Episode 3406

- [Joe] This time on Tennessee Crossroads, we first take in some out of the ordinary farm life in Eagleville. Then travel to Duff, Tennessee for some of the most scenic dining in the state. We'll meet some talented brothers who head up the Cedar Place in Nashville and discovery the story behind the woman suffrage movement That's the lineup for this edition of Tennessee Crossroads. I'm Joe Elmore, welcome home. If you're a Baby Boomer, you remember the TV show Green Acres, where a dyed in the woods city girl moves to the farm with her husband. Of course hilarity ensues along with canned laughter. They even had a pig in the cast. Well, Cindy Carter found a similar story in Eagleville at a place called Lucky Ladd Farms. Oh, they've got a star pig too.

- [Cindy] Farm living isn't exactly a quiet existence When you're living on Lucky Ladd Farms, there's just too much to say, to see.

- I found a huge one!

- [Cindy] To do,

- Now these will be picked this morning and gone to a market this evening.

- [Cindy] Jason Lad and his wife, Amy, started growing their agri-tourism business back in 2008. A self described city girl, Amy says she drew inspiration from her husband's rural upbringing.

- Come on, pig, pig, pig!

- [Cindy] And a pig named Charlotte.

- When we got married, my husband bought us a little pot-bellied pig and from there, it just got out of control, really. Very soon we had goats and sheep and llamas and alpacas and horses and so he told me I need to figure out a way to feed my animals.

- [Cindy] This was Amy's solution, a 60 acre working farm in Rutherford county. A place where Amy's now-extensive animal menagerie is on full display and growing fruits and vegetables.

- Found one.

- [Cindy] Is also part of Lucky Lad's charm.

- My husband, at first, he thought that was crazy. He couldn't understand why people would want to come out and experience life on the farm and see where vegetables grow and interact with the animals, but once we did it, it grew very fast. Much quicker than we expected, but it's been a blessing ever since.

- I can get whoever's next. Hi guys, you have passes or tickets?

- Passes.

- [Cindy] The farm welcomes all ages eager to sample the so-called simple life. Most head for the popular petting zoo.

- [Child] Feel its stomach.

- [Cindy] Which includes the usual farm animal fare as well as a few exotic friends. All lining up for snacks, more snacks, and a little love.

- [Mother] Oh, aren't they sweet, darling?

- [Cindy] The farm's nature trails wind through Tennessee's terrain and history. There's a farmer's market and store, featuring home grown and locally grown produce and products. And there's a farm themed playground.

- Whoooo!

- There's all types of fun here out at the farm. We have a huge playground and all different types of activities, so it really is a day destination. You can just come out and enjoy time together.

- [Cindy] No, it's not your typical life in the country, but studies show farms and agricultural acreage are declining in America. The Ladds view their added attractions not as distractions, but as a smart business move.

- [Amy] Farmers struggle these days and so diversification is key in order to be able to sustain your farm for a long term.

- [Cindy] Lucky Ladd Farms' long term plans also include embracing innovation, like this hydroponic strawberry patch. 15,000 plants growing on just a tenth of an acre.

- It's grown in perlite and their fed four times throughout the day, through this drip irrigation. It comes down and then the water filters through. The roots absorb all of the nutrients and water and everything that they would need.

- [Cindy] The Ladds are growers who also hope this experience plants the seeds for a future generation of agricultural enthusiasts.

- Got to get him wet so we can soap him up.

- [Cindy] Lucky Ladd offers several educational programs for young people like this summer camp. Little Dasher doesn't seem to like his bath, but he's reluctantly helping these campers learn how to care for animals.

- They just get upset with you and then they just start trying to get out of their collar.

- They go, "Neeeeehh."

- We're rich in education for young kids, most families are four to five generations removed from the farm and they don't necessarily understand how agriculture impacts their everyday lives.

- Now who doesn't love a baby lamb? Literally, her name is Baby, and while Lucky Lad has a lot to offer in terms of information and education, this is what the farm excels at, making memories like this one.

- Got a couple.

- Thank you so much. From alpacas to ponies, tortoises to train rides, Lucky Ladd may seem more like an amusement park than a working farm. But for the Ladds, it's just their way of preserving a country life for their children, their critters, and a slightly spoiled pot-bellied pig.

