Milky Way Farm in Giles County,

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...

, is the former estate of Franklin C. Mars, founder of Mars Candies. The property is named for the company's Milky Way candy bar. During the Great Depression, the estate was the largest employer in Giles county. The estate is listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

as an historic district; the farm and manor house are now used for weddings, tours, trail runs, & special events.Historic Manor house is now available for private reservation
, Milky Way Farms website, accessed December 27, 2010

History

Franklin Mars and his second wife,

Ethel V. Mars Ethel Veronica Mars (birth name, née Healy; June 1884 – December 25, 1945) was an American businesswoman and racehorse owner. She was Ethel Veronica Healy prior to her marriage in 1910 to Franklin Clarence Mars, the founder of the Mars, Incorp ...

, purchased the property in 1930, shortly after establishing a southern office of Mars Candies in Nashville. Architect James F. Drake was hired to design the

Tudor Revival Tudor Revival architecture (also known as mock Tudor in the UK) first manifested itself in domestic architecture in the United Kingdom in the latter half of the 19th century. Based on revival of aspects that were perceived as Tudor architecture ...

manor house and farm facilities for breeding Thoroughbred horses and

Hereford cattle The Hereford is a British breed of beef cattle originally from Herefordshire in the West Midlands of England. It has spread to many countries – there are more than five million purebred Hereford cattle in over fifty nations worldwide. The bre ...

. Construction peaked between 1931 and 1933. With 800 workers during construction, Milky Way Farm became the largest employer in Giles County.Caneta Skelley Hankins
Milky Way Farm
''Tennessee Encyclopedia of History and Culture''. During construction, many of the workers lived on the farm with their families. Mars is reputed to have been generous to his workers, who received free

candy bar A candy bar is a type of candy that is in the shape of a bar. The most common type of candy bar is the chocolate bar, including both bars made of solid chocolate and combination candy bars, which are candy bars that combine chocolate with othe ...

s, as well as small

loan In finance, a loan is the lending of money by one or more individuals, organizations, or other entities to other individuals, organizations, etc. The recipient (i.e., the borrower) incurs a debt and is usually liable to pay interest on that ...

s and other forms of assistance. Mars died in 1934, too soon to see the success of the farming operations. He was buried in a mausoleum on Milky Way Farm. His widow, Ethel Mars, oversaw the planned livestock operations. Milky Way Farm produced prize-winning Hereford cattle and thoroughbred horses that were winners on the racetrack, beginning with the farm's first racing season in 1934. Winnings in 1936 totaled $206,450, making the Milky Way Farm stable the season's most successful owner on the U.S. thoroughbred racing circuit. In 1940, Milky Way Farm's

Gallahadion Gallahadion (March 31, 1937 – July 7, 1958) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse best known as the 1940 winner of the Kentucky Derby. He was a son of the Champion sire Sir Gallahad III, and his dam-sire was U.S. Horse of the Year Reigh C ...

won the Kentucky Derby. In March 1945, when Ethel Mars was in declining health (she died in December 1945), the farm was sold.Ethel V. Mars, Head of Candy Firm, Dies
''Billboard'', January 5, 1946 In the subsequent decades it fell into disrepair until new owners stepped in to save the historic property.

Description

The Tudor Revival manor house has 35 rooms, including 21 bedrooms, and 12 original bathrooms. The house was designed for entertaining, and many of the individual rooms are unusually large. The living room features exposed beams and a ceiling. The Mars' dining room table is reputed to have been the largest private

dining table A table is an item of furniture with a raised flat top and is supported most commonly by 1 or 4 legs (although some can have more), used as a surface for working at, eating from or on which to place things. Some common types of table are the ...

in Tennessee. The house was surrounded by landscaped grounds, including

magnolia ''Magnolia'' is a large genus of about 210 to 340The number of species in the genus ''Magnolia'' depends on the taxonomic view that one takes up. Recent molecular and morphological research shows that former genera ''Talauma'', ''Dugandiodendro ...

trees, and had an outdoor swimming pool and

tennis courts A tennis court is the venue where the sport of tennis is played. It is a firm rectangular surface with a low net stretched across the centre. The same surface can be used to play both doubles and singles matches. A variety of surfaces can be u ...

