After the Civil War, residents of the remote parts of Bedford, Franklin, Lincoln counties petitioned the state legislature for the creation of a new county. On December 14, 1871 Moore County was formed. To support their demand for a new county, the rural petitioners pointed to the distances to the county seats and described the treacherous road system that made travel difficult, and very often impossible. They argued that the distances and hazardous road conditions made legal protection offered by the courts and grand juries inaccessible to rural residents.
The rolling hills and plentiful springs attracted the pioneers from many states, but especially from North Carolina. Some families after settling in these southern Tennessee counties migrated south to Alabama. With a total area of only 129 square miles, Moore County is the second smallest county in the state. Set in the heart of agrarian Middle Tennessee, Moore County contains a diverse landscape, with nearly one half of the county lying along the Highland Rim and most of the remaining area part of the Central Basin. The Elk and Mulberry Rivers create fertile, heavily timbered ridges and farmland that contribute to the agricultural production as well as the lucrative whiskey industry that remains an integral part of the county’s heritage.
