08/22/2026
REMEMBERING
The Pooles, The Stars and The Stone.
Written by Jerry, Mcanally.
For over 60 years, Charles Poole was involved in some of the most beautiful stone masonry anywhere, the Poole Family name, even longer. Charles Poole would sit in his home atop the Freedom Hills in front of a wall size picture window and enjoy a panoramic view of Bear Creek Bottom. Several years ago, he invited me to enjoy the view and it was amazing.
Charles' dad, John Poole, laid the stone for the Carey Stephens home two doors north of the Piggly Wiggly in Belmont. Many of the older Tishomingo Stone homes you see out in the county were done by John Poole. The Poole Family and especially, Charles, have gone far and wide to do their beautiful stone work. The Tishomingo and Itawamba County Courthouses were the work of Charles Poole and his crew. Seawalls at Pickwick are Charles' work. Tishomingo Stone, as it is commonly called locally, is better known regionally as Hartselle Sandstone. There have been 4 known quarries in Tishomingo County. Much of the stone Charles has laid has come from his own property.
Today, Charles son and grandson operate the family business. Charles occasionally visits a jobsite to advise and assist.
I was in school with Charles and brother, Kenneth, so I know them from way back. Some of you will remember an older brother, Wallace, who was a banker in Belmont and later on in Prentiss County.
I called Charles this afternoon and we had a long conversation about our life and times. Stone laying is hard, heavy work and yet, Charles was at it from age 16 until age 76 fulltime. Charles is an amazing storyteller.
Of particular interest this time was the work he and the family have done around Nashville. Their kind of stone work has always been in high demand in upscale neighborhoods. Many of these neighborhoods around Nashville are occupied by country music stars.
While a few jobs included load-bearing stone walls, most jobs over the years are what we call stone veneers. This means basically a frame structure with the exterior wall covered with stone. Many of the latest jobs are called dry stack. In dry stack, the mortar is normally not visible.
Two notable jobs Charles did were in Belle Meade, Tennessee. Belle Meade is a suburb of Nashville. He did Bobby Goldsboro's and Jerry Reed's homes there. He used a stone called Arkansas Fieldstone on those two.
Many years ago, Brother Kenneth did one of Johnny Cash's homes in Nashville.
At Leiper's Fork Village in Tennessee, Charles veneered Pam Tillis' home with Tishomingo Fieldstone from his own property.
At Franklin, Tennessee, Charles did Gary Chapman's (Nashville Now) home with Blue Ruble Stone which came from Crossville, Tennessee.
Other famous people such as songwriter, Neal Thrasher's home was done by Charles' son, Tim.
Tishomingo Stone was put on Bryan Denning's home by Charles.
Of all the buildings and homes the Pooles have veneered with their stone, none seem to have aged. Many are over eighty years old and have faded only ever so slightly.
Today, Charles liked to hunt and just relax in his Freedom Hills home. He has left many stone monuments for him to reflect on and for others to enjoy around the country. When you would talk to Charles, you realize that he was happy with what he accomplished—and rightly so.