- Very nice, thanks a lot, Cindy. Have you ever looked out the window of an airplane and marveled at that sea of clouds below? Wouldn't it be nice to have that same experience without taking off your shoes or getting a body scan? Well, not too long ago, Ed Jones went skyward in our Tennessee Crossroads minivan.

- In the mornings, the clouds coming up over the valley it's like an ocean below.

- [Ed] A city above the clouds sounds like the stuff of dreams and it was the dream of one man. With the ironic name if Jim McCloud.

- [Scott] He had a vision of this being like rock city. It had a really good start of something, interstate kind of put that to sleep.

- [Ed] Scott Field's father, Paul, would reawaken that dream

- My father fell in love with it, said, "You know, this would be a great investment." Used as a family retreat until the late 80's until about 2006 at which point he said, "You know, I think we need to share the place. We should build a restaurant." But my dad, like Jim McCloud, this became the love affair of his life, we're carrying on a family tradition, living my dad's dream.

- [Ed] As the owner of McCloud Mountain Restaurant and Lodge Scott is now the steward of that dream and is eager to share it with others, beginning with the breathtaking view nearly 3,000 feet above the valley below.

- From the far east, which is the furthest you could see, you're seeing just over Cumberland Gap and Middlesboro. On a very clear day, you can see the Smokies, which are about 65 miles in the distance. You can see Clingman's dome. You look all down the Cumberlands to the left and right. We also sit in the middle of the Cumberland trail. The Cumberland Trail is a planned trail that they hope to open in the next decade and it comes right down our main road.

- [Ed] The cliffside view is thrilling and so is the trip up and down the mountain.

- [Scott] We always recommend putting it in first gear on some of the steep ones. It is a serpentine road and hopefully you got a shot of the sign coming up the hill with the squiggly line.

- [Ed] All those twists and turns can certainly build up an appetite, which restaurant and lodge manager Charles Wallace, can remedy.

- We really have a nice, diverse menu with a little bit of something for everybody. We really consider ourselves destination dining, so you really want to make sure that everybody comes up, you know, finds something they care for. Our steaks are really incredible, we're really known for our barbecue. It's a Tennessee style barbecue that was smoked around in the back, so everything is smoked here in house. We do have burgers, we do have a nice selection of salads for people to have a nice stuffed salad, just a little bit of twist to the traditional.

- Are you guys doing all right? How is everything?

- Great.

- Wonderful, thank you for coming to the mountain.

- [Ed] If the spectacular view from the main dining room isn't awe inspiring enough, perhaps you'd prefer a private table dangling off the cliff.

- [Scott] The over look was the original concept of the restaurant. Dad wanted to cantilever the whole thing off the edge of the mountain. A lot of people would not have seen that, but he kept that ideal. He wanted to put you out over the edge. Cantilevered dining room came along about a year and a half to two years after we opened the restaurant and it does give an opportunity to walk out and look down on the elevation you're truly at.

- [Ed] If you'd rather have your feet on the ground, but nothing above you, try the--

- [Charles] Skydeck, which is gonna be a lot of fun. Straight outside dining, you're sitting on top of the world, it's just gonna be a limited menu. We're working out of that smoker, have a little bit more limited menu than in here, but it's gonna be a fantastic venue for just something really different.

- [Ed] For those looking to spend more time on the mountain, there are 11 lovely lodges available.

- [Scott] They're all king suites, each of the rooms, you walk into the master bedroom it has a little kitchenette off to the side, full size refrigerator, microwave and a closet. As you walk around, you have a 50" TV on the wall, which you're on top of the mountain with a view like this, you won't spend much time watching that. Very private deck outside of the master bedroom, privacy screens on each side. You would have to go out of your way to see anybody else. As you walk around the corner, we do have a jetted tub. Big custom, double bowl vanity, walk into the bathroom everything is custom tiled. Just did everything the best touches we could come up with. Hopefully better than the comforts of home.

- [Ed] Luxury lodging, cliffside dining, but wait, there's more.

