Law Office

Law Office. . , Landon Carter Haynes became known as the "silver-tongue orator" for his political speeches, but practicing law was his main passion. After graduating from Washington College in 1838, Haynes began studying law under Thomas A. R. Nelson and was admitted to the bar in 1840. The first case he tried in the court of Jonesborough became known as the "Case of the Stolen Ham." His client was acquitted of the charge of theft of a ham from a smokehouse due to the lack of any witnesses. He would go on to be the legal counsel for defendants on trial for murder and help settle legal cases concerning land and debt., Haynes also became a newspaper editor, politician, farmer, and Methodist minister during the 1840s and 1850s, but returned to law when he built this office sometime in the mid to late 1850s. His office was built in the Greek Revival style to resemble his home and became the first free standing law office of what is now Johnson City. He did not enjoy his new office for long before the Civil War ushered him onto the national stage when he was selected to represent Tennessee in the Confederate Senate. Haynes lost his property at the end of the war and moved to Memphis, Tennessee for the remainder of his life. While there he began practicing law at the offices of Haynes, Heath, Lewis, and Lee., Samuel and Lawson Simerly used the building for storage during the 1900s. They also sold eggs out of the former Haynes office. A large donation from Mr. and Mrs. Allen Harris was given to the Tennessee Historical Commission and the Tipton-Haynes Historical Association in 1966 to restore the structure., [Captions:] , The letterhead for the law offices of Haynes Heath, Lewis and Lee in Memphis Tennessee., This 1969 photograph shows the restored law office., This 1969 photograph shows Mr. and Mrs. Allen Harris dedicated the restored law office. Mr. Harris is seated to the left while Mrs. Harris is holding her father's Civil War hat.