Governor Lee and his wife Maria visited Lynchburg briefly last Friday as part of his America 250 tour. Beginning last July and continuing until July of this year, the governor is touring all 95 Tennessee counties in celebration of the country’s 250th birthday.

The governor has put special emphasis on Tennessee’s agricultural industry on his tour, stating, “One of Tennessee’s greatest contributions to America’s success is the strength of our agriculture industry, and I’m proud to honor our rich heritage and commitment to ensuring family farms are preserved for future generations by signing the Farmland Preservation Act.”

The act allows farmers to enter into a permanent conservation easement with the state to preserve the property in perpetuity while still owning and operating it. The act also created a grant process to support farmers. Three Moore County families have already taken advantage of the act.The governor met with county leaders, members of the Chamber of Commerce, Jack Daniel’s executives, students, and 4-H members. He praised the county, saying “Not many counties have been as important to the legacy of Tennessee as Moore County.”

There was an especially poignant moment during the visit. Governor Lee visited Moore County in 2019 to tour Lynchburg Elementary School. He was greeted the by four sixth grade students holding a poster created by Macy Sanders welcoming him to the school. At Friday’s visit three of those four students, Whitney Fanning, Gavin Wise, and Tyler Bateman, greeted the governor once again with a re-creation of the same poster. They are all seniors at Moore County High School now. Like his 2019 visit, Friday’s visit was short, less than an hour, as is typical for his America 250 events. It was not publicly announced. He had visited Bedford County prior to the Moore County, and headed to Linville when he left Lynchburg.