“Her eye fell everywhere on lawns and plantations of the freshest green; and the trees, though not fully clothed, were in that delightful state when farther beauty is known to be at hand, and when, while much is actually given to the sight, more yet remains for the imagination.”
Jane Austen
This
fascinating cotton plantation was owned by the Jarrell family for over
140 years and is located in the hills of Georgia just outside of the
charming town of Juliette, Georgia. This property is located north
of Macon was owned by three generations of a hardworking middle class
family who all had to chip in to make this plantation a success. So
if you are looking for a grand Antebellum mansion and plantation,
this is not it. There are over twenty original structures all built
by the Jarrell family from 1847 to 1945 that are fascinating to see.
It is just over two hours from Augusta and about an hour and fifteen
minutes from Atlanta.
When
we arrived, we entered the visitors center, were greeted by the camp
ranger, and given a map of where all the attractions were on the
property. The loop trail you follow is about a mile long and every
step is worth it as there is so much to see. At the Visitors Center,
they show a film about the Jarrell family but we had watched it the
night before we came online so we skipped that part. It is a very
informative film and well worth the watch. As we exited the
building, we got an excellent view of the barn, gardens and pathway
to the other sites. Walking to the back of the visitors center, we
could see there was a lovely painted mural that depicted this
plantation on the lower side of the building. It was very nicely done
and set the mood for what we were about to see.
As
we headed down the paved path, we stopped at the 1912 barn where we
saw chickens and a mule. The beautiful barn has thirteen stalls, an
enclosed corn crib, covered area for milking the cows, overhead
drying rack, storage area, and a place for a buggy. This was the
second barn built here as the first one burnt down. We also checked
out their demonstration garden where they planted their staples such
as tomatoes, squash, beans, corn, turnips as well as cotton, and
sugarcane which would help them be self-sufficient. They had a
variety of gourds hung from the fence surrounding the garden. In the
winter, they plant winter plants such as greens.
The
Jarrell family first got to this area of Georgia in the 1820’s.
The first generation of the Jarrell family that lived on this
plantation was John Fitz Jarrell and his wife, Elizabeth Middlebrook.
John’s father, Blake Fitz Jarrell gave them 100 acres to create
their homestead. John built a simple home in 1847, built from heart
pine. This was to become their family home for over a century. He
couldn’t have run this farm without the help of his family and the
42 slaves who worked in the cotton fields. From the 1847 house, the
cotton fields went from this simple wooden home to the Ocmulgee River
which was nearly a mile away. We could just imagine what it looked
like during that time from the front porch. He also raised food
crops as well as raising food for his livestock.
John
and Elizabeth’s house was up on a hill where they would have had a
great view of the plantation. Their house was small but they
managed quite well even with having many children. The girls slept
downstairs in a room next to their parents room and the boy slept up
in the loft. We loved the original furnishings in the home including
portraits, beds, table, cribs, cobbler’s bench, and loom. The
front porch would have been a great place to gather with the family
and watch the children play when not working. The kitchen was in a
separate building behind the home along with a smoke house, chicken
coup, and privy. This home was perfectly preserved and was in great
shape which we found interesting as it was placed on stones that kept
the house off the ground. The wood for their home was cut from the
trees on this property. The wood was also milled here, as well as
the roof shingles, and even the nails were made right here in the
blacksmith shop.
Before
the Civil War, the Jarrell’s farm was only one of the half a
million cotton farmers located in the south. The South produced 2/3
of the worlds cotton. This farm was lucky in it survived the Typhoid
Fever Outbreak in the 1860’s. Typhoid Fever took out his wife and
daughter as well as killing four members of their family and some of
the slaves.
John
was fifty-one when the Civil War broke out. Two of his sons, went
off to serve in the Confederate Army. The Union soldiers did come
to his farm during Sherman’s March to the Sea and burned down his
cotton gin along with 300 bushels of wheat and took his animals and
food. While the Union soldiers were on the property, they freed all
his slaves which virtually crippled his farm. Fortunately, many of
his freed slaves stayed and continued farming on his land which was
what kept him going. The freed slaves worked the land as tenant
farmers. They rented the land from the Jarrells and in return, gave
them a large portion of their earnings back for rent.
