In the early 1900's when T.P. ("Tom") and Alice McCulley moved his family to Hamilton County farm life was not only a way to make a living, it was a way of surviving. At that time over 90% of the nations population lived and worked full-time on the farm. The main goal was to make enough to feed your family and hopefully have a little extra to sell in town. Tom and his wife Alice had two sons when they first moved here and would go on to have four more. (Leonard, Dalton, Lawton, Luther, Earnest, T.C.). Alice died when their youngest son T.C. was only 6 months old. Tom's mother Elizabeth moved in to help out with the small children for a while so Tom and the older boys could keep the farm going. Her husband, William Pierce McCulley had died when Tom was only 5yrs. old. He had served with the Fl. 3rd Infantry ,Co. K, C.S.A. and was wounded during the battle of Perryville, Kentucky during the War Between the States. She was drawing a small window's pension of $120 a year. A few years later Tom married Mattie Gill and they would also have a son, Bobby Ray, who died as an infant.

Tom and his sons worked a small herd of woods cattle, raised hogs and planted a variety of crops including cotton, tobacco, corn, peanuts, sweet potatoes and sugar cane. Timberland was leased out to Hamilton Turpentine. There was a nearby settlement of turpentine workers where Tom sold various products from the farm on weekends including smoked meats, cane syrup and produce. He also sold dressed beef and pork to local merchants. Tom had several teams of mules and even as tractors started to become common, he refused to let go of the old ways.

As World War II raged on in Europe and the Pacific, three of the McCulley boys left the farm to serve their country. Dalton and Lawton joined the army and were part of the occupation forces in Europe. Luther joined the navy and went on to receive 10 service stars for combat against the Japanese in the Pacific.

Back on the farm Tom's health was getting worse due to a recent stroke. He would sit by the radio and listen for bulletins about the war. His sons all returned home safely after the war was over. Earnest served in the army after the war and T.C. served in the navy during the Korean War. Tom passed away in 1954 and is buried with his first wife and mother at Antioch Cemetery in Hamilton County.

After 4 years in the Navy, T.C.(Buck) came back to Hamilton County and home to the farm. Two of the brothers, Leonard and Lawton had farms close by and Ernest had a farm on the Madison County side of the Withlacoochee, near the old Blue Springs Farm where their father and mother had began the family. Ernest would eventually sale his farm and move to Immokalee, Fl. where he ran a successful pool hall. Dalton moved to Jacksonsville, Fl. and opened a barber's shop while Luther went to New Orleans, Louisianna and operated a construction company.

T.C. would go on to build six poultry houses near the old home place in 1973. After 30 yrs. of raising poultry, three of the old barns have been converted to indoor stall barns and Barn 4 has been upgraded to a serving and dining hall with a stage and sawdust dance floor.Standing amongst the modern farm buildings, tractors and equipment at McCulley Farms are many reminders of days long since turned in the pages of time. The Wells Log Cabin rest in a planted pine forest on a hilltop where Alexander and Sarah Wells reared a family of 11 children between 1870-1920, a log corn crib built by their grandson Kirby Wells was moved there in 2000. The old McCulley Farmhouse,built around 1900, a log mule stable and pack-house, along with a corn crib-stable all still stand as testament to a much simpler time. Some of these buildings still have practical uses today. The Wells Cemetery is the final resting place of many of the earliest settlers in this area.

Visit all these remnants of the past during the Withlacoochee Trail Ride held each Spring and Fall at McCulley Farms. This is the latest addition to McCulley Farms. Started in 1999 the trail ride runs through a combination of private and state properties and gives horse riders a chance to experience a little piece of Florida's history and scenic beauty.