Born in the hills of East Tennessee, Wampler’s Farm Sausage is a family owned and operated business that’s steeped in tradition yet leading the way in innovation and responsibility.

Wampler’s story is one of humble beginnings. Riley Wampler was a tenant farmer, selling vegetables from his garden and buying livestock to resell at the stockyard for income. In 1937, with $38 of building materials, Riley built a small tin shack and opened a slaughterhouse. Riley would harvest one animal at a time, and his wife, Edith, prepared the meat in their kitchen which they then sold door-to-door.
 
The slaughterhouse closed during World War II, but in 1947, Riley suggested to his son, Ted, that they reopen the business. Ted had just graduated from high school, so he agreed to join his dad. They each invested $1,100, which Ted had earned mostly by picking blackberries and selling fish bait. They were soon joined by Harry Wampler, Riley’s nephew, and the business expanded from door-to-door to store-to-store.

With the help from the next generation of the family and under the leadership of Ted’s son, Ted Jr., the company has seen tremendous growth, and its products are enjoyed by families all over the country. Riley and Ted’s original methods still live at the heart of Wampler’s process, and the family remains committed to responsibly producing the best sausage—on the farm where it all began more than 80 years ago.