McCoy Farm & Gardens Newsletter

Volume Nine: Issue Five xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx May 2024

Don't Miss the Spring Migratory Bird Walk on Saturday, May 4 at 8 AM

The eighth annual Memorial Day celebration picnic will be on Monday, May 27, from 11am until 3pm. Members of the Signal Mountain Lions Club will be cooking hamburgers and hot dogs for sale. Pizza, funnel cakes, cotton candy, and kettle corn will also be available for purchase. The Walden’s Ridge Guild is coordinating the event with McCoy’s Community Events Co-Chairs Mary Catherine O’Kelley and Annette Wildman. 

We are very grateful to all the Signal Mountain businesses who are sponsoring the picnic. Their generosity allows us to offer free admission. But, be prepared to shop and support our local arts and crafts vendors! The Walden’s Ridge Guild offers Mountain Mementos. They also have Signal Mountain maps by Jean Catino, daughter of Emma Bell Miles, and the book Walden’s Ridge: The Early Years, a history of the ridge and the Bachman and McCoy families. 

Our McCoy Farm & Garden branded merchandise will be for sale, including a new t-shirt design, along with birdhouses built by Terry Knox, and reproduction artwork by Emma Bell Miles. Beautiful antique china and stemware will be sold in the Bachman McCoy House. Proceeds from these items go to supporting the maintenance and improvements you see on the grounds. 

Gates open at 11:00. The day’s events will kick off at 11:30 with a celebration honoring our military with the presentation of the flag by Boy Scout Troop 116. Events will continue with Betty Julian and Thrasher Elementary students leading the national anthem, Rev. David Graybeal from Signal Crest United Methodist giving the invocation, and Walden Mayor Lee Davis extending a welcome to all. Alix Parks of Happinest Wildlife Rehabilitators will continue a popular tradition of releasing a beautiful bird of prey.

Throughout the day, Walden’s Ridge Civic League will offer a mountain history exhibit, blacksmiths will offer demonstrations, and the cakewalk will be back by popular demand. Save Our Mountain Hemlocks will be on hand to answer any questions about the woolly adelgid insect and this important conservation effort. The orchard area will be filled with toys and games for children to play with under adult supervision. 

Pedestrians may enter through the Anderson Pike or Taft Highway gates. Vehicles should drive in through the Taft Highway Entrance. Parking is available in the Horse Ring gravel lot and the Puppy Patch lot. If the Glade along Anderson Pike is dry enough for parking, attendants will be there to direct drivers. St. Augustine Catholic Church graciously shares their parking lot with us on Memorial Day. Please be courteous and walk to the picnic along the paved lanes at St. Augustine, not across the lawns. Well-behaved dogs on leashes are welcome, but please no alcoholic beverages and no bicycles. We are looking forward to spending the day with you and your family! 

McCoy Endowment with the

Community Foundation of Chattanooga

McCoy Farm & Gardens is very pleased to announce an endowment with the Community Foundation of Chattanooga. Executive Director Melissa Nimon says, "While we have achieved tremendous success and momentum through volunteer support along with foundation and private donations, our board of directors is planning for the long-term advancement of the organization by establishing an endowment. These funds will serve future needs and ensure the sustainability of the 38-acre greenspace and historic homeplace.” Linda Collins says, “I felt it was important to give because my hope is that MFG will continue for the enjoyment and enrichment of generations to come.” 

Anne Davis, left, painted McCoy’s beloved Littleleaf Linden for Linda Collins, right, in honor of the first donation made to McCoy’s endowment. 

Emma Bell Miles Art Exhibit and Walking Tour

Sunday, April 14 was a beautiful, cool spring day, when visitors were able to come out and view the artwork of Emma Bell Miles as well as to view her homesite.

There were approximately 130 people in attendance. Special guests were Kay Baker Gaston, her daughters Healan Gaston and Josephine Larson, and her grandson, Joseph Jewett. Kay Gaston is the biographer of Emma Bell Miles whose work also includes contributions to the Tennessee Encyclopedia.

In September 2022, McCoy Farm and Gardens was gifted 18 Emma Bell Miles pieces by Joe and Kay Gaston. These pieces as well as many other works from area private collections were on display.  

Visitors were also led on a tour of Emma Bell Miles's old homesite by Anne Hayes Pearce and Brenda Neal starting from the Bachman McCoy House. Recently Andy Jones did a significant clean up at the old homesite on the property. 

Many thanks to Anne Davis and Margha Davis for facilitating this special event.

Volunteer Spotlight

Mickey Robbins counts rings on a tree that fell at McCoy. The rings indicate the tree was growing on the property before the Bachmans arrived in 1911.

Frank Mix Robbins, III, is known by his nickname “Mickey.” As a member of one of Chattanooga’s “old” families, the grandson of an early mayor of Signal Mountain and of founders of the Little Brown Church, one of four civic-minded brothers, an Eagle Scout, and husband of Eloise Darr Robbins, he has lived his life supporting our community. Retirement from a long career as an investment advisor with Patten & Patten has only increased his volunteer time, including his service as President of McCoy Farm & Gardens Board of Directors. His vision and forward-thinking leadership are admired by all. 

Mickey, what prompted you to continue serving on the board for 9 years, since its inception? 

When I first began pulling vines and weeds next to the McCoy front drive in the spring 2015, it became apparent that this was going to be a major volunteer effort. And that has proved to be the case. 

Through nine years of progress, scores of us, including regular volunteers, docents, gardeners, committee workers, board members, and spontaneous helpers, have pitched in and devoted our skills to make McCoy Farm & Gardens a great mountain asset. 

Our beloved 38 acres has accordingly evolved into a smorgasbord of family enjoyment, gardening, nature walks, art and history appreciation, weddings, and special events as well as school, church, and scout outings — more than the Bachmans and McCoys would ever have dreamed. 

We owe a great debt of gratitude also to the mountain citizens and those beyond for their support. 

Meanwhile, we volunteers solicit foundation support; raise money for annual and endowment funds; and sell Emma Bell Miles prints, postcards, birdhouses, fine china, and honey to supplement revenue from weddings and special events. The partnership of our volunteers and the Town of Walden bodes well for the future of this grand asset. Who wouldn’t want to remain a part of the McCoy Farm & Gardens team? 

Important Dates Coming Up

• Join us on Saturday, May 4, at 8am for the Spring Migratory Bird Walk led by Kevin Calhoon, the Assistant Curator of Forests at the Tennessee Aquarium. Bring your binoculars and meet at the Welcome Station at the parking lot.
• There will be NO OPEN HOUSE in May due to Mother's Day. Make sure to visit the 2nd Sunday in June!

Contact McCoy Farm & Gardens

at melissa@mccoywalden.org

to learn more about renting space at McCoy for your next event.

Or mail your check to McCoy Farm & Gardens, P.O. Box 443, Signal Mountain, TN 37377

McCoy Farm & Gardens covers 38 acres and features the Bachman-McCoy home, gardens, and several outbuildings including the Pavilion, Carriage House, Barn, and Blacksmith Workshop. The perimeter walking trail is 1.1 miles.