Homeplace 1850s Working Farm

A working farm, not just a display

The Homeplace represents a two-generation, pre-Civil War farm in northwest Tennessee. Interpreters in period clothing tend a real working farm, giving visitors a look at the chores, tools and seasonal decisions that shaped rural life in the 1850s.

You can ask questions and, when activities allow, lend a hand. Rather than promising the same demonstration every day, plan around the day’s farm work and current program calendar.

Walk through the farmstead

The Single Pen House shows the compact, one-room form of an early family home. The larger Double Pen House has two rooms divided by an open central passage—a design that offered shade and a cooling breeze.

Beyond the homes, follow the farm map to the smokehouse, stock barn, ox barn, corn crib, tobacco barn and blacksmith shop. These are not interchangeable old buildings: each helps explain a different part of feeding a family, caring for livestock, storing a harvest or keeping tools in use.

Animals, gardens and the work of the seasons

Heritage livestock and heirloom crops are central to the farm’s story. Watch for sheep, poultry and working animals as you explore, and see how barns, pens and fences fit into the daily routine. Give the animals space; do not feed or chase them.

The garden changes with the season. Planting, tending and preserving food were necessities, not weekend hobbies. Many of the farm’s seed varieties trace their history to the years before the Civil War, connecting today’s garden to what families grew and ate in the 1850s.

Traditional skills and hands-on history

Domestic work matters as much as field work here. The homes, kitchen, textile work and farm tools offer different ways into the story, whether you are interested in cooking, making and mending, agriculture or local history. Check the program calendar for the demonstrations offered on your visit; a photograph of a particular activity is not a daily schedule.

For a school visit or organized group, call the group-program number before choosing your day.

Accessibility

The entrance building, museum and gift shop are accessible. LBL describes a flat concrete route to and around the farm, with ramps into the Single and Double Pen homes. Call 931-232-6457 with specific access questions.

Practical visitor information

Published details checked October 27, 2026. Check the official visitor page for changes, special events and current access.

• Published hours: April–October: daily, 10 AM–5 PM. March and November: Wednesday–Sunday, 10 AM–5 PM.
• Last entry: 4 PM
• Seasonal and holiday closures: December–February and Thanksgiving Day
• Published admission: Ages 16 and older: $7. Ages 15 and younger: free. Special-event admission may be higher.