It was an overcast day in September with a mild temperature, and summer had seemed to be lingering. Amanda and I were off together for once and we couldn't let all the recent rain keep us down! We had to sleep in, as we had been working like crazy, plus, the gloomy weather is perfect for TV and researching! Once we awoke, we decided to take a tip from a viewer, about the location of an old farmhouse with slave quarters, right up my alley. We headed out to this farmhouse with barn, slave quarters, and what could be an old blacksmith's shop. While working on our plan, we made quick note that we were only blocks from the Police station. Really, my worry was about trail cameras, snapping pics of us based motion sensor. Once we got out there, we took the long driveway down that split from a modern neighborhood. We followed it back and arrived on the left side of the Farmhouse. We pulled around back and on our left were three buildings buried in the Kudzu. For those of you who haven't battled with Kudzu, it's an invasive plant that can swallow buildings whole. Finally looking North, sits a huge barn that seems to have been through hell. Since it was a windy day, the doors on the building were swinging open and closed. I didn't want to put myself in the line of sight of anyone in the nearby neighborhood. I'm sure this isn't some secret, I am sure many people have been through this place partying, smoking pot or having a quick session on the old mattress. Gross... but you know it's true. We headed into the house from the side porch, and there were multiple doorways to enter through. The place smelled of urine to the max, but the flea level was low in this one. However, the most irritating part of the day was our technical foul ups inside this place. No camera in our possession wanted to take clear shots. They all seemed to have issues for Amanda and I. I've included those blurry shots in the slideshow as well. I have read many accounts from locals that people have come here and photograph the property as well, and they see a gentleman appear in the photographs of the main stairwell of the home. While reading some local blogs, one woman replied to people saying, "to be careful, the energies here are very strong". The home was a Gothic Revival structure with winding hardwood staircases, ornate Victorian wallpaper, and haint blue porch ceilings. It was definitely a gem in it's day. It makes you wonder what happened to the family who lived here before. How it could get lost in history, or to family members who would rather see it leveled and turned into an R.V. park for profit. It is places like this that inspire me to keep going. To keep uncovering the forgotten, the deteriorated, and the lost. To remember that these places existed, that these people existed. Due to the "issues we had with technology" we will call it, we did not get all the photographs we would have liked, I wish I would have shot the slave house, and done some evp work. We felt like we were trespassing here, even though there were no visible "no trespassing signs". We technically weren't doing anything harmful and it was pretty obvious what we are doing with the gear. I went out to check on the surrounding area and our vehicle, and to my surprise a young cow had escaped from out of the fenced in area and was acting like he wanted to play. He taunted me playfully less than twenty feet from my Ford truck. I didn't want to be responsible for this herd coming through where ever little genius cow got out from, so we scooted out of here! I hollar'd at Panda to hit the high road and we took off. Do you know anything about the history of this home? Was it a dairy farm originally? We will continue to dig and find out what happened to it, and why it has been left to deteriorate. UPDATE: People often ask how I know so much, well the short of it is that it is because I research it. I decided to scour the property appraisers website and found the parcel. On the tiny listing with almost no information, it says that it is located in the Plyley Subdivision, and that it is currently owned by Scarlett Farms LLC. After this, I searched for any connection to a Plyley in the New Market area. This brought me to a document from a 1911 parcel document incorporating the town of New Market, Tennessee. This document discussed the property line of C. M. Plyley. It is here how I was led to the grave of Charles Montgomery Plyley in the Old Gray Cemetery here in Knoxville, not far from where I live. He was born in 1868 and passed away in in 1947. I was able to uncover the following: PLYLEY, Charles Montgomery, farmer and trader; born in Ross Co., O., March 2, 1868; Scotch-Irish descent; son of Thomas Jefferson and Jennie (Montgomery) PLYLEY; father farmer and tanner; paternal grandparents William and Mary (McConnell) PLYLEY; maternal grandparents James and Mary (Edmiston) MONTGOMERY; educated in public schools of Ross Co., O., and graduated from high school; entered farming in early life; married Jennie SCHORNHOLTZ, Feb. 27, 1900; member R.A. Masons, and Past Master of same, member of Methodist church and steward in same; engaged in farming and stock raising, and largely interested in Knoxville, Tenn., city property. Source: Who’s Who in Tennessee: A Biographical Reference Book of Notable Tennesseans of To-Day. Memphis: Paul & Douglas Co, 1911. It says on the Facebook Page of Scarlett Farms, that their grandad purchased the home in the late 1940's and moved their families barn to this location after the flooding of the dam in the 1960's. I think that Old Plyley may be the one still lingering in the halls of this victorian home. I hope he is happy that his land is still being used as a dairy farm the way it has for hundreds of years.
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