Bicentennial Farm Profile – Smiley Farm

The farm today. Today, the family raises beef cattle, corn, soybeans, wheat, tobacco, and hay on their 600-acre farm. Some of the original farm is part of the Tranquility Wildlife Area.  

The farm in 1803. Alexander Smiley came left England to pursue his freedom in the Americas. He settled in Ohio, which at the time was part of Virginia, because he was deeded the land by King George III of England. He later bequeathed the farm to his son, James, and returned to England. The house that the Smileys live in today was built in 1813 out of rock from the farm that was hauled with a four-horse team and a wagon. Over the years, the farm was home to a sorghum cane mill, a maple sugar tap, a sawmill, a stone mill for grinding corn and wheat flour, a one-room schoolhouse, and a variety of livestock and crops, including tobacco. 

Notable ancestors and accomplishments. The farm was deeded to Alexander Smiley from King George III of England. It was part of Rock Bridge County Virginia at the time Englanders were traveling over the Atlantic to find freedom. 

“Quotable quote.” “We want to pass (the farm) on through the generations if at all possible and with this farm being against the Tranquility Wildlife Refuge makes it very important to me to see that my son and future generations have a place they can call ‘home.’” – John Smiley on the value of his farmland.