The Harris Farm tells many stories. The land, purchased by the grandfather of Gail Harris’s late husband Jim, dates back to the late 1800’s. The property contains a spring fed pond, a cave, a former dairy farm, and an old tobacco barn.  It also holds another amazing feature – 600-million-year-old rocks dating back to the Cambrian period. “There’s more to the land than meets the eye,” Gail notes.

At one time, it totaled 1000 acres and used to be a dairy. Since 2015, Lynn Waters has leased the Harris Farm for production of corn, hay, soybeans and cattle. 80 acres are in ground crops; 20 acres in hay with 80 acres in pasture ground. He currently leases acreage for farming at 6 other Blount County locations. (Gail has said that Blount County land makes for good cropland!)

From Gail’s perspective, the preservation of land is like the preservation of freedom. “Humans are a part of life, and our lives depend on the land,” she stated. “When we indiscriminately develop land, without considering the long-term consequences, we are robbing from the future. We jeopardize the future of the existence of all life on earth.”

Today, the Harris Farm also serves as the home office for Foothills Land Conservancy. It houses our day-to-day operations while it also remains a working farm and is a testament to our mission. We are grateful for Gail’s vision, which protects this land from development – forever. “Since I inherited the farm from my late husband and he from his parents, I never did think of the farm as my property, only that I have been given stewardship of it. The donation of this land to FLC is the best way I can think of to honor that stewardship.”