The Liberty Mule in Liberty, TN

On a bluff overlooking the highway in the small Tennessee town of Liberty, someone painted a mule over a century ago. Here is the story.

DeKalb County Courthouse - Smithville, TN

Every summer, the DeKalb County Courthouse is home to the nationally acclaimed Smithville's Fiddler's Jamboree. The courthouse was built in 1971 at a cost of $750,000.

The Liberty Mule (and the name L. Woodard)

The Liberty Mule, also known as the Allen Bluff Mule, has been a landmark, a mystery and a source of Civic Pride for the residents of Liberty, TN for over a century.

For the residents of the Tiny DeKalb County town, the mule had been there for as long as anyone could remember. For a long time, what nobody could remember is who put it there in the first place. On a large bluff near town many years ago someone scaled it several feet off the ground and painted the black mule, which included the word MULE above it. Even still, every so often, someone goes up there to repaint it, sometimes even changing the color, and nobody really knows who does that either. It's original color is black, the way it is today, but the previous color was red.

For a while, there was a story that someone had a pet mule die from falling off the cliff and this was a tribute. Another speculation was it was an advertisement for a mule trading company in town. Neither story really made sense. However, one story that worked is based on a name that's also up there: "L. Woodard." That would have been a local resident named Lavendar Woodard, and the people that knew him thought he was the kind of guy that would do such a thing. As it turns out, he may have repainted it, and he certainly added his name nearby but he wasn't the first. It was still a mystery.

As it turns out, the answer may have been hiding in plain sight. The first painter of the mule may have been Dr. Wayne T. Robinson who was 21 at the time it was painted in 1906 but moved to Dallas without telling anybody he painted it. Fast forward several decades to 1957, Dr. Robinson wrote a series of articles of area history in the local paper. In one of those articles he focused on a nearby cave but casually added that he climbed the bluff to paint out of coal tar the mule to resemble the then-popular comic strip character Maude the Mule. Apparently, nobody remembered this admission and it stayed a mystery for nearly another half century until 2006 when the local county historian made the discovery and then wrote this article in the same newspaper.

Today, highway US70 (as well as TN96, TN53 and TN26) passes right past this bluff and through the town of Liberty. About 10 years ago, the Tennessee Department of Transportation decided to widen the two lane highway to four lanes and the Liberty Mule was in danger of being dynamited for the project. The townspeople started a letter writing campaign which worked and the new lanes were shifted enough to save the landmark. Now, the Mule even has a website where you can buy a t-shirt.

Unknown Performer, Smithville Fiddler's Jamboree 2009

The Smithville Jamboree takes place every year near July 4th on Smithville's town square.

The Liberty Mule

The Liberty Mule, also known as the Allen Bluff Mule, has been a landmark, a mystery and a source of Civic Pride for the residents of Liberty, TN for over a century.

For the residents of the Tiny DeKalb County town, the mule had been there for as long as anyone could remember. For a long time, what nobody could remember is who put it there in the first place. On a large bluff near town many years ago someone scaled it several feet off the ground and painted the black mule, which included the word MULE above it. Even still, every so often, someone goes up there to repaint it, sometimes even changing the color, and nobody really knows who does that either. It's original color is black, the way it is today, but the previous color was red.

For a while, there was a story that someone had a pet mule die from falling off the cliff and this was a tribute. Another speculation was it was an advertisement for a mule trading company in town. Neither story really made sense. However, one story that worked is based on a name that's also up there: "L. Woodard." That would have been a local resident named Lavendar Woodard, and the people that knew him thought he was the kind of guy that would do such a thing. As it turns out, he may have repainted it, and he certainly added his name nearby but he wasn't the first. It was still a mystery.

As it turns out, the answer may have been hiding in plain sight. The first painter of the mule may have been Dr. Wayne T. Robinson who was 21 at the time it was painted in 1906 but moved to Dallas without telling anybody he painted it. Fast forward several decades to 1957, Dr. Robinson wrote a series of articles of area history in the local paper. In one of those articles he focused on a nearby cave but casually added that he climbed the bluff to paint out of coal tar the mule to resemble the then-popular comic strip character Maude the Mule. Apparently, nobody remembered this admission and it stayed a mystery for nearly another half century until 2006 when the local county historian made the discovery and then wrote this article in the same newspaper.

