Fentress County

Fentress County was created from parts of Overton and Morgan counties in 1823. The county was named in honor of James Fentress, the Speaker of the Tennessee House of Representatives, who assisted in passing the enabling legislation for the new county. Jamestown serves as the county seat. One industry that has played an economic role in the county is coal mining, which created the coal mining towns of Davidson and Wilder. Some of the notable attractions in the county include the Big South Fork National Recreation Area, the Sgt. Alvin C. York State Historical Area and Highland Manor, which is the state’s oldest licensed winery.  Fentress County has eight Century Farms and the oldest is the Reed Farm that was established in 1830. For more information regarding Fentress County, please go to the Tennessee Encyclopedia of History & Culture website.

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

Big Dry Farm

Clayton Upchurch Farm

Jerry Green Farm

Otto Pile Farm

Reed Farm

W. R. Reed Farm

Williams & Pile Farm

Williams 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

Big Dry Farm

Rodger Pile

            Well into the twentieth century, the local general store and grist mill remained the economic heart of many rural communities in the Cumberland Plateau. Few farms better demonstrate how local farmers marketed their crops and purchased necessary commodities than the Big Dry Farm of Fentress County. The founders of the Big Dry Farm, which is two miles east of Pall Mall, were S. H. and Ermine Miller Pile. They acquired their original 450 acres of farmland in 1876 and soon developed one of the region’s best farms. The Piles and their five boys raised corn, wheat, oats, beef cattle, sheep, swine and mules. But more important to their farming success was the acquisition of a grist mill in 1880. The family built a stone dam to supply water to the mill and operated the complex until 1942. Sgt. Alvin C. York, Tennessee’s most famous soldier of the twentieth century, purchased the mill at that time and today the State of Tennessee administers the mill site as part of its historical monument to Sgt. York.

            In 1930, Rosier C. Pile and his wife Lucy Williams inherited the entire farm. The owner and operator of a general store at Pall Mall for over 25 years, Pile was the local postmaster. In addition, he served as a justice of the peace and a minister. The film, Sargaent York, accurately portrays the influence of Rosier Pile in local activities. Always a profitable farmer, Pile was “a pioneer in introducing Angus cattle and Poland China hogs to the community.”

            The Piles raised three boys and in 1947, their son A. W. Pile acquired 250 acres of the family land. In 1976, he farmed over 650 acres, raising Angus cattle, corn, hay and pasture. The farm also retained its original two story family dwelling. Today, Rodger Pile is the current owner of the land.

Clayton Upchurch Farm

Elma I. Upchurch

            John F. Riley established the Upchurch family farm, located twelve miles north of Jamestown, in 1847. The owner of 240 acres, Riley grew corn, wheat and hay. The second generation owner was his son Caleb Riley, who produced hay, corn, wheat, rye, tobacco, swine and cattle on 191 acres of land.

            Caleb wed Mary Ellen Upchurch and they were the parents of eight children. The farm passed into the name of the Upchurch family when Clayton Upchurch, the founders’ great grandson, obtained the farm in the mid-twentieth century. In 1949, Clayton’s widow Elma I. Upchurch inherited the 191 acres and has managed the land for the last 37 years. Her current agricultural products include hay, tobacco, corn, rye, swine and cattle.

Jerry Green Farm

Jerry Green
Dana Green

            Thirteen miles northwest of Jamestown lies the Green family farm, established by Peter and Elizabeth Fite in 1859. The Fites owned 100 acres, which proved suitable for raising corn, horses and cattle. In 1903, the farm passed directly to their grandson Peter S. Green and his wife Sarah. The Greens, parents of six children, made few changes in the farm’s operations. To supplement their meat supply, however, the family did raise swine.

            O. H. Green, the founders’ great great grandson, obtained 75 acres of the original farm in 1951. Green worked the land for the next 33 years, expanding the property to a total of 167.5 acres. In 1984, he left a portion of the farm to his son Jerry and Miss Ada Green. On their 84.5 acres, Jerry and his son Dana currently produce tobacco, corn, hay and cattle. A log building, which family tradition dates to 1853, still stands on the property.

Otto Pile Farm

Clayton and Harriett Pile

            William and Mary Pile established the Pile family farm in 1850 when they acquired 300 acres eight miles north of Jamestown. The parents of nine children, the Piles operated a typical farm for the Cumberland Plateau, producing corn, tobacco, hay, cattle and swine. In 1870, the farm passed intact to Jasper Pile and his wife Ellen Williams. The second generation owners were unable to profitably manage such a large farm and they sold 200 acres of the land.

