The History of Hayes House

Now associated with the Hayes family, the house was originally built in 1899 by Joshua Bates Lillie. He was the founder of the Lillie Mill Company (also known as the Franklin Flouring Mill), a leading flour manufacturer in the South. Established in 1868, the mill was the first major industry in Franklin after the Civil War and helped revive the devastated local economy. The Lillie Mill Company was the largest commercial venture in Williamson County for many years, and its “Franklin Lady” flour was a top-selling brand across the nation. On February 13, 1889, long before the second mill burned, Joshua Bates Lillie married his third wife, Mary Farmer Lillie. She and her brother William H. Farmer owned a farm along Franklin Road. When fire destroyed the main home on the Farmers’ property, Joshua built a new house to replace it. On October 5, 1899, an article in the Williamson County News stated construction was underway. This is the residence that would later be known as the Hayes House. This house was the last property commissioned by Lillie before his death in 1908.

In the early 1930s, brothers Wirt and Alex Harlin purchased farmland and began moving into nearby homes off of Franklin Road. The Harlins’ earnings with the Red Kap clothing company allowed them to expand this small-scale farm to breed a relatively new type of gaited horse, the Tennessee Walking Horse. After their initial success, the brothers expanded their operation and purchased adjacent land and real estate. In 1933, they acquired the property that is today known as Harlinsdale, including this Victorian farmhouse that would become the beating heart of the farm.

 Arrival of the Hayes Family

With their growing business, the brothers petitioned their 25-year-old nephew Harlin Hayes to relocate from Gamaliel, Kentucky to Franklin, Tennessee to oversee horse breeding and training on their new farm. With this job opportunity, Wirt and Alex Harlin also offered the house as a residence for their nephew and his family. Harlin Hayes accepted, and moved into a smaller worker residence on the property. After some renovations were made to the Hayes house, he moved into the residence with his wife Maurie and two-year-old daughter Mary Etta in 1936. Four years later, Harlin and Maurie welcomed their second child, James “Jim” Harlin Hayes, who was born in the house in February 1940. As Harlinsdale expanded over the years, the Hayes House remained relatively unchanged, keeping watch over the farm as workers came and went, family members were born and died, and while generations of Tennessee Walking Horses roamed the surrounding barns and pastures.

 Feeding the Farm

The kitchen at the Hayes House has been restored to the way it appeared during the 1950s, a period when Harlinsdale Farm and the foals of Midnight Sun were in high demand. Originally outfitted with a wood stove, the kitchen was updated with new appliances in the 1950s. In the early days of the farm, the kitchen not only served the Hayes family but also Harlinsdale employees. Everyone was served the same lunchtime meal regardless of position or role on the farm. Lunch at Harlinsdale was usually simple Southern fare that could be prepared quickly and at relatively low cost in order to feed the entire staff. When asked about her mother, Mary Etta said, “She was a marvelous cook. She never used a recipe in her life.”

Father of Franklin Radio

Later hailed as the “Father of Franklin Radio,” Jim Hayes earned his general class amateur radio license when he was 16 years old. Surrounded by radio equipment, his first broadcasts took place in his bedroom from amateur radio station KFKJC where he was able to reach 44 states and 30 countries. On clear nights, Jim would sneak out of the house and climb the roofs of nearby buildings to get a stronger radio signal. In 1957, Jim began working part-time for local station AM WAGG emceeing a gospel radio show on Sundays. In a 1958 Nashville Banner profile, Jim commented on his home at Harlinsdale and hopes for his future, noting, “ I have had wonderful opportunities here...and I’m sure looking forward to my college work and the future. In 1963, Jim married Franklin High School classmate Judy Grigsby, and the two alter graduated from David Lipscomb College. Though Jim earned a bachelor’s degree in chemistry, he was drawn back to Franklin and chose to pursue his passion for radio. Jim established multiple radio stations in Middle Tennessee. Jim and Judy also started an engineering consulting company, Broadcast Associates, with partners Bob Sewell, Revis Hobbs, Dan Rogers, and Frank Beasley.