Today, highway US70 (as well as TN96, TN53 and TN26) passes right past this bluff and through the town of Liberty. About 10 years ago, the Tennessee Department of Transportation decided to widen the two lane highway to four lanes and the Liberty Mule was in danger of being dynamited for the project. The townspeople started a letter writing campaign which worked and the new lanes were shifted enough to save the landmark. Now, the Mule even has a website where you can buy a t-shirt.

Center Hill Lake from TN56 Scenic Overlook

Highway TN56 connects Smithville to Cookeville and crosses through the hills around Center Hill Lake. In DeKalb County, TN56 crosses the Lake at Hurricane Bridge, and about a mile north of there has this scenic overlook of the Lake and Caney Fork River.

Center Hill Dam

On the Caney Fork River. Built in 1949 and operated by the Army Corps of Engineers.

As explained on the plaque: "This is one of a series of dams in the Cumberland River Basin for flood control, power, navigation and water conservation.

Height - 240 ft.
Length - 2,160 ft.
Crest of Spillway - EL.646
Top of dam - El. 696
Resevoir capacity at max pool - 2,092,000 ac.ft.
Reservoir area at max. pool - 23,060 acres
Shore line - 415 miles
concrete - 960,000 Co.yds.
Earth Embankment - 2,600,00 cu.yds.

In January 2007, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers placed Center Hill Dam under a high risk for failure. Highway TN96 also crosses over the top of the dam.

Fuston's Antiques Barn

This is one of those barns I had to drive past a couple of times before I had a chance to remember to look out for it.

Fuston's used to be an Antique Shop 10 miles away in Smithville, and then later branched out to a 2nd store in Woodbury. Their other store had an advertising barn, also.

This barn is on highway US 70 barely to the west of the small town of Liberty and the TN96 intersection

Center Hill Dam

On the Caney Fork River. Built in 1949 and operated by the Army Corps of Engineers.

As explained on the plaque: "This is one of a series of dams in the Cumberland River Basin for flood control, power, navigation and water conservation.

Height - 240 ft.
Length - 2,160 ft.
Crest of Spillway - EL.646
Top of dam - El. 696
Resevoir capacity at max pool - 2,092,000 ac.ft.
Reservoir area at max. pool - 23,060 acres
Shore line - 415 miles
concrete - 960,000 Co.yds.
Earth Embankment - 2,600,00 cu.yds.

In January 2007, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers placed Center Hill Dam under a high risk for failure, although I don't hear about it as much as the Wolf Creek Dam in Kentucky, upstream Nashville from the Cumberland River. Highway TN96 also crosses over the top of the dam.

2 Similar churches

This church is the Salem Baptist Church in Liberty, TN along the old Main road, which is now bypassed by Highway US70. Apparently, this congregation dates back to 1809, and the building was built in 1927, a year before the other one opened up.

I thought it was cool to find a church building with this design and dome on top, and then 5 miles down the road, I saw another one with a similar design.



This church is the Prosperity Missionary Baptist Church in the corner of Wilson County, TN along highway 96 in the community of Prosperity, TN. Construction started on this building a year after the other one was finished.

Smithville Fiddler's Jamboree

One of Middle Tennessee's biggest festivals happens this weekend on Friday and Saturday, the Smithville Fiddler's Jamboree. This even takes place every year around Smithville's town square, around the DeKalb County Courthouse. A stage is set up on one side of the square, with plenty of booths selling fair food and other collectibles all around the rest of the heart of town.

If this is your kind of music, there is not a short supply of it. On the main stage you may have competitions going on, while elsewhere on the other sides of the square full groups or soloists practice their tunes or strum for the fun of it.

Sligo Bridge

It carries US70 over center hill lake. This bridge was made necessary by the formation of Center Hill Lake in the late 40's. Old highway 26 crossed this spot when it was just a river, and I have heard that the old span is still down there, below the water.

Picture taken from the Sligo Marina.