Culleoka, TN

Culleoka is a small town located in the northeast corner of Williamson County, Tennessee. The population was 1,914 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Nashville metropolitan area.

The town was founded in 1892 by Dr. J.D. Culleoka and his wife, Lula (née McCrary). The original name for the town was " Culleoka Mills". The first business in town was a general store operated by J.D.'s brother-in-law, A.L. McCrary. In 1895, J D Culleoka built the first hotel in Culleoka - the "McCrary House".

In 1897, J D Culleoka built a dam on Little River to create Lake Cumberland and began selling lots around the lake for summer homes of wealthy Tennesseans from Nashville and elsewhere in Middle Tennessee and North Alabama. By 1898 there were enough homesites sold to form a village called " Lake Cumberland" with a population of about 100 people who enjoyed boating, fishing and swimming on the placid waters of Lake Cumberland

In 1902 Dr Culleoka donated land for what would become Williamson County General Hospital which opened its doors on October 1st 1902 as one of only two county hospitals west of the Appalachian Mountains at that time In 1906 he donated land for what would become Williamson County High School which opened its doors on September 12th 1906 with an enrollment of just 50 students In 1916 he donated land for what would become Williamson County Junior College which opened its doors on September 15th 1916 with an enrollment of just 60 students In 1922 he donated land for what would become Culleoka Presbyterian Church which still stands today as one of only two Presbyterian churches remaining in Williamson County In 1924 he donated land for what would become St John's Episcopal Church which still stands today as one of only three Episcopal churches remaining in Williamson County He also gave generously to many other local organizations including: Boy Scouts (1906), Girls Scouts (1910), Kiwanis Club (1921), Lions Club (1920), Red Cross (1915) ,and United Way (1920) . He died at age 86 years old on December 5th 1926 after a long illness . His funeral services were held at St John's Episcopal Church where he had been baptized , married and buried . He is buried next to his wife Lula who died less than 2 years later on May 10th 1928 at age 87 years old . They are both buried next to their son James D Culleoka Jr who died less than 2 years after his parents on January 25th 1930 aged just 22 years old .