The Knoxville Fair (early in its association with the Tennessee Valley Authority) was in full swing in late September 1938. Back in those days, the awards for locally produced livestock were big news, and pages were dedicated to reporting on prized bulls, various draft breed stallions, mules, fancy feathered friends and “some” pigs.

On September 27, Farragut Goy Hewood Actor was named the junior champion among Guernsey dairy bulls. Don’t ask me to explain his name, registered names of animals of all sorts tend on the side of goofy. The bull’s call name is lost to history. The following day, Figaro Farceur was named (just as the previous year), Grand Champion Belgian stallion. Odds are favorable that Figaro was a son or grandson of the legendary Belgian stallion Farceur, Grand Champion of San Francisco World’s Fair in 1915. But that’s a rabbit hole for another day.

What Hewood and Figaro had in common was this: they were both raised and exhibited by the Wardrep Brothers’ Farragut Farms in Concord, also known as Farragut Dairy Farms. The farm was renowned for its Guernsey cattle and high bred draft horses, both Belgians and Percherons (which swept awards at the fair in 1937) and producing high quality milk.

Figaro Farceur, A.J. Wardrep’s champion Belgian stallion (Photo: KNS archives)

It’s a testament to familial fortitude that the family pressed on with exhibiting at the fair that year at all. The Wardreps were still dealing with the aftermath of an abject tragedy, because six months prior they had lost their patriarch in questionable circumstances that left headlines and photos splashed across the local newspapers.

A. J. Wardrep was found dead by several of his farm employees on the morning of March 22, lying in his front yard by the garden gate. According to the county coroner, his body had been there for hours. A 32-caliber pistol, short one bullet, was found near his feet. He died from a single shot to his right temple. The question on everyone’s mind was murder or suicide? There was no evidence to support the former, at least not if robbery was a motive. Nothing was missing was from the home and Wardrep’s diamond ring was still on his finger. But the latter seemed utterly out of the question.

Wardrep was a well known and very successful contractor, in his early 50s, and focusing his later years on his agricultural pursuits as well as running for Knox County Commission at the time of his death. The previous evening, he’d left the farm on Concord Road around 5:40 p.m. About an hour later, his wife left the farm, asking one of the farm workers to give her a ride into Knoxville, where she stayed the night at the Farragut Hotel.

By the time she returned home the following morning, a neighbor caught up with her as she was walking up the gravel driveway. He broke the news to her before she was greeted by reporters, photographers, and the Knox County Sheriff’s Office. She nearly fainted before making it into the house. It was reported she was put under a doctor’s care, who refused to allow reporters into the house to question her. And yes, they tried.

Though it wasn’t known what time Wardrep returned home the night before he died, a neighbor reported hearing a gunshot around 10:30 p.m. He and other neighbors noted that several lights remained on in the home all night. Dairy workers arrived around 2:30 AM on March 22, but they reported to the barn, not the house. They also noted the lights were on. It wasn’t until the sun came up that they could see Wardrep down in his front yard.

A coroner’s inquest ultimately came to the conclusion that Wardrep had indeed taken his own life, though no reason was every forthcoming. There was no known quarrel going on in the marriage nor a note left behind. But it was proven that the weapon involved did indeed belong to him. He was buried in Highland Memorial Cemetery.

Beth Kinnane writes a history feature for KnoxTNToday.com. It’s published each Tuesday and is one of our best-read features.

Sources: The Knoxville Journal and Knoxville News-Sentinel digital archives, East Tennessee History Center – McClung Digital Archives

Follow KnoxTNToday on Facebook and Instagram. Get all KnoxTNToday articles in one place with our Free Newsletter