You can’t drive in or out of Bell Buckle right now without seeing the beautiful daffodils! The town and its roadsides are absolutely bursting with blooms. A sure sign that spring is just around the corner. These little peeks of gold are so special ‘round these parts that they have their own festival!
Daffodil Day began around 1980 as a way to celebrate the start of spring and all the purty little daffodils. But you may or may not know that the history of daffodil appreciation goes back to the mid 1940s.
W. R. Webb Jr., son of the founder of Webb School, was fond of flowers – especially daffodils. He and his wife planted a massive garden near his home. Like a whole acre big! In 1945 they began the project of transplanting daffodils from their garden along the five miles headed in and out of Bell Buckle. In 1937, the road once known as Bell Buckle Lane, now Highway 82, was named “Sawney Webb Memorial Highway” honoring Webb Sr. Perhaps the blooms were also in honor of him.
A janitor who worked at Webb School at the time was especially instrumental in the project. Eugene Brady Sr. recalled working long days transplanting the bulbs. They planted every August and dug them up for drying before replanting again the next year. They did this every year from 1945 until 1953. They started on the Murfreesboro Highway side and worked toward Bell Buckle. Webb boys may also have helped in the project as Webb Jr. and Sr. sometimes used projects like this as “natural consequences” as a means of discipline.
A new, old appreciation for those yellow trumpet-shaped beauties and for the loving work that went into planting each one on the way to our little town.
This year’s Daffodil Day is Saturday, March 16th.
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