Riding The Waves Home

When his father died in 1980, Jim Hayes used his broadcasting experience to take over the role of auctioneer during the Harlinsdale horse and livestock sales. Jim’s career in radio came full circle again when festival partners and community organizers asked Harlinsdale to host the inaugural Pilgrimage Music and Arts Festival in 2015. One of the festival’s main sponsors was Jim’s old radio station WIZO, now broadcasting as Lightning 100.01 FM. Jim passed away in 2019, and his love of broadcasting and commitment to his family and community are remembered both on this site and by all the people he reached through his amateur and professional broadcasts.

 Mary Etta Hayes, Homemaker

As a child, Mary Etta did not share her father’s enthusiasm for Tennessee Walking Horses, but with the promise of a new dress, she happily helped with competitions, auctions, and events hosted at Harlinsdale.

In 1951, Mary Etta graduated from Franklin High School and moved to Knoxville to study home economics at the University of Tennessee. She attended many conferences and speaking engagements. The same year, a newspaper reported that Mary Etta was one of 200 Future Homemakers of America members attending a conference at Middle Tennessee State College. After she finished school, Mary Etta helped redesign the farmhouse kitchen to a modern style for her mother.

Mary Etta later took a job in Alabama with the Huntsville Electric Service where she met New York transplant, Victor R. Neiland. The two married in March 1959 and had three children.

Old House, Fresh Paint

In the mid-1990s, the Hayes House found new life as an art studio. Barbara Harlin, wife of Bill Harlin, was an accomplished artist and member of the local JGP Artists, named for their teacher Juanita Greene Parks. From 1945-1974, Parks served as the art director of Nashville’s Watkins Institute. When the JGP Artists needed a new studio, Barbara suggested the Hayes House. The group found inspiration at Harlinsdale for the next 19 years. Artists filled vacant rooms with pastels, watercolors, and drawings that depicted horses, views of the farm, and still lifes. During their annual “Fine Art in the Barn,” JGP Artists shared their work with the community and donated a portion of the proceeds to charity. The group relocated when the City of Franklin purchased the farm in 2004, but the JGP Artists continue to call Franklin home. This room honors the history of the Hayes House as an art studio.

 Pre-Renovation

In 2005, the Harlins sold their farm to the City of Franklin to be used as a passive park. Two years later, the city opened the 200-acre property to the public. While the rest of Harlinsdale Farm was transformed into a park, the Hayes House remained vacant and mostly untouched. In 2012, the City of Franklin and the State Historic Commission funded repairs to the roof, gutters, and porch, but no additional funding was available to restore the home beyond preventing further decline.

During Renovation

Every step of this project has been guided by a deep respect for the Hayes House’s history and a commitment to sharing that legacy with the community. The Friends envision the home’s rooms as storytellers, capturing more than a century of history. To bring this vision to life, they’ve embraced a thoughtful and imaginative restoration strategy. While the aim is to restore the structure to its nineteenth-century roots, the interior will reflect multiple eras.

Post Renovation

The house tells the story of Harlinsdale’s rich past, from its roots in the early 20th century to its prominence as the birthplace of the Tennessee Walking Horse legend, Midnight Sun. Lovingly restored with era-appropriate details, the Hayes House now features original wood floors, carefully sourced wallpaper, and a one-of-a-kind 1950s kitchen floor, recreated from vintage linoleum uncovered during renovation.

“For over 100 years the Hayes House has been a special part of Franklin’s agricultural history, and now it has been preserved so that our community can come and learn about this historic horse farm at the Park at Harlinsdale Farm,” says Dr. Monty McInturff, founding Board Member at Friends of Franklin Parks and Harlinsdale Committee Chair.

In addition to its role as an education museum, the Hayes House and adjacent event lawn will also serve as a venue for community events, arts festivals, and local fundraisers. Inside, the home will host rotating art exhibits featuring local artists and offer programming that dives into the people and horses that helped shape Harlinsdale’s legacy.