
Where Tradition Meets Today
We look forward to hosting you at Pinefields so that you can experience the unique history of the land, the pristine habitat of the bobwhite quail woods, and the warm hospitality of six generations of the Cannon family.


Early 1900s
In the early 1900's, Joseph G. Cannon (1863 - 1920), Charles H. Cannon, Sr (1890 - 1961), and Thomas W. Tinsley (1860 - 1942, father-in-law to C.H. Cannon, Sr.) departed the cities of Stilesboro and Cartersville in Bartow County, Georgia and headed south looking for virgin timber land. At the time, the area in which Colquitt County was located was called the Pine Barrens.
In 1912, they purchased about 500 acres for $30.00 per acre in what is now the eastern part of Colquitt County near Pineboro. Their family business - the Chas. H. Cannon Company - transitioned from a retail business into a farming and timber operation, one that continues in existence today. Over the next several decades, members of the Cannon family would make a living farming the good earth with crops, livestock, and timber.


1940s
A 1940s era article in The Moultrie Observer states:
"Mr. Cannon, Sr. has approximately 1,000 acres of land in cultivation and pastures. He normally plants about 100 acres of cotton, 250 acres of corn, and 28 acres of tobacco. Some 50 or so hogs may be seen rooting about in specified areas, as well as around 50 head of cattle and a few chickens for home use. Other feed crops are a usual sight during the proper seasons on the Cannon farm. A passerby also is attracted to the 20-acre pecan grove near his home."
Not much has changed since this article was published over 80 years ago!


1950s-70s
Charles H. "Papa Charlie" Cannon, Jr (1914 - 1983) continued the tradition of farming on the family land, as well as growing and managing timber. In 1957, Papa Charlie began construction of what is now the Pinefields farm house, where four generations of the Cannon family have now been born and raised.
The home site was located at the top of a hill surrounded by old growth longleaf pine trees and what seemed like fields of pine trees in every direction; hence the name Pinefields.



1980s & 90s
In 1983, when Papa Charlie and his wife Martha passed away, Charles H. "Charlie" Cannon, III (1948 - 2002) began operating the Pinefields farm house as a quail hunting plantation home during the fall and winter months when he wasn't farming cotton and peanuts and raising cattle.
The "Lodge," as it was called, hosted hundreds of quail hunters from all over the world during a 15-year period from 1983 until 1998. In the late 90's, Charlie and his wife Carol Ann retired from farming and quail hunting and moved their family back into the Pinefields farmhouse to enjoy the beautiful scenery and the wild bobwhite quail who make their presence known still today with their tell-tale whistle.


Early 2000s
From 2002 to 2011, after Charlie's untimely passing from an automobile accident, the management of the farm and timberland fell to a longtime employee of Pinefields Plantation: Ray Gene Hall (1928 - 2011).
Ray Gene had served nearly two decades as the mule drawn hunting wagon driver for the many quail hunting guests who had visited Pinefields during the 80s and 90s. Ray Gene guided a multitude of celebrity guests over his tenure and was featured in several newspaper articles and books about South Georgia quail hunting. He was quite the character. The history and lineage of Ray Gene still flow throughout the fields and tall pines of Pinefields as his children and grandchildren continue to farm and manage portions of the land today.


Today
In 2013, Charles H. "Chas" Cannon, IV, and his wife Beth moved their family from Washington, D.C. back to the Pinefields farm house to raise their family. Chas began managing the family farm and timber operation that was now over 100 years old.
Today, the farm continues to be in agriculture and timber production across nearly 2,300 acres of deeded and leased property. Nearly all the cultivated acres are irrigated and the timber is intensively managed for harvest, recreation, wildlife habitat, and conservation. Wild game abounds on the property with several turkey, deer, dove, duck, quail, and other game animals harvested annually. Not much has changed at Pinefields over the last century and the wildlife residing on the property seem to appreciate that.
We think you will, too.