- One of the biggest questions I get is, "What is there to do when I get there if I spend a few days?" The first thing to do is not fight crowds. We're close to the Smokies, but it's quiet here. Sit back, read a book, we've got miles of hiking trails. We've got beautiful rock formations, waterfalls, it's place to get away from all of that. We have incredible sights. Just the view here is amazing and that's just the south facing side. The north facing side of the mountain is all nature. You see very few homes, very little of anything. The chimney rocks that are here on site are one of our biggest hits. 150 chimneys standing up to 250 feet high. We've built a bridge out overtop of them so everybody can get out and enjoy them. The state of Tennessee purchased that plot of land from us about three years ago. They are being integrated into the Cumberland Trail, so it's a great spot if you're looking for something unique for your family. With a lodge which is really nice for the anniversaries and to stay if you're from Knoxville or Nashville or wherever. Come up and stay the weekend, have your family come up and visit, have a nice lunch, dinner, you know, any kind of event like that works real well.

- [Ed] So if you're looking for an out of this world, well, above this world experience, your dream could be waiting just above the clouds.

- Cedar is a soft wood that not only smells good, it also repels insects. In the hands of one of the Greer brothers, well it's transformed into beautiful chairs, swings, and other items. It all happens at a remote shop just north of Nashville, a place simply called Cedar Place. It looks good, smells good, and even repels insects. It's Tennessee Red Cedar and it's used for everything from cedar chests to traditional outdoor furniture. For one middle Tennessee family, it's been the source of quality, handcrafted furniture for several decades.

- Cedar is a great wood for outside. It will last a long time. Back in the day, people would have cedar fence posts and it lasts forever. The good thing about our furniture is that you can buy an Adirondack chair and it will be around 15, 20 years from now if you just take care of it.

- [Joe] Then there's the unmistakable aroma.

- Our cedar chest, if you open the lid, the smell just stays in there. People put their blankets and keepsakes and things in there and the smell just stays.

- That's Danny Greer who proudly carries on a tradition started by his late father. Bobby Greer worked here a couple of decades before taking over the business in 1972. Today his quality work ethic still rules.

- The thing about our furniture is it's very well made. Now usually companies that make furniture, they'll make it and try to make it cheaper and cheaper as time goes on, but what we've always done is increase the quality in it. It may be thicker, heavier duty nails and bots and things like that.

- [Joe] Although according to Danny, folks aren't just sitting outside like they used to.

- I think back in the day, people spent more time outside with family and tuff, but as time has gone on, people are more staying inside with their air conditioning cause they just can't handle the heat. Myself included, I have a swing on my front porch, but I seldom sit in it unless it's just early in the morning.

- You know what they say, "It don't mean a thing if it ain't got that swing." To turn out a swing this cool takes a a lot more time, talent, and patience than you might imagine. Today brother Nathan is making swings in the workshop. He's here full time, doing a job he wanted since early childhood.

- I was up here when I was five. I wanted to be a part of it.

- [Joe] All the wood used has to go through a planer to ensure its specified thickness from end to end. Next, Nathan's gonna make slats for the seat and back. After marking each piece according to a pattern, he uses a band saw to cut them to shape. Over at the drill press, he can make holes for the fasteners Then he sands each piece carefully and completely.

- Cedar has a lot of knots in it and some are good and some are bad, some will come out. Just have to be real cautious about it.

- [Joe] Now Nathan can start putting things together and because of its softness, it's important to drill pilot holes first before these galvanized nails go in. This swing will have a curve in the back for better comfort. That's all thanks to a younger Danny and his dad.

- When I was like 13, 14 years old, it was time for us to make a new pattern for a swing. So he sat me down and traced my back and that's the shape of the swing today.

- [Joe] With the body finished, Nathan nails on the swings arms and after some hardware, a frame, and a finish, this thing will be ready to swing into action.

- You can get two different types of finishes. One is an old oil finish, which is a mixture of Thompson's wood preserve and we add boiled linseed oil to it and the other finish is a varnish finish which is a polyurethane exterior, oil based polyurethane we put four coats on it.

- [Joe] Saw milling makes for a lot of shavings, which never go to waste. The Greers bag them up, weigh them, and sell them to customers like Paula Underwood-Winters.

- I use the cedar wood shavings for my dog house because it keeps the fleas at bay and I also use it for the chickens to lay on, so a little bit of everything.

- [Joe] Speaking of animals, Cedar Place dog houses are another consistent seller. Plus, they make smaller items like checker sets, toys, and even a coat rack. Danny and Nathan both hope to continue the family business started by their father, even though things haven't turned out exactly as planned.

