How old are the buildings on the site, and who lived in them?
— The wide range of construction dates of the buildings still standing make this a most unique historic site. An early dogtrot cabin (circa 1818 to 1820) represents the period of first white settlement on the property, having been constructed during the time that the John Hickman family owned the property in partnership with Benjamin Sherrod. The Sherrods having purchased Hickman’s share during the 1820’s, a number of other log structures were constructed. The log barn, icehouse, and Sherrod home are thought to have been constructed during the 1830’s. The wife of the grandson of the elder Benjamin Sherrod, Daniella Jones Sherrod, inherited the property upon the death of her husband, young Ben Sherrod (1861). Joseph Wheeler met the widow Daniella following his famed “Ride ‘Round Rosecrans.” The story is, while on a mission to disrupt Federal supply lines in middle Tennessee, General Wheeler (commanding a force of Confederate cavalry) found himself at her father’s home after having just
