was the founder’s daughter, Fannie Elizabeth Hill and her husband James Johnson. James enlisted in company D of the 2^nd Regiment of the West Tennessee Cavalry in 1862.  He contracted smallpox and died from the disease in November of 1863.  He is buried in the family cemetery.  William Campbell and Sarah were the children of Elizabeth and James.  Eventually, William bought his sister’s share of the farm and when he died he passed the land to his two daughters, Ada Hearington and Genora Evans.

            The farm was acquired by Genora’s daughter Mable and her husband Roby Inman. After Mable and Roba died, the land was inherited by their daughter, Claudean.  Today, Claudean, her husband Cleo Rhodes and their family including son Keith, live and work on the farm producing corn, soybeans and hay.

Welch Farm

P. W. Welch

            In 1850, Henry and Mary White Welch acquired title to 69 acres and established the Welch Century Farm. Henry expanded his farm acreage fivefold over the next five decades but sold much of this land to other area farmers. Welch enjoyed success in raising corn, cotton, cattle and swine. Henry and Mary, founding members of the Concord Methodist Church, had eight children. Union soldiers during the Civil War ramshacked the family land “and carried away all (the family’s) food.”

            Patrick H. Welch became the farm’s second owner in 1900. At one time, he worked over 400 acres producing corn, cotton, hay, cattle, swine, mules and sheep. A steward in the Concord Methodist Church for over 50 years, Welch also served as the director and vice-president of the Decatur County Bank.

            Patrick Welch married Nannie Garrett and they were the parents of eight children. In 1945, their son P. W. Welch acquired 239 acres of the farm. Four decades later, P.W. and his daughter’s family, Mr. and Mrs. Jerry L. Ivey, owned 319 acres. In 1976, Welch’s agricultural commodities included corn, hay, soybeans, cattle and swine.