.Justin Leonard, Florence, Handles Sale of Milky Way
''Florence (Alabama) Times'', March 10, 1945 Outbuildings included 70 cottages, 30 barns, and a horse-racing track. Local

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...

was used in most of the farm buildings, which have been described as having

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

-inspired architecture. In Ethel Mars' day, the property had of

fence A fence is a structure that encloses an area, typically outdoors, and is usually constructed from posts that are connected by boards, wire, rails or netting. A fence differs from a wall in not having a solid foundation along its whole length. ...

s and of roads. Outbuildings that were still intact as of 2007 included the groundskeeper's cottage; several of the

barn A barn is an agricultural building usually on farms and used for various purposes. In North America, a barn refers to structures that house livestock, including cattle and horses, as well as equipment and fodder, and often grain.Alle ...

s, including an octagonal barn; stables; and well-houses. Although Franklin Mars' remains were reinterred in a

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

cemetery, his mausoleum at Milky Way Farm still stands. Milky Way Farm was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on September 27, 1984. It was described as significant for its role in sustaining the local economy during the Depression, its association with Franklin Mars, and its

architecture Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and constructing building ...

Milky Way Farm Today

In 2007 the property was sold for a reported price of $10 million. The buyer announced plans for a $400 million development of a luxury residential community to consist of 750 to 900 homes, an

equestrian The word equestrian is a reference to equestrianism, or horseback riding, derived from Latin ' and ', "horse". Horseback riding (or Riding in British English) Examples of this are: * Equestrian sports *Equestrian order, one of the upper classes i ...

club including a horse track and polo field, a

golf course A golf course is the grounds on which the sport of golf is played. It consists of a series of holes, each consisting of a tee box, a fairway, the rough and other hazards, and a green with a cylindrical hole in the ground, known as a "cup". ...

, and equestrian

trail A trail, also known as a path or track, is an unpaved lane or small road usually passing through a natural area. In the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland, a path or footpath is the preferred term for a pedestrian or hiking trail. ...

s.Donnie Snow
Re-raising the Bar
, ''Business TN'' magazine, November 2007Dennis Ferrier

WSMV-TV WSMV-TV (channel 4) is a television station in Nashville, Tennessee, United States, affiliated with NBC. It is owned by Gray Television alongside low-power Telemundo affiliate WTNX-LD (channel 15). The two stations share studios on Knob Road ...

. April 6, 2007 Ferrier became ill and the property went into foreclosure in May 2009. Beginning in 2010, Milky Way Farm was purchased in sections by a father and daughter until over 1100 acres of the original property were reconstituted. With the assistance of the Tennessee Land Trust, the front acreage was placed in permanent agricultural easement, and slowly improvements began to once again protect the property. The historic Manor House, barns, roofs, roads, and stone walls have each received attention. In 2017, the reigns were passed to the daughter and her sister to continue to care for this Tennessee landmark. Revenue from events, tours, weddings, corporate meetings, trail runs, farming, guided hunts, and seasonal festivals help operate and restore the property. It has been home to events such as the Warrior Dash, Tough Mudder, Green Beret Challenge, and the Spartan Race. Current renovation projects include improvements to the Show Barn, Manor House, roads, and the historic race track.

References

External links

Milky Way Farm website
{{National Register of Historic Places American racehorse owners and breeders Owners of Kentucky Derby winners Buildings and structures in Giles County, Tennessee Historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Tennessee Mars family Farms on the National Register of Historic Places in Tennessee Octagon barns in the United States Tudor Revival architecture in Tennessee Houses completed in 1931 Barns in Tennessee National Register of Historic Places in Giles County, Tennessee