- So his plan was to get this business going and get us all into it, it didn't happen that way, but we've all worked here on and off at one time or another in our lives and my dad would be very proud, I'm sure.

- You find very few places that still exist like this. So just having that feeling of just being back at the old times when you could get good, handcrafted chairs and benches and swings, it just feels good. It's like stepping back in time.

- This month marks 100 years since American women won the right to vote. Tennessee played a big part in securing that right. Gretchen Bates shares the story of five extraordinary women who devoted themselves to women's equality and the monument that pays tribute.

- I give you Mayor Megan Berry.

- 100 years ago, Anne Dallas Dudley led a parade from the Tennessee state capital to this beautiful park where 2,000 people joined her to give voice to one simple demand: give women the right to vote. When opponents said only men should have that right because only men could bear arms, she said "Yes, but women bear armies."

- Tennessee's greatest gift to our country, the greatest nonviolent revolution in the history of our country, the suffragists believed that democracy was not a spectator sport. They proved democracy works.

- [Gretchen] The 19th Amendment of the US Constitution granted women the right to vote and Tennessee played a pivotal role in making it happen. As president of the Women's Suffrage Monument Board, Paula Casey is pretty much an expert on the subject.

- The 19th Amendment passed Congress finally June the fourth, 1919, and then it was sent to the states. There was pressure on some of the governors to call their states into special session. Governor A. H. Roberts of Tennessee was one of those and the pro-suffrage and anti-suffrage factions were pressuring him. The women of Tennessee gave it their all. They made Tennessee the perfect 36, the last state that could possibly ratify, it took 36 of the then 48 states and that's how Tennessee became the perfect 36. All American women vote today thanks to Tennessee.

- [Gretchen] Paula and a group of dedicated volunteers are making sure this story is told through the art of local sculptor Alan LeQuire.

- Alan has stated that he wants to memorialize these women for the future so that this history will be preserved and what these women accomplished will not be forgotten.

- [Gretchen] If you've visited Nashville, then you're probably familiar with Alan's work. He started his career with what may be his best known piece, Athena at the Parthenon. Musica at the Music Row roundabout happens to be the largest bronze figured group in America.

- I jokingly guaranteed my work for 3,000 years. The fact that I'm associated in any way with these incredible women is quite thrilling for me. In general, I want the statue to convey the sense of victory and it's a victory through political action through protests. So there's a defiance in this victory. From the front, you get the sense of each of these women individually. From the back, you see that they're holding hands, they're supporting each other, and you get a sense of the intimacy and the solidarity which is what allowed them to be victorious.

- We've wanted to have bronze figures that would depict significant women who were actually in Nashville in 1920. We selected Anne Dallas Dudley, obviously a Nashville supported, Carrie Chapman Catt who was a protege of Susan B Anthony, came to Tennessee and stayed at the Hermitage Hotel where the pro and anti suffrage forces gathered. Frankie Pierce, who was a Black suffragist in Nashville, very important. We have Sue Shelton White from Jackson, Tennessee who was the only woman we know of from Tennessee who was actually jailed fighting for suffrage and then we added Abby Crawford Milton of Chattanooga who was very prominent. So those five women will be on the top and they're going to be heroic proportions. They're approximately seven feet or more and Alan LaQuire has taken great pains to have everything on them be historically accurate. This will be a monument for the ages. I guarantee you there will come a time where people will be looking at this and say, "You mean there was a time women couldn't vote in this country?" It's going to seem so archaic and unbelievable. We want people to remember it.

- And as the mayor of Nashville, I couldn't be more proud that we are here in the city that made it all happen. And that monument we're gonna be able to unveil today will stand as a beautiful tribute to all the women who fought so hard for us and like all of them, we have to remember to reach back so that we can pull the next ones forward. Thank you so much.

- With the unveiling of this monument a century after changing the course of our nation, these brave women are still making history.

- We are the beneficiaries of that peaceful revolution and it is so important that these women be honored because public art is forever. We are so grateful because we think these women deserve it.

- Wow, where does the time go? Well, before we leave you, gotta remind you as always to check out our website tennesseecrossroads.org, follow us on Facebook of course. Yeah, by all means, join me here again next week. See you then.