Today we’d like to introduce you to Jason Tarwater.
Hi Jason, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for sharing your story with us – to start, maybe you can share some of your backstories with our readers.
When my grandfather passed away in 2016, my wife and I inherited the family farm. This included our old family homeplace which was my childhood home. When we acquired it, we decided to restore it to the rustic log cabin that it once was. I was still working as a Deputy U.S. Marshal, so the work was done whenever I could get a spare minute. The horse barn, shed and smokehouse showed their age and needed repair. I wanted to replace the rotten and weathered boards with oak like my great-grandfather used when they built them. When I priced the lumber, I quickly realized that it would be expensive. After researching sawmills and talking to I decided to buy a mobile sawmill to cut the lumber I needed from timber on the farm. The plan was to sell the sawmill when I had completed the work I needed. Or… that was the plan.
In 2017, I bought a used sawmill from a farmer in Virginia who had done exactly what I was planning to do. When I got the mill home, I put it on the only flat ground that I had which just happened to be right beside Chapman Highway. I started getting hands-on experience with the mill, learning what to look for in “saw logs,” the best way to saw them, and of course, making mistakes. I’ve heard the best-learned lessons are the ones that hurt and cost you money. It wasn’t long before folks started stopping by asking if they could buy lumber or if I would saw their logs into lumber. Some even just stopped by to watch. I retired from law enforcement last year and started sawing and farming full-time. Since then, we have built a “sawmill shed,” added a kiln, partnered with a local tree service, bought a dedicated “slab” mill, and had to move to a different area of the farm for more room. The expansion continued with our son who started a firewood business using the logs that weren’t saw quality logs. We have been blessed.
Growing and processing sweet sorghum syrup, or molasses as it’s commonly referred to, is another integral part of our farm. It’s a family tradition that’s been here on Tarwater Stretch since the 1850s. When the Heartland Series featured the family on an episode titled ‘Makin’ Lasses,’ my grandfather commented during the interview that he didn’t know if anyone would keep the family tradition going after he and cousin Charlie passed on. At the ripe age of 8 years old, I promised him when that aired that I would keep it going. The first batch of sorghum syrup that we made was in 2018 and I wish Granddad had been there to see it. Thankfully, cousin Charlie was there to guide us and see the tradition continue. Charlie just went to his heavenly home last month, so it’s just us youngsters now.
We all face challenges, but would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Nothing’s easy, and there are always rough patches in anything you do. We’ve had our growing pains, but we can’t complain. We’ve been blessed more than we deserve.
Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
We have a sawmill, kiln drying, firewood, and sorghum business. We custom saw to order dimensional lumber, beams, slabs, mantles, cookies, and have the ability to kiln dry when needed. We have saw quality logs available or the can saw customer’s logs. We also kiln dry lumber for other sawmills and woodworking businesses. We produce green, seasoned, and kiln-dried firewood, which available in camping bundles, ricks, and cords. We’ve built and continue to build a strong network in the lumber and woodworking business. If we don’t have what the customer is looking for at that time, we point them in the right direction to meet their needs. We’ve learned that here’s enough business out there for all of us.
What characteristic of yours would you give the most credit to if you had to?
One of our favorite sayings goes, opportunity and success look like hard work and it usually wears overalls covered in sawdust around here.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tarwaterfarm
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TarwaterFarmAndMills/