During
the Civil War, salt became scarce so they would go to Savannah and
get sea water to boil down in the outside kettles to make salt. By
the end of the Civil War, John had accumulated right at a thousand
acres. John later married Nancy Ann Burden, a Confederate widow, and
they raised seven children together. When John passed on in 1884,
his wife and children kept on working the farm.
One
of John’s sons, Benjamin Richard “Dick” Jarrell, left his
teaching job and returned home with his wife, Mary Elizabeth,
“Mamie”, to help with the plantation. He built himself a small
home which is now called the 1895 Home. This home in down the hill
from the 1847 home and was built as a temporary two room wooden
house. The kitchen and dining room were attached by a covered dog
trot connecting it to the main part of the home. Dick’s family grew
to 12 children including his brothers children that he took in after
his brothers death in 1904. His sister, Mattie Jarrell also came
back home to help him with the children and the plantation. For a
while, she ran a general store out of the 1847 home. Dick was a
hard working, smart, and resourceful man, and built a sawmill, cotton
gin, gristmill, shingle mill, planer, sugar compress, syrup
evaporator, workshop, barn, and outbuildings. They also had bee hives
in the field near his home so they had honey when they needed it.
As
we strolled the property, we saw a beautiful large home with a lovely
wrap around porch adorned with rocking chairs behind a fenced area.
When we got closer, we saw it is a bed and breakfast. This home was
built by Dick Jarrell with the help of his sons and nephews and was
finished in 1920. As in the first home he built, the 1895 Home, he
cut all the lumber, milled it, and made the nails for this home.
There are ten large rooms and is now owned by Dick’s grandson. What
a lovely place to stay and spend time in the evening sitting on the
porch listening to nature in this quiet splendid area. If you are
interested in staying you can contact them at: www.jarrellhouse.com.
It is private property but they do tours on Sundays.
The
last Jarrell to farm the land was Dick’s son, Willie Lee. He
retired in 1965. In 1974, the Jarrell’s nine surviving adult
children all got together and agreed to donate the plantation to the
state to be an educational tool for future generations to be able to
see and experience what plantation life would have been like.
They were proud of their heritage and wanted to share it with the
public. What a lovely gesture on their part and we are blessed
having this plantation on display in Georgia.
This
is one of the best preserved examples of how a middle class
plantation in the south looked. Seeing the blacksmith and wood
workshop was amazing with all the equipment still in place and ready
to be used. They have one of the largest complete collections of
original family artifacts. It was added to the National Register
of Historic Places in 1973. It is now a 200 acre state park located
in Jones County. Georgia Department of Natural Resources takes care
of the property now.
This
amazing plantation was able to survive through the years surviving
the boll weevil, Civil War, reconstruction, advent of steam power,
and transition from farming to forestry by the grace of God and hard
work. They made it through all the hard times by being diverse in
what they produced on the farm. You can now experience life on this
unique farm by coming to the events throughout the year such as the
Sheep to Shaw day. During this event, volunteers dressed in period
dress doing spinning, blacksmith and wood work, sawing logs, making
syrup, and cooking representing life from the 1840’s to 1930’s.
The other great event is the Christmas candle lit tours along with a
campfire and Christmas carols. They both sound fascinating events
to come and see.
What
we enjoyed the most about seeing this plantation was all the
equipment still works and you can see and experience how the
machinery was used. The ingenuity of Dick to build the equipment
that could be run by the Talbot 30 engine also on display. This is
one of the only working ones in the US. He made this plantation
self sufficient with all that he built and added to the plantation.
The Jarrells made it through all the tough years with determination
and hard work. There are no slave quarters on display as when it was
a working farm, they were in bad repair and they just let them go.
There are only ruins.
We
highly recommend going and seeing this historic site. You will not
disappointed. Take care and bye for now.
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