Thomas Jefferson Penn

Thomas Jefferson Penn (1875-1946) was a businessman and farmer, a combination that won him respect as a pioneer in the field of dairy husbandry.

In 1874, Jeff Penn's father, Frank Reid Penn left Penn's Store, Virginia, to gain access to a railroad. He settled in Reidsville, where he and brother Sarn Cabell Penn started the Penn Tobacco Company. As a result, JeffPenn grew up in Rockingham County, attended the University of Virginia and began his professional career as a sales representative for Penn Tobacco. During his 19 years with the farnily business, he worked out of San Francisco, California and Shanghai, China.

The year 1911 marked a turning point in Jeff Penn's life. Frank Reid Penn sold Penn Tobacco to the American Tobacco Company, and Jeff subsequently purchased several hundred acres of land in Rockingham County. He called the new tract Corn Jug Farm and, despite responsibilities in New York state where he was associated with a stock and bond f�rm, began outfitting toward a dairy husbandry business. Also in 1911, Jeff's younger sister, Mattie Irwin Penn, married Paul Schoellkopf, Betsy's younger brother. This union initiated the warm interconnection between families that would ultimately join Jeff and Betsy.

In 1915, Jeff Penn married Genevieve Schoellkopf Vom Berge, first cousin to Betsy Schoellkopf Penn. Jeff and Genevieve had two sons, neither of whom lived past childhood. Then during the flu epidemic of 1919, Genevieve died in childbirth. The daughter, Marie Lee, did not survive.

Throughout the next few years, Penn devoted considerable time, effort, and money to farrning. By 1922, he owned over 1,000 acres, and his Holstein herd averaging 1,300 pounds per animal, was becoming worthy of notice. Chinqua-Penn Plantation was well on its way toward becoming a premier demonstration farm.