Fifty years prior, the first settlers in the area along Barrett Creek consisted of two families named Gatlin and Scarborough.

[2] During the Civil War, financial hardships were endured by many households in the area due to some of the men having joined the 50th Tennessee Regiment in order to defend Fort Donelson during the February 1862 battle in which the Union won.

That business led the community to also host a general store, a school, a church, a cotton gin, a doctor's clinic (that building is still standing), and by 1915, would also be accompanied by a gristmill, a few sawmills, a blacksmith shop and a tobacco prizing factory.

[2] During the Great Depression, the population of the company began to decline due to many people needing to find work.

[2] Tharpe was located about 12 miles (19 km) northwest of Dover around the intersection of Tharpe Road (LBL Forest Roads 221 and 384) and the Woodlands Trace National Scenic Byway,[3] the latter of which was originally signed as Tennessee State Route 49 (SR 49) at the time of the town's existence.