In the late 1930s, Chicago natives David and Florida Lasier traveled to the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains. They were enthralled by the majesty of the mountains and soon began searching for the perfect setting for their new home. David found his dream investment just four miles from Walland, Tennessee, nestled on a tranquil country road.

On March 21, 1940, David purchased 158 acres of land, which would soon become the setting for Blackberry Farm. One day, Florida snagged her silk stockings in a thicket of blackberry bushes, and the name Blackberry Farm was born. David and Florida would spend the next year building a nine-bedroom inn, a seven-car garage and a guest house for his sister, Ruth Lasier Harris, and her husband, Jim, who David hired as the proprietors of the inn. In the Spring of 1941, Jim and Ruth warmly welcomed their first guests to Blackberry Farm.