Tennessee's Chocolate Estate - Milky Way Farm

Just over an hour from Huntsville, you can visit the Milky Way Farm, the estate of candy magnate Frank Mars. He bought the land in 1930, after the success of his Milky Way candy bar. It was introduced in 1923 and is one of the bestselling confections of all time. His company also went on to provide us with the joys of Snickers (named after one of his horses), 3 Musketeers, M&M’s, etc.

Frank and his second wife, Ethel, founded Mar-O-Bar Co (later Mars, Inc.) in Minneapolis in 1920, and they moved the company to Chicago in 1929. On a visit to Middle Tennessee, they fell in love with the rolling hills and fertile land and decided to build a world-class farm here. They bought 2,800 acres of farmland and, from 1931 to 1933, they employed 935 local men to build the estate. They became Giles County's largest employer during the desperate economic times of the Great Depression.

They built a 25,000 square foot Tudor Revival manor house with 20 bedrooms, 14 bathrooms, and a dining table so big (12ft x 48ft) it had to be built in place.

They also built 30 barns, 70 cottages, and a horseracing track. The manor house and barns were built with wood from local mills and stone from the farm’s own quarry.

They planned to breed Herefords and Thoroughbred horses; however, Frank died in 1934. (He was buried in a mausoleum on the farm but was later moved to Minneapolis.) Ethel continued with their plans, and the farm became known for its prize Herefords, racehorses (one of which won the Kentucky Derby in 1940), sheep, amazing stone barns and beautiful views. The farm even had its own railway stop and was one of the largest magnolia plantations in the South.

When Ethel died in 1945, the farm was sold. The historic property then went through several owners. Much of the land was sold off and many of the outbuildings were lost over the years. 

The current owners began restoration of the manor house and some of the barns in 2010 and now own over 1100 acres of the original property. Today they operate Milky Way Farm as a special event and corporate meeting facility (including meetings for Mars, Inc. which has no financial connection with the farm). They also host weddings, group tours, and a variety of public events such as “Sundaes with Santa,” “Be My Valentine,” an annual Easter egg hunt, and “A Walk Through Time.” During the tours they allow you to explore the house and the grounds on your own (and are available to answer questions). “A Walk Through Time” included a question and answer session with the owner over dessert at the massive dining table and then several hours for exploration.

It was so much fun exploring the house and the grounds. Even after three hours, I still needed more time. In addition to fabulous buildings, there are many ruins to discover (we never did find the remains of the swimming pool or the mausoleum). I need to visit again!

Lots more photos of the manor house and the grounds:

The Largest Amish Settlement in the South

In 1944, a small group of Swartzentruber Amish (one of the most conservative subgroups of Old Order Amish), left Mississippi and settled in Ethridge, Tennessee, for its good farmland. The area is now home to over 300 Amish families, and they welcome tourists to their homesteads to shop their goods (but they ask that you do not take any photos; their religion prohibits them from drawing attention to themselves). You can drive around the area on your own and/or take a wagon tour provided by non-Amish businesses. Pick up a map at one of the welcome centers or just look for the hand-written signs in front of the homes. Watch out for buggies on the roads, especially away from the farms on the main roads!

One of Tennessee’s oldest Amish farms (1944) is now the Amish Heritage Farm Museum. (Call before going. It was closed when we went, even though their website said it should be open.) This is a non-Amish business and you can take photos here. Even with it closed, you can still see some of it. Admission to the museum includes a horse drawn wagon tour through the Amish area.

Confusingly, there are two businesses called Amish welcome centers located almost next to each other on Highway 43. Tickets to the Amish Heritage Farm Museum are only available at the “Amish Heritage Welcome Center” (4001 Hwy 43). You can also shop and take a horse drawn wagon tour from “The Amish Welcome Center” (3943 Hwy 43), which is what we did since the other one was closed. The tours go out as people show up. We had just two of us for our tour and took a small, covered wagon. On a previous visit, as part of a large group, I rode in a much larger wagon. The tours include stopping at several of the farms and last about an hour and a half.

There are several one-room schoolhouses in the community. The children running around and playing outside their schoolhouses make a scene that looks like a 19^th-century painting (I wish I could have taken a photo). The teachers are young, unmarried girls who have completed 8^th grade (Amish education ends at 8^th grade). You can see “his and hers” outhouses beside the schools. The Amish hold church in their homes, so there are no church buildings.

Most families have many children (our tour guide said nine children on average, but some have up to twenty). When the parents get old they sell their farm to one of the children who then builds a new house (sometimes connected to the parents’ house) and the parents stay in their old house.

They don’t have cars, tractors, electricity, or running water. They don’t use pneumatic or hydraulic power in their shops, but I was surprised to see that they do use single shaft diesel engines to run shop equipment (such as in a furniture making shop).

You can find all sorts of items for sale, such as soaps, candles, wooden furniture, candy (including the best peanut brittle ever), quilts, leather goods, rugs, baskets, jams & jellies, pickled foods, and more. The prices are better at the homesteads than at the stores on the highway selling Amish goods. The Amish only take cash though. (There is an ATM inside the Amish Welcome Center.) The homesteads also have honor boxes for payment if no one is available. I bought this beautiful cutting board for less than half the price I've seen similar cutting boards elsewhere, and I got to meet the teenage boy who made it (he signs and dates them on the back). I also bought a biscuit cutter and rolling pin.

Stop in at Bob’s Café for lunch (between the two welcome centers). The food is great and the people are so nice. There are several restaurants and plenty of antique stores and markets along highway 43.

Another fun stop is Flowers Creamery, seven miles from the welcome centers. It is a small family-run business (not Amish). They make small batch cheeses (taste some samples) and bottled creamline milk in several flavors. They have a herd of Holsteins and a herd of Jerseys, and they make the cheese from a mixture of the milk from both. They have a nice shop within view of the cows, and they offer farm tours on Wednesdays (call ahead to be sure).