            Jasper and Ellen Pile raised five children and in 1942, their son Marvin acquired the farm. Marvin, the husband of Lola Brooks, raised hay, tobacco and cattle. Although the farm passed to Otto Pile in 1963, none of the farm’s basic agricultural commodities have changed in the last 40 years. Otto and his wife Estelle, who owned 900 acres in 1976, grew hay and tobacco and raised beef cattle. The current owners of the farm are Clayton and Harriett Pile.

Reed Farm

Olive Reed

            Near the town of Pall Mall stands the Reed Farm, the oldest Century Farm in Fentress County. Adam Reed acquired 55 acres and established the farm in 1830. Little is known about the farm’s history in the nineteenth century, but in 1901, a title to the land was conveyed to James B. Reed and eleven years later James transferred the property to L. S. and Isabell Reed.

            L. S. Reed did well in local politics, serving as county tax assessor, a school board member and as deputy sheriff. On 55 acres of land, the Reed family raised tobacco, corn and beef cattle. In 1957, Olive Reed acquired the land and continued to manage the farm as late as 1976. In that year, the farm’s products included corn, tobacco and cattle.

W. R. Reed Farm

Mike and Connie Storie

Located eleven miles north of Jamestown on highway 127, the W.R. Reed Farm was founded in 1904 by Hannah Evan Frogge and her husband, John Frogge. The farm consisted of 300 acres. The founder’s brother, John Evans and his wife Maggie Evans were the next owner’s of the farm. Over the years, the farm passed through three more generations. The current owners are the founder’s great aunt, Connie Reed Storie, and her husband Mike Storie.  The 60 acre farm now produces tobacco and supports cattle.  A log house, built earlier than 1950, still stands on the land today.  The log house has been put on the National Register of Historic Places.  Mike Storie continues to work the land today. 

Williams & Pile Farm

Mr. and Mrs. Walton Pile
Mr. and Mrs. Michael Pile

            “Mulepower” was the single most important source of energy on Tennessee farms during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. An important figure in the history of Tennessee mule breeding was the third generation owner of the Williams and Pile Farm, established by Francis and Milly Williams in the antebellum period and located ten miles north of Jamestown in the Wolf River Valley. The Williams owned 500 acres and raised corn, hay, wheat, swine, cattle, sheep and mules. In 1851, the property was transferred to one of the Williams’ four children, Barnett Williams. A Civil War veteran, Barnett married Susannah Pile and they raised seven children. The evidence suggests that their farm was prosperous, allowing Barnett to purchase 120 additional acres.

            In 1875, Elijah Williams obtained 500 acres of the family land. He became an important stockgrower, breeding mules for sale in the Atlanta cotton markets. Elijah and his wife Susan Flowers were the parents of four children and in 1906, they left a farm of 580 acres to their daughters, Ella Williams and Lucy Williams Pile.

            Lucy’s husband, Rosier C. Pile, and her children worked the land, producing corn, wheat, oats, hay, swine, cattle and chickens. In 1945, half of the farm went to Walton Pile, the founders’ great great grandson. Seventeen years later, the remainder of the farm passed to Gladys Williams, who owned half of the farm until her death in 1981. At that time Michael W. Pile, the founders’ great great great grandson, purchased her half of the farm.

            Today, Walton and Michael Pile manage 180 acres and produce corn, soybeans and hay. Walton and his wife Emma Belle live in a farmhouse built in 1880.

Williams Farm

Kathy Williams

The Williams Farm dates to 1872 when Phillip and Mary Williams purchased 800 acres of land ten miles north of Jamestown. The parents of five children, the Williams grew corn and hay and raised swine, sheep and cattle.

            At the turn of the century, in 1901, Joe and John Williams inherited the entire farm from their parents. Four years later, however, John conveyed his interest in the farm to his brother. During Joe’s ownership, the daily patterns of farm operations remained the same. Joe and his wife Belle Williams raised nine children and in the 1920s and 1930s, title to the farm passed between different members of the family until Harve and Edna Williams acquired possession of the farm in 1937. Seventeen years later, they left one half interest in the property to their son James K. Williams and his wife Helen. Over the next 24 years, James acquired the remainder of the Williams Farm. The current owner of the farm is Kathy Williams.