Overview

Century Farms of Williamson County: Challenges, Changes, and Choices is an account of the significance of agriculture, in the past and present, in one of the fastest growing areas of Tennessee. This publication focuses on the stories of 44 farms that have been owned by the same family for at least 100 years, some for 150 and others 200 years or more. These historic properties represent every farm and farm family in Tennessee and its number one industry-agriculture. Designated as Tennessee Century Farms, these remarkable places are part of a fifty-year-old program begun by the Tennessee Department of Agriculture and administered by the Center for Historic Preservation at Middle Tennessee State University. The program, now in its fiftieth year, includes more than 2000 farms across the state. The Williamson County farms, dating from 1785 to 1922, are Illustrated with nearly 400 images of people, buildings, crops, livestock, and landscapes, both historic and contemporary. The narratives follow the farm families from those individuals who established the farms to the current owners. Today's farmers offer their perspective on some of the challenges of farming in the rapidly developing county and share how they hope to ensure their farm remains in family. Through these stories, readers, including those removed from agriculture by one or more generations, are offered compelling reasons to intentionally work towards preserving farmland and supporting farmers who contribute daily to the economy and a local and safe food supply.

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Caneta Skelley Hankins, a native Tennessean and eighth generation resident of Williamson County, holds degrees in English, History and Historic Preservation. When the Center for Historic Preservation at Middle Tennessee State University was established in 1984, she became the Projects Coordinator and then the Assistant Director from 2001 until her retirement in 2013. Among other responsibilities, Hankins was the Director of the Tennessee Century Farms Program from 2001 until 2013. Another particular interest is Scots-Irish resources in Tennessee. This led to consultancies and cooperative efforts over two decades with the Department of Education in the Republic of Ireland and the Museums of Northern Ireland (UK).Among her numerous publications is Barns of Tennessee, co-authored with Center colleague, Michael Gavin in 2008. They also collaborated on Plowshares and Swords: Tennessee Farm Families Tell Civil War Stories published in 2014. After retiring from MTSU, her research and publications have focused on Williamson County topics. She collaborated with Rick Warwick on At Home with Working Folks in Williamson County in 2018 and was the co-author with Warwick for Barns of Williamson County in 2019. Her article ""Travelers Rest of Williamson County: World Renowned Arabian Horse Farm"" was included in the Williamson County Historical Society Journal in 2022. Caneta has actively served on the boards of the Tennessee Agricultural Museum and the Williamson County Fair where she coordinated the annual Century Farms exhibit and dinner for 15 years. A church musician for over fifty years, Hankins is the organist at Hillsboro United Methodist Church in Leiper's Fork. Beyond these interests you may ask about her dogs and women's basketball. Marcia Fraser, a native of Georgia, was well prepared for a career in library and information science through her graduate work in Library Science at Dominican University in River Forest, Illinois. In her most recent position, she served as Special Collections Librarian at Williamson County Public Library. In this role, she helped local authors format and publish their works after the library invested in 212 CENTURY FARMS OF WILLIAMSON COUNTY, a professional publishing platform for its patrons. During her tenure at WCPL, she compiled and published a local history book, Excellent Citizens and Notable Partings, in 2020. Marcia, now retired, has found this work particularly rewarding and continues to offer help to the Williamson County Historical Society in editing, layout design, and publishing local history books. Rick Warwick, president of the Williamson County Historical Society, was appointedWilliamson County Historian in 2017 by the County Commission. Known by all simplyas ""Rick,"" he was honored in November of 2025 with the Sage Award from the AgeWellorganization of Middle Tennessee, recognizing him as a leader who has made a lastingimpact on his community and Tennessee. The award noted Warwick's ""dedicationto improving the quality of life in Williamson County through education, volunteerservice, and historic preservation.""Rick is the well-known author of a myriad of local history books and is the keeperand collector of thousands of historic images of people, places, and events that tellthe stories of those who have contributed to the county's rich past. During his tenureas editor of the Journal of the Williamson County Historical Society, many topics wereexplored, and Rick encouraged and assisted many contributors while also authoringarticles and publishing books each year. Rick's diligent and impressive body of workand knowledge is recognized and appreciated in Williamson County and across thestate and beyond through his collaborations with individuals and organizations, hispresentations at many conferences, and his service on the board of the TennesseeHistorical Commission.

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